The Dharma Bum -David Carlson.
A Farewell to My Dharma Brother, David Carlson
In San Francisco, I was fortunate to meet many great minds, especially during the two years I spent as a Zen student at the San Francisco Zen Center. Among them was my close friend David Carlson, a man of remarkable intelligence and spirit.
Before joining the Zen community, David had been a computer programmer for IBM, and he was part of the early team that helped install the Bank of America computer systems. But beneath his technical brilliance was a soul deeply curious about life’s greater mysteries. He was into everything thought-provoking — Zen practice, Yoga, and the many paths of alternative living that sought a more authentic way of being.
David was one of a kind — full of life, humor, and compassion for almost everyone he met. We both got married around the same time, and our children were born just a few weeks apart. During those years, while raising our young families, David and I spent many afternoons together at Golden Gate Park, taking our children for long walks beneath the eucalyptus trees.
He was a gentle and attentive father, and I was quietly influenced by the way he handled his son — with patience, understanding, and a calmness that came from his practice. Through his example, I learned more about fatherhood and about the deeper nature of love itself.
As the years passed, our paths wound through the many changes life brings — work, family, and the quiet search that never really ends. Though we both moved in different directions, the bond formed through shared practice and friendship remained unbroken.
It was sometime later, on one of his birthdays, that I brought David a lithograph of Yamantaka, one of the wrathful deities in Tibetan Buddhism — fierce protector of the Dharma, destroyer of ignorance. I remember how his eyes lit up when he unrolled it, studying the intricate details in silence. In that moment, there was no need for words. He understood its meaning — that compassion can wear many masks, and that even wrath, when purified, becomes a force of liberation.
He walked the Middle Path.
It was on that same day, in David’s living room, that I first met Nancy — the woman who would later become my wife and life companion. In hindsight, it feels as though the currents of karma flowed through that very moment, connecting our destinies through friendship, art, and love.
David’s wife, Diane Rabinowitz, and their son Tarik became part of the small circle of souls who shared the deeper journey — those conversations that wandered between Dharma, family, and the fragile beauty of being human.
Now, hearing that my dear brother David is nearing the end of his journey, I find myself returning to these memories with gratitude, not sorrow. His life was a teaching — a reminder that enlightenment is not found in temples or sutras, but in the small acts of kindness, curiosity, and courage to live fully.
May his final days be gentle, and may his spirit continue to shine across the vast sky of the Great Way.
A Note Sent to His Wife
For My Brother, David Carlson
In the quiet breath between this world and the next,
may you rest in the boundless stillness we once shared.
The Dharma you carried — through kindness, humor, and clarity —
shines now like a lantern over the dark waters.
I send you the image of Yamantaka,
not as the wrathful protector,
but as the fierce compassion that cuts through illusion —
the same light you embodied all along.
May your final steps be light,
your mind clear as mountain air after rain.
And when the great bell sounds in the valley of silence,
may it call you home to the vastness you have always been.
With love and gratitude,
Your brother in the Way,
Shamsul Bahari
#ZenBrotherhood #DharmaFriends #SanFranciscoZenCenter #SpiritualJourney #InMemoriam #Compassion #Awakening
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