My Beloved Peter Koestenbaum
It is with a broken and full heart that I share with you that Peter Koestenbaum has passed on…
In the Spring of 2020, I was forwarded an event update by a friend and colleague. There was an attachment which was briefly referenced by the original sender entitled, Do You Have the Will to Lead. What would follow was an interview with Peter Koestenabaum in Fast Company. The article captivated me and I followed my curiosity down the rabbit hole to find Peter Koestenbaum. I listened to every interview I could find online and ordered two of his books: The Inner Side of Greatness and The Philosophic Consultant. Everything resonated. But where in the world was Peter Koestenbaum and why couldn’t I follow him on Instagram or at least Facebook or LinkedIn?
Eventually, I found an email for Peter and he graciously agreed to have a call with me. During our first conversation he said to me, “I think we can create something here. I’m at your disposal. I’m interested in supporting you. I’m 93. I’m not a young guy any more and I've got a lovely wife who helps out. I’m strongly working on what it means to exist as a human in the world and that kind of stuff. What kind of a connection can you see between your family and my family or you and me? What kind of conversation would you welcome?”
And so it began. Peter would start as my mentor and professor, connecting with me each week for an hour or two teaching me philosophy and coaching me in deepening my thinking. He would end as my spiritual companion and friend. Each week, we would sit together, he in Carmel and me in Richardson, while he shared his heart and mind and soul with me. Twice, I did get to visit he and his wife Patty who graciously received me at their homes in Carmel.
I am but one of so many people whose life and work and very philosophy of life was impacted by Peter. I share this excerpt of a conversation of ours with you so that you too can hold him and this absolute reality in your heart for all of eternity, as I will in mine. I hope to share more of Peter and what we learned together with you. I love you Peter.
“What I’m ready for now, and I don't know how close to death I am but I hope to live another ten years, but basically the thought of my non-being or the I-Am non-being is not possible. I cannot think or see clearly what it means not to be so I’m stuck with this permanence of being and I should maybe fall into that more freely and accept it with the faithfulness of an oriental philosopher or what have you. Space, time and consciousness are all the same thing. They are internal, they are external, they are eternal, they are created, they are indestructible, and I know this by birth. I can know nothing else. I know it’s true. And if you don't understand that, I have no way to explain that to you.
That would be what the conclusion of our conversations really are…
I know that it is absolutely correct, absolutely correct, that space, time and consciousness, both external and internal, are one and the same phenomenon and I know this to be certain without knowing how I got there. I cannot deny that. And I don’t know how I know that.
And nevertheless I know that the I Am experience is the eternal here and now. That is the ultimate reality. How can I deal with that now? And that would be basically to say it is impossible to think otherwise. I cannot think that space, time and consciousness, external and internal, that's all one phenomenon as it were. I cannot deny that. I cannot deny its reality, its universality and yet I have no proof or what have you. It’s not a linguistic trick. It’s a reality that stares me in the face and maybe I should take that more seriously in some fashion….
I shouldn’t be too timid about this but to simply say the non-being of the eternal here and now is always there. I cannot deny it. But I don’t take that seriously enough. Why don’t I take that seriously enough? And then being human is a decision that I make. And the philosopher has to explain that to me how I create that phenomenon of my being finite. And trying to understand how I create my own finitude is all very simple. And this view, which you have touched upon many times in our conversations, maybe that's what we should talk about, but not be afraid or timid. And the consequences are a kind of peace, a kind of compassion. It all follows from that. And maybe I should be more generous with these ideas and accept them more freely than I tend to do. And this surrender to a kind of mysticism of that sort has been the impact of our relationship on me, has been talking with you or you talking with me, makes me feel connected in a sense and maybe this is much clearer and much simpler than you and I thought it to be.”
-Peter Koestenbaum
1928-2024
Here is a video link of Peter Koestenbaum and his dear friend Peter Block to help you see his essence and his heart.