After all these efforts, he was well versed in Sanskrit and read and understood all the sutras in Sanskrit. I was simply surprised by his profound knowledge when he gave me a copy of the Śrāvakabhūmi by Ācārya Asaṅga edited by Karunesha Shukla. One day, a professor of quantum mechanics from the University of Tokyo joined our study session on Consciousness Only, and our question-and-answer session was truly a moment of witnessing the cutting edge of the times.

I cannot write about the specifics because of the privacy of the deceased.

Yokoyama-sensei said that he was not feeling well even before the Covid-19 epidemic. In April 2021, he reported that he was suffering from various concurrent illnesses. From September to November 2022, he was repeatedly transferred to other hospitals due to complications such as subarachnoid hemorrhage. Even under such circumstances, I have to do what I have to do.

When he was in good health, he told me, “Do what you have to do. Do not be upset no matter what happens. Everything is a manifestation of your mind.”

To return the favor is nothing but to follow the teachings and put them into practice. I had to prepare for the publication, and as a monk, I gave top priority to the Buddhist ceremonies at the temple for the believers. I also had to deal with my students. Even though I wanted to visit him, I could not do so. I cried when sensei’s students reported his picture and his recent condition to me. They could not exchange words, only gestures, but at the end of the conversation, he said, “Arigato.”

He underwent surgery on December 12, 2022, and it was successful. However, on January 9, 2023 at 19:47, sensei changed the place where he preached from this world to a different world.

I clearly remember this. Sensei said that no matter what happens, he always tries to say Arigato. This is because everything is a manifestation of our own mind, and to speak ill of others or speak behind their backs is the same as defiling our own mind.

One of the diseases of recent years is that people easily say bad words on social media and other internet sites, and I am sure we all have some familiar examples of this. I feel that we are living in an age when we must realize that these things are, after all, defiling our minds.

Yokoyama-sensei, thank you so much for your kindness and teachings.

Arigato-gozaimashita.

He published an English book on Wisdom Publications.