Born in Kyoto, Japan, in 1933, Eiichi Shimomissé received his B.A. in Philosophy from Kyoto University and his Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Mainz, West Germany. He began teaching Philosophy at the University of Maryland in Europe in 1965, taught at USC 1970-71, then moved to California State University Dominguez Hills as Chair of the Philosophy Department in order to develop the curriculum, chairing the Department of Philosophy from 1971 through 1978. His specialties in Philosophy are Phenomenology, History of European Philosophy and Philosophies of China and Japan. His book, Die Phenomenologie und das Problem der Grundelegund der Ethik, is a major contribution to the question of moral obligation.
In 2002 he retired as Professor Emeritus, currently residing in Rancho Palos Verdes, California with his wife, Lavonne and their two cats Tilly and Subhuti.