Maezumi's Legacy

"Maezumi Roshi’s style was warm, dynamic and direct. He lettered a sign on the zendo reading, “If you want to clarify the Great Matter of life and death you are welcome. Otherwise, better get out!” When Maezumi Roshi admitted in public that he was an alcoholic, he did so with deep remorse. Puritanical American idealism with its unrealistic expectations led many to assume the master was above vices and led to a mass exodus… “In fact he was a great teacher with unresolved issues,” recalls long-time student John Daishin Buksbazen. “It knocked the idea of the perfect guru into a cocked hat.” Seeing their Japanese master at a human level forced students to re-examine their own motivations. Why had they come here? Some came to work out personal problems, seeking salvation, seeking answers to the great “Who am I?” and “What is reality?” questions. Whatever the reasons, suddenly they had to assess what practice meant to them and jettison the rest…
                                                                                                              Ekyo Maezumi, Roshi’s wife speaks without a trace of bitterness. “It helped the students to see that the teacher wasn’t omnipotent and the teacher was human,” says Ekyo. “It made each person realize that they were responsible for their practice.” One student expressed heartbroken joy with his fallen guru. “Disillusionment is great, It means I’ve stopped being illusioned and from that point of view my relationship with the teacher has worked. I am not angry, but free.”…After things settled down, Maezumi Roshi continued teaching, holding retreats and leading his students to (paraphrasing Dogen Roshi’s words) study the self, forget the self and be enlightened by the ten thousand dharmas. “He had the meatiest, juiciest time as a teacher ahead of him, he was reaching a nice ripe old age,” says Genpo Roshi.

      But just when the sangha seemed to be riding smoothly, their teacher let go. On May 15, 1995, venerable Zen master Hakuyu Taizan Maezumi Roshi wrote an inka poem bestowing final approval on his senior disciple, Tetsugen Glassman Sensei, the “eldest son” of the White Plum sangha, placed it in an envelope and gave it to his brothers. Hours later, before dawn broke over the trees of Tokyo, Maezumi Roshi drowned…
                                                                                                             In December 1997, a fire started by a space heater in what used to be Maezumi Roshi’s residence at ZCLA, where Egyoku Sensei was trying to make her home. Afterwards, a fireman took her to survey the room, gutted and charred. Suddenly, Maezumi Roshi appeared by her side. “Something is gone now,” he said. “That’s a good thing, Egyoku. Now do what you have to do here.” She finally felt a release that allowed her to completely overhaul the center. “Nothing has been left unturned. But someday it will be cut back again.” On the evening of his death, in the inka poem he wrote to Bernie Glassman, he said,

Life after life, birth after birth
Never Falter.
Do not let die the Wisdom seed of the Buddhas and Ancestors.
Truly! I implore you!

~ Noa Jones, White Plums and Lizard Tails: The story of Maezumi Roshi and his American Lineage, Lion’s Roar Mar. 2004

Photo ~ Maezumi Successors
Muryo, Chozen, Bernie, Maezumi, Genpo, Yuho, Daido