Steve Jobs early ‘Thoughts on spirituality’ in rare letter

A very rare letter from Steve Jobs looks at some of his thoughts on Zen

A letter in which the 19-year-old Steve Jobs discusses his thoughts on Zen Buddhism is going to be auctioned at Bonhams. It’s thought to be the first time a letter handwritten by Jobs has ever come to auction,

Perhaps the first ever real letter from Jobs to reach auction

The Apple CEO was deeply influenced by Zen Buddhism. It’s an influence he carried with him all his life. Famously, he is reputed to have read Parmahansa Yogananda’s ‘Autobiography of a Yogi’ every year.

The letter is written just before the young Jobs made his also famous journey over to an ashram in the Himalayan foothills and got his head shaved on his spiritual journey. Always on a journey, he sought the meaning of life, before deciding the best meaning was to innovate within it.

The signed letter was written when Jobs lived in a cabin in the foothills of the Santa Cruz mountains and had just returned from a stint working on an apple farm. Written to childhood friend, Tim Brown, Jobs discusses Zen Buddhism and his desire to travel to India for the Kumba Mela, revealing both a spiritual and poetic side.

What Steve Jobs writes

The letter provides a rare glimpse of insight into the inner life of the man. Written entirely in lower case, it says:

“tim i have read your letter many times / i do not know what to say. many mornings have come and gone / people have came and went / i have loved and i have cried many times. / somehow, though, beneath it all it doesn’t change – do you understand?”

In the missive, Jobs explains his desire to travel to India for the Kumba Mela, a major Hindu pilgrimage and festival. He took that trip in April 1973, and it had a profound effect on him and his work. That trip also inspired his practise of Zen Buddhism.

Upon returning, he began following Kobun Chino Otogawa with whom he met almost daily, a practise that continued throughout his life. Jobs signs off the letter ” i will end by saying i do not even know where to begin. / shanti / steve jobs.”. A wonderfully circular line which, again, shows the existential curiosity that a young Jobs possessed.

A very rare piece

Bonhams Director of History of Science and Technology, Adam Stackhouse, said: “Steve Jobs was both a brilliant and complex man, but the real Jobs was hidden from public view. This letter gives us a fascinating insight into the mental processes of one of the world’s greatest creators and entrepreneurs. It is known among his friends that Steve Jobs rarely, if ever, wrote letters. It is a testament to the respect Jobs had for Brown that he put pen to paper to share his thoughts, with the two keeping in touch throughout their lives. This is particularly special as no autograph letters from Jobs have appeared at auction before, and certainly no material as revealing and insightful as this.”

Letter from Jobs

Also at auction

The letter is expected to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars. The auction also sees a uniquely rare 1982 Macintosh prototype that once belonged to Jef Raskin and a signed agreement between Jobs and Randy Wiggington to biuld a Macintosh Word Processor. There’s also first generation iPad prototype built in 2009.

Now learn why Apple’s Steve Jobs loved to walk and so should you.

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