The Thomas Merton Center at Bellarmine University

MERTON'S CORRESPONDENCE WITH:
Byles, Marie Beuzeville, 1900-1979

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Descriptive Summary

Record Group: Section A - Correspondence

Dates of materials: 1966-1967

Volume: 6 item(s); 7 pg(s)

Scope and Content

Biography

Marie Beuzeville Byles was one of the pioneer Buddhist scholars in Australia, publishing the book, Footprints of Gautama the Buddha. During their correspondence, she was assaulted and severely injured by an unknown assailant, leaving her with a long period of recovery.

Usage Guidelines and Restrictions

Related Information and Links

See one published letter from Merton to Byles in Witness to Freedom, pp. 330-331.

Other Finding Aids

If the person in correspondence with Merton has full text records in the Merton Center Digital Collections, there will be a numeric link to them below.
   

Series List

This Record Sub-Group is not divided into Series and is arranged chronologically.

Container List

SeriesDateTypeTo/FromFirst LinesPubFull TextNotes
 1966/10/20 TLSto MertonI am very much appreciating 'Gandhi and the One-Eyed Giant', and shall try and get the local  <i>Gandhi and Non-Violence</i> / Arthur Osbourne / Byles' book on Tenko San and Ittoen - whether Tenko San's idea of "doing what people ask you (not in the sense of being a doormat") versus Catholic holy obedience
 1967/01/09 TL[c]from MertonYour kind letter of October 20th took a good long time to reach me via India, and I only got itYes Catholic idea of holy obedience - ancient idea of holy obedience from the Gospels and taken up by religious orders - difference between obedience and the legalism of blind obedience / problems in Catholicism of impersonal power systems versus the things it should be liberating us from
 1967/01/22 HLSto MertonMany thanks for your letter about Holy Obedience which I think corresponds to Tenko San's ideas but  sending <i>Footprints of Gautama the Buddha</i> / describes a criminal attack made upon her
 1967/02/01 TL[c]from MertonI am simply appalled to hear of your misfortune. Unfortunately it seems that more and more people   
 1967/05/03 HLSto MertonMany thanks for "Chuang Tzu". I have already recommended it for the library of an acquaintance  asks whether <i>Way of Chuang Tzu</i> was reviewed for <u>The Middle Way</u> / morality of Zen and the absence of the "Golden Rule"
 1967/05/12 TL[c]from MertonYour book on the Buddha is a joy to read and full of wisdom, so that once again I want to tell you  Byles' book on Buddha, <i>Footprints of Gautama the Buddha</i> (see "Marginalia" collection in the Merton Center for Merton's notes on this book) / <i>Way of Chuang Tzu</i> has not been reviewed in English to Merton's knowledge and permits Byles to review it in <u>The Middle Way</u> / Merton sends piece on Marcel and Buddha
        

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