everyone, Allen started giving lectures at universities and public festivals. At the "Gathering of the Tribes for a Human Be-In," one of many festivals in the 60s, Allen, Ken Kesey, Lawrence Ferlengetti, and others showed up to give political speeches and to read their poetry. Although Allen loved to give speeches, he did not like political opium; these festivals had youth of America attending, while Allen wanted them to think while having fun. ...when the Vietnam War was claiming more lives than anyone would have predicted a few years earlier, Haight-Ashbury made more sense than Washington D.C., to the growing ranks of youths dropping out of society. This is why Allen did not like to give lectures, because these kids were there just to be there. So after the 60s, Allen primarily worked with small groups at lecture halls, and not huge rallies with tens of thousands of people. In the fall of 1998, Allen met D.T. Suzuki and gave him a copy of "Howl." After this meeting, Allen stirred his up his Buddhist beliefs and stated talking to Jack Kerouac about Buddhist ways of life. Jack Kerouac prided himself with the knowledge in Buddhism and Taoism he attained over years of study. With this knowledge, he proclaimed himself Allens teacher. For Allen this was a role reversal.As with some people in the 60s, Allen became a practicing Buddhist. On May 6, 1971, at a reading with Robert Bly and Gary Synder, Allen took an official vow of the Buddhist way of life. He read and took classes on Buddhism at Colombia and practiced Buddhist ways of thought and life, but until then, he was not an official Buddhist. At his induction ceremony, he became known as the Lion of Dharma. ...
