Myogen Steve Stücky

Photo: Liping Zhu

Photo: Liping Zhu

Steven Stücky / Daitsu Myogen
Great Pervading Subtle Eye
March 6, 1946 – December 31, 2013

San Francisco Zen Center’s first central abbot, Myogen Steve Stücky, died shortly after 4:00 on the morning of December 31 at his home in Rohnert Park, California. He was 67.

Since receiving a diagnosis of stage IV pancreatic cancer in late September, he has been widely admired for courageously sharing publicly his ongoing personal process of living with terminal illness, first in a dharma talk titled “Gratitude,” given two days after receiving his diagnosis, and subsequently with posts on his Subtle Eye blog. His longtime emphasis on body practice—learning from and respecting the body—took on a particular poignancy in the months leading up to his death. As he said in his talk, “Each of us can do something, right up to the last moment.”

Cremation Ceremony

Monday, January 6, 2014, at 10 am
Pleasant Hills Memorial Park and Mortuary
1700 Pleasant Hill Road, Sebastopol, CA 95472
707-823-5042

Sojun Mel Weitsman will officiate this small public ceremony.

Funeral Ceremony

Sunday, February 9, 2014, at 3 pm
Green Dragon Temple
1601 Shoreline Highway, Muir Beach, CA

Abbess Eijun Linda Cutts will officiate this public ceremony.

January 2: Death Poem

January 2: Death Poem

Steve's body is laid out in a room dedicated for sitting with him at his home. The room, once used as a zendo by both the former home owners and...

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December 31: The Great Leap

December 31: The Great Leap

Steve died this morning at 4:04, peacefully at home with family. At City Center beginning at 6:00 this morning, we rang the densho (bell) 108 times,...

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December 24

Dear Friends, I have not provided an update since before the Stepping Down Ceremony on December 15th, and I am having a surprisingly difficult time...

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December 12

December 12

As mentioned in the last post, Abbot Steve now receives regular medication injections and is able to “dose” himself as needed. This is a relief for...

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December 9

Last week Abbot Steve's pain level increased significantly, and hospice care was unable to relieve the pain, so he went to the hospital. Now he is...

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December 5

December 5

Dear Friends, Included in this update are two pictures. Most mornings Abbot Steve does a morning jundo. This is a ceremony in which he carries a lit...

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