Safran was the editor of the influential book Psychoanalysis and Buddhism: An Unfolding Dialogue.
Jeremy Safran. Photo via Facebook.
Dr. Jeremy Safran, the clinician, psychotherapist, and researcher who wrote extensively on the integration of mindfulness and psychotherapy, was killed in his Brooklyn home Monday, New York Daily News reports. He was 66.
Safran was a professor of psychology at the New School for Social Research, where he also served as director of clinical psychology for many years. He edited the influential book Psychoanalysis and Buddhism: An Unfolding Dialogue, published by Wisdom in 2003, and formerly served as the president of the International Association for Relational Psychotherapy & Psychoanalysis (IARPP).
Police responded to a 911 call at 6pm on Monday reporting a burglary in progress in Safran’s home, where he lived with his wife and two daughters. Safran was found dead in the basement of the home with trauma to his head and body. A hammer was recovered from the scene, and a 28-year-old man was found hiding in a closet in the home, police said. The intruder was taken into custody, where he is undergoing questioning.
Safran practiced mindfulness in Japanese, Chinese and Tibetan traditions for over 40 years, and published over 150 articles and chapters in his lifetime, as well as several books. Along with Leslie Greenberg, Safran was one of the co-founders of emotion-focused therapy and also held a private practice of psychotherapy and psychoanalysis in New York City.
Zen Buddhist teacher and Psychoanalyst Barry Magid reacted to Safran’s death on Facebook, where he wrote:
I was shocked to learn of the sudden death of Jeremy Safran, my good friend and colleague. His “Psychoanalysis & Buddhism: An Unfolding Dialogue,” became the prototype for what is now almost two decades of interdisciplinary engagement and mutual influence. The chapter he asked me to contribute to that volume became the basis for my first book, “Ordinary Mind,” and our own personal dialogue continued to unfold over the years. That he should be murdered in his own home is something no one could have imagined and is a tragic reminder of what may befall any of us at any moment. He was a sweet man. I and many many others will miss him.
