I wrote this two years ago and am posting it now because I've not forgotten.
I recently learned that my dear friend and teacher, Mokusen Miyuki, died on April 7th. He was Japanese, an 18th generation Buddhist Priest, a well known Jungian analyst, and the kindest human being that I have ever encountered.
Mokusen was always looking for a new way to see the world, always interested in increasing his capacity to comprehend the deeper meaning of life. He had a delightful sense of humor and would often laugh at himself until tears rolled down his face. And even though he was from an entirely different culture, he somehow was able to listen and understand me on such a deep level. For that listening and understanding, I feel truly blessed.
He always encouraged me and accepted me for exactly who I am. In the course of a conversation, if I said something that irritated him, he would just say, “I’m feeling aversion. I must not understand. Tell me your dreams.” And so I did, and it was a wonderful exchange: My dreams and drawings for his Wisdom. I trust that everything he told me was true, including his recurrent comment that, “Everything is worthy of equal respect,” a teaching I’ve been chewing on for over 25 years. He taught me so many things that changed my life, and he taught largely by example.
I share this with you now, both to honor him, and to say that I had been thinking of him for the past few weeks and meaning to call or write him. But I was so caught up in the current of my own life that I didn’t follow my intuition. Then his daughter Agnes wrote and told me the news of his death. I so regret not reaching out. So, Dear Friends, take this as a reminder not to hesitate to tell people how much you love them while they are alive. Tell them again and again. It might be the only thing worth saying.
I recently learned that my dear friend and teacher, Mokusen Miyuki, died on April 7th. He was Japanese, an 18th generation Buddhist Priest, a well known Jungian analyst, and the kindest human being that I have ever encountered.
Mokusen was always looking for a new way to see the world, always interested in increasing his capacity to comprehend the deeper meaning of life. He had a delightful sense of humor and would often laugh at himself until tears rolled down his face. And even though he was from an entirely different culture, he somehow was able to listen and understand me on such a deep level. For that listening and understanding, I feel truly blessed.
He always encouraged me and accepted me for exactly who I am. In the course of a conversation, if I said something that irritated him, he would just say, “I’m feeling aversion. I must not understand. Tell me your dreams.” And so I did, and it was a wonderful exchange: My dreams and drawings for his Wisdom. I trust that everything he told me was true, including his recurrent comment that, “Everything is worthy of equal respect,” a teaching I’ve been chewing on for over 25 years. He taught me so many things that changed my life, and he taught largely by example.
I share this with you now, both to honor him, and to say that I had been thinking of him for the past few weeks and meaning to call or write him. But I was so caught up in the current of my own life that I didn’t follow my intuition. Then his daughter Agnes wrote and told me the news of his death. I so regret not reaching out. So, Dear Friends, take this as a reminder not to hesitate to tell people how much you love them while they are alive. Tell them again and again. It might be the only thing worth saying.
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