Death: Questions & answers Section 1

7/31/2019 Death: Questions & answers Section 1

1/58

Index Section 1: Introduction

Q 1: What is death? (Page 2)Q 2: What deathis not? (7)Q3: What is the difference between anormal death and another who consciouslyenters Samadhi? (11) Q4: what are the causesfor fear of death? (13)Q5: Is the dying personfrightened of death? (16) Q6: What do thescriptures say with regard to fear of death? (17)Q7: How can one overcome the fear of death?(24)Q8: Why are we afraid of the dead? (25)

Q9: Is weeping around the dead body a rightpractice? (27)Q10: What is the relationship between deathand breath? (28)

Q11: Why is death referred to as the final exam for man?(29) Q12: Is it true that the last thoughts at the time ofdeath influence the next birth?(30) Q13: Can a murdererget away from hellish punishment just by thinking of Godat the time of death? (34) Q14: What is considered as agood death? (35) Q 15: What is the prayer on the lipsof the Yogi one who is about to die? (39) Q16: Which is

better? Sleeping and dying or waking up and dying? (40)Q17: What do scriptures suggest with regard to a way ofending life well? (41) Q18: What are the guidelines forgood living so as to ensure good death? (43) Q19: Howcan the relatives around help the dying?(55) Q 20: Whatshould be our approach to the dying? (56) Q21: Howshould rituals be performed for the dead and by whom?(57)

1


2/58

Q 1: What is death?

A: Death means end of body.

Deha in Sanskrit means body. Antha isend.Death, the English word is derived from

the Sanskrit word, Dehanth. The Greek word fordeath is Thanetos.

Deha in turn has its roots in the Sanskrit wordDehi, meaning "embodied." Death is the end ofembodiment.

In the process of creation, Fire comes first. At theend of bodys journey, body is to be consumed byFire. From fire has come the body, unto fire isgiven the body.

From Chaandogya Upanishad (5.9.2), we read,The life emerges from Agni or Light and entersinto the same element after death

According to some, body is matter, sustained ofmatter and hence should end as matter. Hence

body is that which is buriable in earth, thematter. When wisdom concerning ones ethereal body

arises, the physical body ceases to be recognized astrue. When such recognition is missing, there isdeath.

Death according to Bhagavata:

When the linga sarira, the subtle body, becomes incapableof experiencing objects due to the instrument of contact,

namely the gross body being devoid of I ness, that stateis called the death. When this capacity is restored to the I

2


3/58

sense, by the provision of a proper body that is calledbirth.

Nineteen elements of the astral body that are mental,emotional and life force, leave the body on death.They are:

1. Intelligence2. Ego3. Feeling4. Mind (sense consciousness)5. Five instruments of knowledge6. Five instruments of action7. The five elements of life force

3

The ethereal body (read mind)steps out of the physical body

on death of the body. The

components that move out along

with the ethereal body are:

1. Intelligence 2. Ego 3. Feeling

4. Mind (sense consciousness)

5. Five instruments of

knowledge, comprising the

subtle counterparts of the

senses of sight, hearing, smell,

taste and touch. ( 5,6,7,8,9)

6. Five instruments of action,the mental correspondence for

the executive abilities to

procreate, excrete, talk, walk

and exercise manual skill.

(10,11,12,13,14)

7 The five elements of life force, those empowered to

perform the crystallizing, assimilating, eliminating,

metabolizing and circulating functions of the body.

(15,16,17,18 and 19)

INCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/images?q=tbn:yHZQ0M-WdoIis
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.meta-religion.com/Paranormale/OBE/images/silber1.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.meta-religion.com/Paranormale/OBE/experiences_in_the_etheric.htm&h=374&w=237&sz=5&tbnid=yHZQ0M-WdoIisM:&tbnh=118&tbnw=74&hl=en&start=5&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsilver%2Bcord%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DGhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.meta-religion.com/Paranormale/OBE/images/silber1.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.meta-religion.com/Paranormale/OBE/experiences_in_the_etheric.htm&h=374&w=237&sz=5&tbnid=yHZQ0M-WdoIisM:&tbnh=118&tbnw=74&hl=en&start=5&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsilver%2Bcord%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DGhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.meta-religion.com/Paranormale/OBE/images/silber1.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.meta-religion.com/Paranormale/OBE/experiences_in_the_etheric.htm&h=374&w=237&sz=5&tbnid=yHZQ0M-WdoIisM:&tbnh=118&tbnw=74&hl=en&start=5&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsilver%2Bcord%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG


4/58

Death is a process of ones re-merger with the elementsLife emerges out of elements. Death is a process of onesre-merger with the elements. The elements with whichman is made of is earth, water and fire. Death is a process

by which the earth, water and fire elements decay anddissolve.

The physiological signs and the mental signs ofapproaching death, with the corresponding element can bedescribed as:

Element Physical sign Mental sign

Earth/Solid

Body becomes thin due todecaying of the earthelement.

Lack ofsolidity.Mirage likeappearance tothe mind.

Water/Liquid

Mouth and tonguebecomes dry.Body liquids like blood,urine and sperm decrease.

Lack ofliquidity.Wavyappearance in

the mind.

Fire/gaseous

Reduced warmth in thebody, especially aroundthe navel region, thecentre of bodys heat.

Lack of firepower.Sparkling fire-flies likeappearance

4

Death facts:

On average, right-handed people live

nine years longer than their left-handedcounterparts.

INCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/images?q=tbn:CAkVHnzwNQdX
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.leftyscorner.com/images/yellowhand.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.leftyscorner.com/&h=223&w=300&sz=32&tbnid=CAkVHnzwNQdX4M:&tbnh=82&tbnw=111&hl=en&start=2&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dleft%2Bhanded%2Bpeople%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DGhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.leftyscorner.com/images/yellowhand.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.leftyscorner.com/&h=223&w=300&sz=32&tbnid=CAkVHnzwNQdX4M:&tbnh=82&tbnw=111&hl=en&start=2&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dleft%2Bhanded%2Bpeople%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DGhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.leftyscorner.com/images/yellowhand.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.leftyscorner.com/&h=223&w=300&sz=32&tbnid=CAkVHnzwNQdX4M:&tbnh=82&tbnw=111&hl=en&start=2&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dleft%2Bhanded%2Bpeople%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG


5/58

Death is like a sunset, it is only an appearance.

In reality we know sun never sets.What is seen as a sun set in oneplace is seen as a sun rise inanother place. The usage of theterm sun set is only in relation toobservance of a sun rise in a given

place at a given time.

The soul is like sun, it never dies. It is only seen to bepassing away when it leaves one body to take on another.Death here is birth elsewhere. Death is only an illusion and

disappears once knowledge dawns that one is not a body.

Death is the shedding of your gross physical layer:

Like a snake that sheds itsskin, man leaves behind hisgross physical layer andtakes on the subtle body.Like a leech that holds oneleaf before leaving theearlier, the soul holds on to

the subtle before leavingthe gross. In fact it is lackof knowledge that makesman think of his grosslayer as real and forget hissubtle form.

Death is like moving from one room to another

5
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.whurst.net/rendering/povray/sunset-003-1792x1344.png&imgrefurl=http://www.whurst.net/rendering/povray/sunset.php&h=1344&w=1792&sz=2864&tbnid=Zmg-LaTjQI2_KM:&tbnh=112&tbnw=150&hl=en&start=7&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsunset%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG


6/58

I have moved from one room toanother. I am not dead said the

spirit of Shri Ramakrishna whenSharada Devi, his devoted wife anddisciple wanted to break the

bangles, as is the custom for aHindu woman who loses her husband.

Death is transcending space and time:

At death one terminates his relationshipwith the gross. The gross is subject tothe limitations of space and time. After

death, this limitation is broken. That isthe reason the apparition is shownpassing through a wall or a just dead person appearing at afriends place thousands of miles away at the same time hewas pronounced dead.

In dream too we transcend time and space. In dream we goback to our childhood or meet one a few hundreds ofkilometers away. The difference between dream and deathis that in death we shed the present body forever.

Death is a perfect sleep:

While sleep is an imperfectdeath, death is a complete and

perfect sleep. Death, like sleep,is followed by an awakening toa fresh period of activity in

earth life.

In sleep we dream, our dreams peopled by those we knew,filled with experiences that are vivid and absorbing whilethey last. In death too we dream filled with the same set of

people and experiences. If the mind is filed with good

6
http://library.thinkquest.org/12523/media/logo.gifhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://photos1.blogger.com/img/164/1000/640/broken%2520bangles.jpg&imgrefurl=http://dailygyaan.blogspot.com/&h=312&w=600&sz=46&tbnid=BVgcbInHhHsXqM:&tbnh=69&tbnw=133&hl=en&start=15&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dbroken%2Bbangles%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG


7/58

people and pleasant thoughts and experiences, after deathtoo, one continues to be in the same pleasant environment.

On the other hand if mind is filled with hatred and fear,after death too, the thoughts of fear and hatred daunt thedead.

Q 2: What death is not?

A: Death is not the annihilation of life, but onlya transit point for rebirth

What is called death is a transition from one set

of experiences to another. Each set ofexperience requires a new body as the old

body, being worn out is not capable ofexperiencing sense objects. Life cannever be annihilated as it is for ever. Thelife principle in the body transfers itselfto an ethereal body to experience and on

finding the need to have more gross physical experiencetakes on a new birth. This process continues indefinitely,until one day realization dawns that the individual wassuffering from ignorance and under hallucination assumedhimself to the physical body and with this wrongidentification assumed end of body as death of oneself.

Death is not the opposite of life, but is only a phase

of life

7

You cannot do anything about the

length of your life, but you can do

something about its width and depth.

Evan Esser
http://www.astrosurf.com/lombry/Documents/transit-venus-8juin2004-3d-contact-anim-furlanetto.gif


8/58

Death actually contradicts life; while living, death is nonexistent, and in death life is not existent, because that

which holds together either experience is absent in theother. One cannot say either is real or unreal, but one canonly say that the substratum alone is real.

Death is not the end of all that one stood for in life,but

only a consolidation of all that one stood for.

One chooses to be born on his volition. It is not a result ofany punishment meted out by any external agent or factor.All that one stood for is the imagination of the individual

in his ignorant state of identification with his grossphysical body. Whatever is the belief of an individual, thatbelief, in the form of impressions remains with him at thetime of death. The impressions are carried forward to theethereal body and on noticing the need to fulfill unfulfilleddesires, new body is assumed. In the new birth, all that onestood for in the earlier incarnation continues untilrealization dawns that all this value system that oneimagines as the right thing to pursue is the product of anignorant mind.Pythagoras, the Greek philosopher mathematician said,

After death, the rational mind, having been freed from thechains of the body, assumes an ethereal vehicle and passesinto the region of the dead (pitru loka), where it remainstill it is sent back to the this world to inhabit another body,human or animal. After undergoing successive purgationwhen it is sufficiently purified, it is received amongst theGods and returns to the eternal source from which is first

proceeded.

Death is not a termination station, but a transitjunction

8


9/58

Death is not an end. End of death is the end. It is the mindthat imagines the presence of birth and death. The body

gets destroyed after a few decades, but mind does not.Mind can never be killed, it can only be transcended. Onsuch transcendence, one realizes that he was under illusionimagining birth and death, where none of them existed.

Death is not something exclusive to only oneDeath is not something exclusive to only one, but aninevitable onward progress to everyone, be they beasts or

birds or men or monkeys, or even inanimate trees orstones.

Why me alone? Why my child alone?, are the wailingsof a few emotional ones Every single entity in theuniverse is subject to death, the oceans and mountainsincluded. Death is a natural progression for onwardupliftment. If there is no death, there is no evolution either.

Even this whole universe will one day die. Sun determinesour calendar and hence we talk of life span as a certainnumber of years. But even sun will die one day. The Sun isabout 4.5 billion years old. It has used up about half of itsnuclear fuel (hydrogen). In about 5 billion years from now,

the sun will begin to die. After this phase, the outer layersof the Sun will continue to expand. As this happens, thecore will contract; the helium atoms in the core will fusetogether, forming carbon atoms and releasing energy. Thecore will then be stable since the carbon atoms are notfurther compressible. Then the outer layers of the Sun driftoff into space, forming a planetary nebula (a planetarynebula has nothing to do with planets), exposing the core.

Most of its mass will go to the nebula. The remaining Sunwill cool and shrink; it will eventually be only a fewthousand miles in diameter!

9


10/58

Death is not a painful end, but an end to pain

Imagine a terminally ill cancer patent or a severely crushedaccident victim, not being able to die! What a torture itwould be! When we see patients suffering with acutediscomfort, have we not silently prayed to the Gods that beto allow the patient a peaceful death, without furthersuffering?

Death is not an end to ones form, but a change to onesform.

Death is but a change of dress,

a new form gifted by a new setof parents. Will we be happyif we are to have only one pairof trouser and shirt and livethe whole life with it? What isto be given up is the false

identity with one particular name and form. Will a stageactor be unhappy to give up his stage make up and name?Will the caterpillar be unhappy to become a butterfly?

Death is not a struggle, but a well earned rest.

Death is definitely not a struggle. The struggle is thereonly for those few immature individuals who are far tooattached to a particular form and a set of kith and kin.Death is a well earned rest. It is like a bird that is tied,struggling the whole day moving around and getting tiredwishing to get back to the same place it is tied

10

NCLUDEPICTURE "http://wings.avkids.com/Book/Animals/Images/peregrine_falcon_sma.gif" \* MERGEFORMATINE

Like a falcon that is tied to a longrope keeps flying as far as the ropepermits, mind keeps wandering

within its confines of images, objectsand ideation. Tired and unable to goany farther, being tied to the rope,the falcon gets back to the placewhere its legs are tied and sleeps
http://wings.avkids.com/Book/Animals/Images/peregrine_falcon.gifhttp://wings.avkids.com/Book/Animals/Images/peregrine_falcon.gifhttp://wings.avkids.com/Book/Animals/Images/peregrine_falcon.gifhttp://www.mattersoflove.com/catalog/images/Cat%20-%20butterfly%20jpg.jpg


11/58

Mind is also tethered to the root of the Being. But minddoes not know about it. It thinks it has freedom. It searchesfor happiness all over. Unable to satisfy its desires it gets

back to where it is tethered and sleeps.Says Sage Pippalada ( Prasnopanishad): O loved One! as

birds fly towards their shelter in trees,so all senses proceed towards and are established in thehigher Self. (Prasanopanishad IV .6)Mind led by senses tries its best to find a resting place in

different objects and finds that the satisfaction throughthem is ever elusive. Tired the whole day in running afterobjects, mind finally gets back to rest in praana, to whichit is tied.

Q 3: What is the differencebetween a normal death andanother who consciously enters

Samadhi?

A: The difference between the merger of a man who isliberated and another who is still bound to vaasanas is thatin the formers case it is a conscious entry into the Beingand hence, unless he specifically wills so (as in the case ofEnlightened souls), he does not take birth; in the case ofthe later the birth is automatic as he is bound by hisvaasanas / inherent tendencies.

11

Entry into Being

Conscious-

Voluntary

Un-Conscious-

Involuntary

Deep sleep DeathSamadhi

Entry as anignorant

Entry as anillumined

Exit as an

ignorant

Exit as an

ignorant

Reentry

As an

ignorant

into

same body-

Waking up

Reentry

As an

ignorant

into a

new body-

Rebirth

No Exit

Except in

rarest

cases, as anavataara

purusha,

as in the

case of

Rama and

Krishna


12/58

Q. 4: What are the causes forfear of death?

121


13/58

A: The fear of death is due to wrong thinking that end of

body is end of the Self.End of body is not the end of self. There are several layersof existence for man. At death, what is lost is the gross

physical layer. The subtle layer consisting of mind andintellect and the causal layer consisting of impressions andvaasanas do not die. They are the brought forwards inaccounting terminology. While there is no entry to gross

body in the other world, the subtle body consisting of yourmind and intellect is allowed to pass through. It isinteresting to note that we are worried about losing

material things like house and property, cash and kith andkin; we do not bother about the need to keep the mind andintellect in good condition, though we are to take themalong.

The fear is the fear of the unknown

The fear of the unknown haunts manalways. Even if a man were to enterthe cage of the lion, knowing will thatthe cage is empty and the lion is not

present there, having been shifted toanother cage, man will still be afraid.

What should one do in such a situation? Enter the emptycage every day, until one day you realize that fear hasevaporated.

It was Oscar Wilde, who said the only way to endtemptation, is to yield to temptation. One can as onlychange the statement and say that the only way toovercome fear of death is to think of death always.

The fear of death, the unknown, is like that of the fear of achild to enter the school. The child does not know that

13
http://www.apanet.org/~fda/picts/N1.gif


14/58

entering the school means learning and widening thehorizon of knowledge. The childs immediate fear is the

separation from mom and the separation from home. Oncethe child gets used to the new environs and establishesrelationship with new school mates, the fear is gone.Entering death is also like entering a school. It is the timeto reflect upon the lifetime experiences and learn. For thechild the other children in the school are new faces. Forthe dead, the others whom he faces are the olds, theancestors. Hence there should be absolutely no fear. Onlyvery few of the relatives and friends one leaves behind ondeath. On the other hand he meets a large gathering offorefathers and other relatives after death. The physical

plane acquaintances are much fewer than the astral ones.

The fear is the result of ignorance

The ignorant man residing inthe body identifies himselfwith his body and imagines heis the body. The anticipatedseverance of the body makes

him think that he is ended with whatever thoughts he had

14

It can be shown that an incorporeal and

reasonable being has life in itself

independently of the body... then it is

beyond a doubt bodies are only of

secondary importance and arise from

time to time to meet the varying

conditions of reasonable creatures.

Those who require bodies are clothed

with them, and contrariwise, when fallen

souls have lifted themselves up to better

things their bodies are once more

annihilated. They are ever vanishing and

ever reappearing." Origene


15/58

and deeds he did. The ignorant considers himself as onewith the body and suffers the consequences of

identification with the body, just as the dreaming oneconsiders the dream to be real and suffers. The ignorantgets bound with his body which is the result of his pastaction. He thinks that what his senses are doing is done byhim.

The illumined one though still tenanting his old body, willhave no identification with the body, just as a man whohas awakened from sleep will have no identification withthe dream body. Though his senses are functioning, heremains a witness.

Q 5: Is the dying person frightenedof death?

A: No.

15

Death is not extinguishing the light; it isputting out the lamp because dawn has

come. Rabindranath TagoreNCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/images?q=tbn:XHQFx9vAC9CKoM:www.infed.org/images/peo
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.infed.org/images/people/tagore.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.infed.org/thinkers/tagore.htm&h=187&w=200&sz=8&tbnid=XHQFx9vAC9CKoM:&tbnh=92&tbnw=99&hl=en&start=4&prev=/images%3Fq%3DTagore%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DGhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.infed.org/images/people/tagore.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.infed.org/thinkers/tagore.htm&h=187&w=200&sz=8&tbnid=XHQFx9vAC9CKoM:&tbnh=92&tbnw=99&hl=en&start=4&prev=/images%3Fq%3DTagore%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DGhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.infed.org/images/people/tagore.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.infed.org/thinkers/tagore.htm&h=187&w=200&sz=8&tbnid=XHQFx9vAC9CKoM:&tbnh=92&tbnw=99&hl=en&start=4&prev=/images%3Fq%3DTagore%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG


16/58

Until death, it is the stories about death thatone hears that troubles him. The loaded memories of all

those ghost stories and oil frying are the ones that makeone worry. There is also the disappointment of having tolose contact with the kith and kin and near and dear thatdisturbs the dying

But, at the moment of death, the actualencountering of death face to face and experiencing deathis never an unpleasant one. The dying person is not

perturbed. He reconciles, nay at times welcomes, themoment rather happily.

Q 6: What do the scriptures saywith regard to fear of death?

A:

16

It is foolish to be afraid of death.

JUST THINK!!No more repaired tires on the bodyvehicle, no more patchwork living.--Paramhansa Yogananda

INCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/image
http://reluctant-messenger.com/yogananda/images/paramahansa.jpghttp://reluctant-messenger.com/yogananda/images/paramahansa.jpg


17/58

What is the purpose of a beehovering over the lotus that haswithered? Says, Lord Death, He who knows the Atman, theenjoyer of the honey, the

sustainer of life and Lord of thepast and the future fears notdeath (Katha Upanishad, 2.4.5)

The bee is interested in the lotus only as long as there isessence in the lotus. The self uses body to experience andenhance. When it finds the body of no more use and whenthe self can manufacture a better body to have more senseexperiences it automatically leaves the withered body.

Much like a leech which holds on to one leaf before

leaving the other, the self holds on to another body beforeleaving the withering body. It is the leaving away of selffrom the withering body that is called death. It is not thatthe body is dead and therefore the self moves on. On theother hand the karmic experience of the self using the

body gets exhausted and hence the self chooses to moveon. It is the moving on that results in dropping of the body.What is there to be afraid of moving on to better pastures?Who is the fearing one? The body? Body is inert andhence it can not experience fear. The self? No the self onthe contrary willingly moves on to better its prospects.Then what is the entity that fears? It is the mind whichcreates fear. It is the memory that creates fear. Strangely

17

INCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/images?q=tbn:ZST1szJoM92SIM:www.dyc-n

As long as one does not realize that theAtman is distinct from the body, thesenses and thepraana so long will onebe subject to sufferings from the trans-migratory life including death.

Adhyatma Ramayana (4.39)
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.dyc-nc.org/images/rama-small.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.dyc-nc.org/shaktipat.html&h=216&w=185&sz=39&tbnid=ZST1szJoM92SIM:&tbnh=101&tbnw=86&hl=en&start=51&prev=/images%3Fq%3DRama%26start%3D40%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DNhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.dyc-nc.org/images/rama-small.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.dyc-nc.org/shaktipat.html&h=216&w=185&sz=39&tbnid=ZST1szJoM92SIM:&tbnh=101&tbnw=86&hl=en&start=51&prev=/images%3Fq%3DRama%26start%3D40%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DNhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.dyc-nc.org/images/rama-small.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.dyc-nc.org/shaktipat.html&h=216&w=185&sz=39&tbnid=ZST1szJoM92SIM:&tbnh=101&tbnw=86&hl=en&start=51&prev=/images%3Fq%3DRama%26start%3D40%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DNhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.dyc-nc.org/images/rama-small.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.dyc-nc.org/shaktipat.html&h=216&w=185&sz=39&tbnid=ZST1szJoM92SIM:&tbnh=101&tbnw=86&hl=en&start=51&prev=/images%3Fq%3DRama%26start%3D40%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DNhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.dyc-nc.org/images/rama-small.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.dyc-nc.org/shaktipat.html&h=216&w=185&sz=39&tbnid=ZST1szJoM92SIM:&tbnh=101&tbnw=86&hl=en&start=51&prev=/images%3Fq%3DRama%26start%3D40%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN


18/58

the mind is also moving away with the self! It is the falsenotion that the self is the body and hence the withering

away of body means annihilation of the self and all itsexperiences that is the cause for the fear. It is the wrongidentification with the body that causes fear. Once one getsout of the notion that he is the body, the fear is lost. Aslong as the notion that one is the body persists, so longwill fear persist.

The worm which feared death(Story from the Mahabharata)

18

INCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/images?q=tbn:zz4qLQ

When the whole is dead, parts are not!

The pupil constricts when pilocarpine isinstilled even three hours after death.

Skin is viable for grafting up to 24hours.

Kidney is in good condition up to 30minutes after death and can betransplanted to the needy.

Hair and nail continue to grow afterdeath.
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.injuryupdate.com.au/images/issues/poaannuaarden.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.injuryupdate.com.au/issues/grass_types.php%3Fmenu%3Dissues&h=864&w=1152&sz=359&tbnid=zz4qLQT_5tIEPM:&tbnh=112&tbnw=150&hl=en&start=1&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dgrass%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DGhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.injuryupdate.com.au/images/issues/poaannuaarden.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.injuryupdate.com.au/issues/grass_types.php%3Fmenu%3Dissues&h=864&w=1152&sz=359&tbnid=zz4qLQT_5tIEPM:&tbnh=112&tbnw=150&hl=en&start=1&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dgrass%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DGhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.injuryupdate.com.au/images/issues/poaannuaarden.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.injuryupdate.com.au/issues/grass_types.php%3Fmenu%3Dissues&h=864&w=1152&sz=359&tbnid=zz4qLQT_5tIEPM:&tbnh=112&tbnw=150&hl=en&start=1&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dgrass%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG


19/58

SECTION CXVII

"Yudhishthira , the eldest of the Pandava brothers asksBhishma: 'Desiring to die or desiring to live, many personsgive up their lives in the great sacrifice (in war). Tell me,O grandsire, what is the end that these attain to.

To throw away life in war is fraught with sorrow for men.

As a man of wisdom you know that to give up life isdifficult for men whether they are in prosperity, oradversity, in felicity or calamity. In my opinion, you are

possessed of omniscience. Do thou tell me the reason ofthis

Bhishma said, 'In prosperity or adversity, in happiness orwoe, living creatures, O lord of the earth, coming into thisworld, live according to a particular tenor.

Listen to me as I explain the reason to you. The question

you have asked me is excellent, O Yudhishthira!

In this connection, O king, I shall explain to you the oldnarrative of the discourse that took place in former times

between the Island-born Sage and a crawling worm. Indays of old, when that learnedBrahmana, viz., the Island-

born Krishna, having identified himself with Brahma,roamed over the world, he beheld, on a road over whichcars used to pass, a worm moving speedily.

The Sage (Vyasa) was conversant with the course of everycreature and the language of every animal. Possessed of

19


20/58

omniscience, he addressed the worm he saw in thesewords.'

Vyasa: 'O worm, you seem to be exceedingly alarmed,and to be in great haste. Tell me, where are you runningand from whom are you running away from.

The worm: 'Hearing the rattle of the large car I am filledwith fear. O Sage of great intelligence, fierce is the roar itmakes. It has almost come!

The sound is heard. Will it not kill me? It is for this that Iam flying away. The sound, as it is heard from a near

point, I catch, of the bulls I hear.

They are breathing hard under the whip of the driver, asthey are drawing the heavy burden. I hear also the varioussounds made by the men who are driving the bulls.

Such sounds are incapable of being heard by a creaturethat like us has taken his birth in the order of worms. It isfor this reason that I am flying from this situation of greatfright.

Death is felt by all creatures to be fraught with pain. Lifeis an acquisition difficult to make. Hence, I am flyingaway in fear. I do not wish to pass from a state ofhappiness to one of woe.'

"Bhishma continued, 'Thus addressed, the Island-bornVyasa,

Vyasa:'O worm, where can be your happiness? Youbelong to the inter-mediate order of being. I think deathwould be fraught with happiness to you.

20
http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m13/errata.htm#178http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m13/errata.htm#178


21/58

Sound, touch, taste, scent, and diverse kinds of excellentenjoyments are unknown to you, O worm! I think death

will prove a benefit to you!The worm: 'A living creature, in whatever situation hemay be placed, becomes attached to it. In even this orderof being I am happy, I think, O thou of great wisdom! It isfor this that I wish to live.

In even this condition, every object of enjoyment exists forme according to the needs of my body. Human beings andthose creatures that spring from immobile objects havedifferent enjoyments.

In my former life I was a human being. O knowledgeableone, I was possessed of great wealth. I was not devoted tothe learned. I was cruel, vile in conduct, and a usurer.

I was harsh in speech. I regarded cunning as wisdom. Ihated all creatures. Taking advantage of pretexts in pactsmade between myself and others. (20)

I was always given to taking away what belonged toothers. Without feeding servants and guests arrived at my

house, I used to fill, when hungry, my own stomach, underthe impulse of pride, covetous of good food. (21)

Greedy I was of wealth, I never dedicated, with faith andreverence, any food to the deities and the forefathersalthough duty required me to dedicate food unto them.(22)

Those men that came to me, moved by fear, for seekingmy protection, I sent adrift without giving them any

protection. I did not extend my protection to those thatcame to me with prayers for dispelling their fear. 23

21


22/58

I used to feel unreasonable envy at seeing other people'swealth, and corn, and spouses held dear by them, and

articles of drink, and good mansions.24

Beholding the happiness of others, I was filled with envyand I always wished them poverty, Following that courseof conduct which promised to crown my own wishes withfruition, I sought to destroy the virtue, wealth, and

pleasures of other people. (25)

In that past life of mine, I committed diverse deeds largelyfraught with cruelty and such other passions. Recollecting

those acts I am filled with repentance and grief even asone is filled with grief at the loss of one's dear son.(26)

In consequence of these acts of mine I do not know whatthe fruits are of good deeds. I, however, worshipped myold mother and on one occasion worshipped a man of greatlearning. (27)

Endued with birth and accomplishments, that learned one,in course of his wanderings, came to my house once as a

guest. I received him with reverent hospitality. Inconsequence of the merit attaching to that act, my memoryhas not forsaken me. (28)

I think that in consequence of that act I shall once moresucceed in regaining happiness. O you of ascetic wealth,you know everything. Be kind and tell me what is for mygood." (29)

22


23/58

Q 7: How can one overcome thefear of death?

A: Think of Death Always says SwamiVivekananda:

Swami Vivekananda: Conversation with Shri

Surendranath Das Gupta:

23

Fate of the Sun:

"In a billion years" the professor says "our star, theSun, will run out of fuel and die".

The guy raises his hand and says, "How long did yousay we had?"

The professor repeats his billion-year prediction.

"Whew," says the guy, "I was getting worried. Ithought you said a million years!"

There is an old joke where a guy

walks into an astronomy lectureand listens to a professor talkingabout the fate of the Sun.

INCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/images?q=tbn:PBN3U_nkKUyY6M:http://www.drp
http://www.drpribut.com/sunny.gifhttp://www.drpribut.com/sunny.gifhttp://www.drpribut.com/sunny.gif


24/58

Swamiji: Look here, we shall all die. Bear this in mindalways, and then the spirit within will wake up. Then only

meanness will vanish from you, practicality in work willcome, you will get new vigour in mind and body, andthose who come in contact with you will also feel that theyhave really got something uplifting from you

Shri Das Gupta: But, Swamiji, will not the spirit breakdown at the thought of death and the heart be overpowered

by despondency?

Swamiji: Quite so. At first, the heart will break down,and despondency and gloomy thoughts will occupy your

mind. But persist, let days pass like that- and then? Thenyou will see that new strength has come into your heart,that the constant thought of death is giving you new lifeand is making you more and more thoughtful by bringingevery moment before your minds eye the truth of thesaying, Vanity of vanities, all is vanity! Wait! Let days,months and years pass, and you will feel that the spiritwithin is waking up with the strength of a lion, that thelittle power within has transformed itself into mighty

power! Think of death always and you will realize thetruth of every word I say. What more shall I say in

words!

Q 8: Why are we afraid ofthe dead?

A: While every one is afraid of death, there aremany who are afraid of the dead. The dead they

feel will come to haunt them and hurt them. There are

many who are afraid of looking at the dead body. Tilldeath the very same person was most lovable, but

24


25/58

somehow after death, the same form minus life scarespeople off.

Many in the yester years were afraid that the dead maycome back to haunt them. Ghost stories and fantasies haveadded to the fear. Natives in Africa used to burn the hutwhere some one died. If such burning was not possible,they used to lift the corpse through a whole in the roof topand never through the door. These measures were taken toconfuse the ghost and insure against its return. Mournersalso returned from a funeral by a different road, lest theghost follow. Backtracking and scores of other tacticswere practiced to insure that the ghost would not return

from the grave. The sexes often exchanged clothes in orderto deceive the ghost. Mourning costumes were designed todisguise survivors; later on, to show respect for the deadand thus appease the ghosts.

The Romans had twelve ghost feasts and accompanyingceremonies each year. Half the days of the year werededicated to some sort of ceremony associated with theseancient cults. One Roman emperor tried to reform these

practices by reducing the number of feast days to 135 ayear.

Many of the customs in modern mourning for the dead,like special dress, covering the face of the dead, feastingand gathering have its origins in warding of the spirit ofthe dead for they feared that the dead will come back tohaunt them. Most sacrifices were for pleasing the spirits ofthe dead.

25


26/58

Q 9: Is weeping and wailing aroundthe dead body a right practice?

A:

No.

On the contrary it should be discouraged.

26

I died as mineralAnd became a plant

died as a plant

And rose to animal

I died as an animal

And I was a man

Why should I fear?

When was Iless by dying?

Jalaluddin Rumi


27/58

The sorrow of the relatives, expressed throughweeping and wailing sets negative vibrations in motion.

These negative vibrations reach the dead and disturb theironward journey.

The chanting from the scriptures is a right practice.

All thoughts are vibrations. Subtle in nature thesevibrations affect positively or negatively, both the livingand the dead.

At times some people encourage weeping so thatthe built in sorrow is allowed to be expressed rather than

suppressed. The suppression it is believed could explodeand cause serious health risk. It is advisable that such ofthose whose need is to cry aloud and express anguish areencouraged to do so in a separate room a little away thedead person.

Q 10: What is the relationshipbetween death and breath?

A: Death is the packing up of vital forces andtheir departure from the body:

Stoppage of breath is indicative of death of the body.Breath enters along with the mind and exits along with themind. Breath and mind are considered to be mixed likewater and milk. What is considered as breath orpraanaisnot one but five fold. Praana divides itself on entering the

27


28/58

body and performs different functions and leaves the bodyon its death. These divided units are called praana,

samana, udaana, vyaana and apaana. On thedisintegration of the body, praana leaves, only to reenteralong with the mind when a new body is formed to suit theun-extinguished desires that remain at the time of death ofthe previous body that one had. Breath and mind are alsosaid to be like flower and its fragrance. When the flowerwithers up, the fragrance goes.

Q 11: Why is death referred to thefinal exam for man?

A: Death is the final exam:

Death is the final exam in the subjectcalled Life. The question papers are oftwo categories, the positive related to

patience and tolerance, detachment anddevotion, love and kindness; thenegative ones are anger, jealousy,

frustration and fear. Those who scorehundred percent marks in all positive papers and nil marks

28

NCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/images?q=tbn:Q3m6XnKBh70PGM:www.bobdobson.com/pics

Praana

Apaana

Samaana

Udaana

Vyaana

I know I am deathless. No doubt I have died

myself ten thousand times before. I laugh at

what you call dissolution, and I know the

amplitude of time."

Walt Whitman

Men talk about killing time,

while time quietly kills them.

Dion Boucicault

INCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/images?q=tbn:lpmf-_5IUlimcM:http://myteacher.dv
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.bobdobson.com/pics/corpse.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.bobdobson.com/market.htm&h=281&w=220&sz=11&tbnid=Q3m6XnKBh70PGM:&tbnh=109&tbnw=85&hl=en&start=221&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcorpse%26start%3D220%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DNhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.bobdobson.com/pics/corpse.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.bobdobson.com/market.htm&h=281&w=220&sz=11&tbnid=Q3m6XnKBh70PGM:&tbnh=109&tbnw=85&hl=en&start=221&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcorpse%26start%3D220%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DNhttp://myteacher.dvusd.com:81/pictures/Rschulz/CLOCK.jpghttp://myteacher.dvusd.com:81/pictures/Rschulz/CLOCK.jpghttp://myteacher.dvusd.com:81/pictures/Rschulz/CLOCK.jpghttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.bobdobson.com/pics/corpse.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.bobdobson.com/market.htm&h=281&w=220&sz=11&tbnid=Q3m6XnKBh70PGM:&tbnh=109&tbnw=85&hl=en&start=221&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcorpse%26start%3D220%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DNhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.cs.brown.edu/courses/cs173/2000/Cartoons/images/exam-small.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.cs.brown.edu/courses/cs173/2000/Cartoons/&h=354&w=414&sz=5&tbnid=h-4pSAzsZr3H9M:&tbnh=103&tbnw=121&hl=en&start=2&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dexam%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG


29/58

in the negative papers are considered to have passed theexamination. These successful graduates can reach the

world of Sun, never to have to come back to earth o facefurther exams. All others, including those who would havescored even 99% are sent back to earth world again torelearn and write the exams. Those scoring good

percentage and yet not having scored 100% are sent toconducing learning centres of compassionate andenlightened parents and also have access to good teachers.But those scoring very poor marks are sent to correctioncentres where tough methods of teaching are adopted. Onething is certain, although teaching schools and methodsmight differ, everyone will one day or other certain

graduate and enter the world of sun.

Q 12: Is it true that the lastthoughts at the time of deathinfluence the next birth

A: Yes. Lord Krishna says,

Whosoever at the end of life quits his bodyremembering Me alone attains my nature. Of thisthere is doubt ( Bhagavat Gita 8.5)

29

INCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/images?q=tbn:t8NWgJ3Qzh2xj

Death Facts:

The ashes of the average cremated

person weighs nine pounds.
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.bizarrebids.com/wp-admin/images/5634522612.JPG&imgrefurl=http://www.bizarrebids.com/category/supernatural/page/2/&h=375&w=500&sz=27&tbnid=t8NWgJ3Qzh2xjM:&tbnh=95&tbnw=127&hl=en&start=14&prev=/images%3Fq%3Durn%2Bwith%2Bashes%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DGhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.bizarrebids.com/wp-admin/images/5634522612.JPG&imgrefurl=http://www.bizarrebids.com/category/supernatural/page/2/&h=375&w=500&sz=27&tbnid=t8NWgJ3Qzh2xjM:&tbnh=95&tbnw=127&hl=en&start=14&prev=/images%3Fq%3Durn%2Bwith%2Bashes%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG


30/58

Whatever state one remembers when he quits hisbody, that state he will attain without fail

(Bhagavat Gita 8.6)

Patanjali Maharishi adds:

Latent impressions, linked with memory remain. Cease they not due to intervals of time, space or

by a birth again. ||4.09||

The predominant thought with which one goes to sleep inthe night is the thought with which he gets up the nextmorning. This is everyday experience. Death is but a sleep.

The only difference between sleep and death is that onegets up with the same body after the sleep and gets up witha different body after death. In a child all the previous

birth impressions and tendencies lie dormant. The one,who is intensely attached to his kith and kin at the time ofdeath and is troubled by the thoughts of separation at thetime of death, wakes up to new body after death, equallyintensely attached and finds separation difficult to bear. Asthe child grows, slowly but certainly all the tendencies ofthe earlier incarnation, come into play. The birth chart ofthe child can as well be called the death chart of the oldone, who has come to occupy a new body.

30

I will

miss you

all so

much now

that I

die.

Mom, I

miss

You so

much,

I can just

cry


31/58

The Saint watching the worm becomes the worm:

There is a story about the saint who died watching a wormnibbling an apple.

But found to his disappointment that the apple was beingeaten by a worm. As he was about to request those aroundto get him an apple, he died. He died then with the desire

to eat and apple, his mind still remembering the wormenjoying the apple.

Since his thought was on the apple and the worm enjoyingthe apple, he was reborn as a worm.

Kulasekhara Azwar, The King, beseeches Lord Krishnathus, Now my mind is undisturbed and I am healthy. Ifright now I die, thinking of your lotus feet; I am sure I canattain you. But if I have to wait for my natural death, thenI do not know what will happen, because at that time my

bodily functions will be disrupted, my throat will be

31

A saintly one on his death bedwas watching an apple tree.His eyes fell upon a ripe androsy apple.


32/58

choked up and I do not know whether I shall be able tochant your name. Better let me die immediately

How to adhere to Lord Krishnas advice? As the KingKulasekhara says is it possible to think of the Lord at thetime of death, when everyday relatives and friends crowdaround inquiring about your health? Understandably it isnot possible to think of the Lord, if one say not cultivatedthe habit of thinking of him always.

For the not so devoted, the interpretation of thinking ofGod always would be, remaining calm, serene andunperturbed, surrendering all actions and inactions and

being forever detached. Tough task indeed considering thefact that it is exactly at the time of death that one tends tobe most disturbed and perturbed.

Epicurus is right when he says that the art of living anddying are one and the same. The art of dying needs to be

practiced by one through out his life, if he were to be keenon dying well, with prayer in his lips.

The Saintly King Kulasekhara yearns for separation frombody and union with the Lord. But it is still yearning only.

The yearning and craving for deliverance is the tapas forhim. Tapas, the austerity practiced by him, is the processof burning away of spiritual impurities. The very purposeof reincarnation in his case is to have the residualimpurities removed by the yearning. Until that process isover, severance from the body is ill advised. The Lordknows when to take him in his bosom. Until then it isinevitable that he suffer the separation from the Lord.

The case of the Saintly King is the case of every one of themortals. The difference is the degree of awareness. TheKing is a highly evolved individual, knowing the pangs ofseparation from the Lord and hence craving to be united.

323


33/58

But most mortals do not even know that the Union of theparticularized soul with the Universal is the very purpose

of repeated births. The realization that the assumption of aseparate soul apart from the Universal one is stemming outof ignorance is to be had by everyone by strenuous effortsor grace of God.

The seers and the sages in the Vedic times have been ableto look at the mortal body as a distinct unit apart from theirreal selves and how confidently and effortlessly they couldseparate themselves from their bodies at will. Theirs wasnot just a theoretical knowledge. They had practiced whatthey taught. Through awareness of Reality, they turned

Real. They had techniques to support their claim and amethodology of adapting the technique and achievingabsorption into Realty

Q 13: Can a murderer get awayfrom hellish punishment just bythinking of God at the time ofdeath?

A: Yes. And, why not?

Let us understand clearly that the last thoughts influenceand determine the nature of after death life. It is easy forone doing business to be thinking of plusses and minuses,

profits and losses, properties and deals until the last breath.The businessman will not certainly be thinking in terms ofclimate changes and its impact on economy. It is easy to

333

INCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/images?q=tbn:ctJ0P-2qNhreDeath Facts:

Lice are observed to crawl out of the

dead persons head.
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.headlicetreatment.info/_images/headlicepictures.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.headlicetreatment.info/headlicepictures.html&h=344&w=234&sz=12&tbnid=ctJ0P-2qNhreXM:&tbnh=116&tbnw=78&hl=en&start=93&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlice%26start%3D80%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DNhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.headlicetreatment.info/_images/headlicepictures.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.headlicetreatment.info/headlicepictures.html&h=344&w=234&sz=12&tbnid=ctJ0P-2qNhreXM:&tbnh=116&tbnw=78&hl=en&start=93&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlice%26start%3D80%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DNhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.headlicetreatment.info/_images/headlicepictures.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.headlicetreatment.info/headlicepictures.html&h=344&w=234&sz=12&tbnid=ctJ0P-2qNhreXM:&tbnh=116&tbnw=78&hl=en&start=93&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlice%26start%3D80%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN


34/58

say that the murderer can think of god at the last momentand die peacefully. But a guy used to committing crimes

all through his life will only be able to think of prisongates and prison mates, besides lawyers, courts and bailand jail. If however the crime was committed at the spur ofthe moment and the guy had spent his years in prisonatoning for his crime and praying that he be freed of theinnate tendency to commit a crime, he certainly will beentertaining thoughts of his lord at the time of his death. Ifhis mind is erased of all thoughts of the crime andincidents thereafter and is full of compassion and kindnessand love of god, he certainly carries a mind with him thatis full of these qualities when he drops off his body. That

is why Lord Krishna says that thoughts at the time of deathare key to determining type of after death experience.

Q 14: What is considered as a gooddeath?

A: Understanding of what constitutes gooddeath varies. The General would tell his soldiers

that good death is dying in the battle fighting for a cause.Good death for many would be to have provided for thefamily before death. For others good death is to dye withall the kith and kin around and children playing near his

bed. The religiously inclined would consider his death as

good if it has taken place under favorable stars.

34

Sage Vasistha in Yogavaasista:

Let the body fall or rise or let it goto any other universe. I am notconfined to the body.c


35/58

The scriptures give number of advisory on good death:

1. The dying if peaceful, the after death experiencewill also be peaceful.2. The next birth chart if it is to be very good, the

death chart, namely the conditions of existence atthe time of death, need be very good too.

3. Good death is then when the dying welcomes deathwith open arms, feeling no dread, fear, remorse orregret.

4. It is better to close the account of hatred andbitterness and forgive all who you consider havedone wrong. Similarly it is better to seek

forgiveness of those whom you would havewillingly or unwittingly caused hurt. Trying toenter death with as clean a slate as possible is

better.5. A conscious entry into death is best. But that is

feasible only for highly evolved beings like aBuddha. For ordinary mortals, can strive to keepcalm and try to enter death willingly, instead ofstruggling with attachments. If one can, eagerlyawait death and voluntarily enter into death, thereafter there will be no more suffering or birth or

death for him. When one unconsciously slips in toBeing, we call that death. When one consciouslyenters Samadhi, we call it absorption into theBeing. The realized one knows the Self.Unwittingly when one enters Being, he is still bodyconscious. And hence not having realized the Selfhas birth again.

Yogi considers exit though the crown of the head as gooddeath

Hundred and one are the nerves of the heart; of them onepenetrates the crown of the head (Brahmarandra *)

35


36/58

Going upwards through it man attains immortality, butothers depart differently (Katha Upanishad VI.16)

The Yogi would practice and guide his life force to exitthrough the crown of the head for by that method he isensuring that he is immortal. This method of voluntarilyquitting the body is described in the Bhagavata (Skanda 2, Chp230)

Withdrawing himself from everything objective, with thehelp of refined understanding obtained through the studyand practice of spiritual philosophy and disciplines, thesage abandons the body thus:

Pressing the anus with the heel in order to restrainthe vital energy known as apaana from its downwardcourse, he would without strain, raise the vital energylittle by little through the six centres known as

Mooladhara, Manipura, Anaahata, Visuddhi, Ajna andBrahmarandra.

The vital energy that resides at the navel(Manipura centre) is raised further to the chest(Anaahata centre) and united with the aspect of

vital energy known as praana residing there.

Then from there the Yogi would, with the help ofhis will power, carefully raise the energy little bylittle to the root of his neck (Visuddhi charka) andunite it with Udaana, the vital energy residingthere.

From that point the energy would be raised to theVisuddhi charka.root of the tongue, which is theupper limit of the

363


37/58

From there the Yogi would raise the energy to thelevel of the middle of the eye brows (Ajna Chakra)

The Yogi would restrain the seven orifices(orifices of the yes, nose, ears and mouth) to

prevent the escape of energy through any of these

Without desire, having dissolved the intellect in theI sense, the I-sense in the individual spirit, theindividual spirit in the Universal spirit, the Yogiremains established in peace, with his spiritualinsight fully uncovered.

The Yogi then pierces theBrahmarandra at the topof the crown and leaves the body, realizingoneness with the Supreme Being.

Brahmarandhra means the hole of Brahman.Brahmarandra is the fissure on the top of the craniumidentified with sutura frontalis. This hollow place in thecrown of the head is very soft in a babe. When the childgrows, it gets obliterated by the growth of the bones of thehead. This is the most important part. When the Yogiseparates himself from the physical body at the time ofdeath, thisBrahmarandhra bursts open and Prana comesout through this opening. This way of release of life forceis calledKapala Moksha

For the Yogi who voluntarily quits the body, death of thebody is a release from bondage. For him death is not anagony. With clear vision of his merger with the Being, heappeals to Lord Sun to absorb him into the all powerfuland all knowing. The body that housed him thus far isaccording to him fit to be consigned to flame. But he

wants his mind to remember he ecstasy and supreme joythat it felt on the union with the ultimate. The

373


38/58

unforgettable experience of absorption is all that his mindcan remember.

Q 15: What is the prayer on thelips of the Yogi who is about todie?

A: The Yogi departs with a prayer on his lips:

The prayer on the lip of the Yogi when he departs from thebody is given the following verses from the IsaavaasyaUpanishad (16,17 and 18):

O Pusan, O Sole Seer, Nourisher, Pilgrim of the solitude,Absorber, Surya, Prajapati, disperse thy rays and gather

38

He saw all these forms and faces in a

thousand relationships become newly

born. Each one was mortal, a passionate,

painful example of all that is transitory.

Yet none of them died, they only

changed, were always reborn, continually

had a new face: only time stood between

one face and another."Herman Hesse, SiddharthaH


39/58

up Thy burning Light. I behold Thy glorious form thePurusha within Thee, Here I Am

Let my praana merge into all pervading air and now letthis body be burnt into ashes. AUM. O My mindremember, remember what you did! O Remember,remember what you did!

O Agni, O God, knower of all our actions or all ourknowledge, lead us by the good path for enjoying the fruitsof actions. Liberate us from our deceitful sins. We offerthee ever more our words of adoration.

Q 16: Which is better? Sleepingand dying or waking up and dying?

A: Waking up and dying.

Some say one had a peaceful death because he slept anddied in sleep-. The scriptures would consider waking upand dying with a prayer in the lip as the best form ofdying.

Since only a Yogi is capable of exiting

through the crown of the head, anartificial way is suggested to help others

39

I know I am deathless. No doubt I have

died myself ten thousand times before. I

laugh at what you call dissolution, and I

know the amplitude of time."

Walt Whitman
http://tp//images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.neystadt.org/john/album/Tanzania2003/Animals/DSCN2062-Awaken-Lion.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.neystadt.org/john/album/index-IE.html&h=576&w=768&sz=168&tbnid=YoeAK8ZtNxYQ1M:&tbnh=105&tbnw=141&hl=en&start=33&prev=/images%3Fq%3D%2BLion%26start%3D20%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN


40/58

so as to enable them also to have a peaceful death. Thedying is to be laid in the Lying posture of a Lion, if the

expiration is about to cease. The throbbing of the arteries(on the right and left side of the throat) is to be pressed.

The vital force is to be guided to go upwards and not bepermitted to travel downwards. Even if the vital force isnot guided to escape through the crown of the head, it willat least pass through the upper apertures like the eye.When the vital force passes through the upper apertures, itis considered to give the dying a very long and peacefulstay in the ancestral world, although return to the gross

physical plane is inevitable after some hundreds of years

of stay in the astral plane.

Q 17: What do the scripturessuggest with regard to a way ofending life well?

A: Bhagavata suggests a way of dying for thevaanaprasthas

In the Vedic period, the time afterfulfilling household responsibilities,was called vaanaprastha, stay at theforest. One would quit the life of a

breadwinner and hand overresponsibilities to the eldest son andmove away from the towns to live a life of recluse in theforest. This however is not practical now. Bhagavataadvocates a life of denial and preparation:

40

So as through a glass and darkly, the age

long strife I see, where I fought in many

guises, many names, but always me."

General George S. Patton


41/58

Bhagavata; Sk VII, Ch 12, 23 31.

When one is either diseased or too old to do hisduties for advancing in knowledge and the spirituallife, he must he refrain from taking food.

He should give up the false sense of identity withthe physical body and understand that it is made upof five elements only.

He will then know that the cause of his apertures inthe sky; the different airs moving within in the air;the cause of the body heat he finds in fire; the

blood, mucus and urine find with him their causein the water, and the cause of the remainder isfound in the earth.

The speech with its organ belongs to the God ofFire, the hands and their dexterity belong toIndra,the legs and their power to move belong to Vishnuand the genitals with the sexual desire belong tothe Prajaapati. The rectum and its bowel activityis of Mrityu [Death] and also should the aural

sense to the sounds be assigned to the directionsand the touch and its organ be assigned to theVayu. Eyesight with its forms, one should assign tothe Sun and to water and its ruler belong thetongue while smell and its odors should beconsigned to the earth.

The mind with its desires belongs to Chandra, the

intelligence and its subject matter to the Supremeof Education, the false ego of the 'I' and 'Mine'actions with its karma belongs to Rudhra, the

consciousness with its concept of existencebelongs to the Knower of the Field and the modes

41


42/58

and their entities belong to the Beyond. The earthto the water, the water to the lights of the

luminaries, the brightness to the air, the air to thesky, the sky to the materialistic conception, thefalse ego to that: the material energy, that into thecomplete of the reality the reality into the primarynature and that together belongs to the SupremeBeing.

Thus is one of the Supreme of one's soul, being ofthe same quality in understanding the remaining

balance, completely spiritual and so should onethus cease his existence like flames of which the

source has burnt up.

Q 18: What are theguidelines for goodliving so as to ensuregood death?

A:

42

Death Facts:

Cockroaches can live for nine days without

their heads, at which point they die of

starvation.

INCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/images?q=tbn:YDris4fHFD8ScM:
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.jainworld.org/general/prem/Clip%2520Art%2520for%2520Education/images/Cockroach.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.jainworld.org/general/prem/Clip%2520Art%2520for%2520Education/images/C.htm&h=474&w=317&sz=27&tbnid=YDris4fHFD8ScM:&tbnh=126&tbnw=84&hl=en&start=10&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcockroach%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DGhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.jainworld.org/general/prem/Clip%2520Art%2520for%2520Education/images/Cockroach.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.jainworld.org/general/prem/Clip%2520Art%2520for%2520Education/images/C.htm&h=474&w=317&sz=27&tbnid=YDris4fHFD8ScM:&tbnh=126&tbnw=84&hl=en&start=10&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcockroach%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DGhttp://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.jainworld.org/general/prem/Clip%2520Art%2520for%2520Education/images/Cockroach.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.jainworld.org/general/prem/Clip%2520Art%2520for%2520Education/images/C.htm&h=474&w=317&sz=27&tbnid=YDris4fHFD8ScM:&tbnh=126&tbnw=84&hl=en&start=10&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcockroach%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DG


43/58

1. Stop replenishing the Karma quiver

Karma is a compound word ofkar(action) and ma (mind,involvement). It is not the actions that are to be ceased,(you just cannot); it is the action with expectation that is to

be ceased.

Karma is action with anticipation. Involuntary andundetached actions do not add to theimpressions/propensities storage. If every action of yoursis going to be predicated with expectations and subsequentelations or dejections as the case may be, you are in fortrouble. There is nothing that you can do with respect ofthe arrows (actions with anticipations) (called sanchitakarma) already in your mind quiver. There is nothing thatyou can do with regard to the arrows that are about to

leave your bow (called agama karma) and there is nothingagain that could be done with regard to the arrows alreadyon the way aimed at targets already (prarabda karma). Butwhat could certainly be done is to make sure that the mindquiver is not replaced with new impression arrows. Theway of ensuring that is to act without anticipation. Followthe dictum that actions could be yours the result thereofis not and hence do not act with motives. The devotees candedicate the actions to God.

As age advances, one remains at least aware that the days

are not man ahead. Whatever one has done during theperiod, say, up to retirement is done, right or wrong, alljustified saying that one had to live for and provide for the

43

The karma quiver


44/58

family. Whatever one has done till then could have onlyleft him rich in wants and poor in contentment.

Soon when one departs from his false I, he will live like aship at sea without a compass. It is better to understand

before hand that one will be dealing with, after death, themanifested effects of the concealed causes of attachmentand aversion.

At least when the time to quit the body is approaching, oneshould reflect and try to undo where possible whateverwrong that was done. There is no point in continuing toattempt to do the so called Good, for what is called doing

good here is doing bad elsewhere. To the thoughtful manthere is only one doing good, giving up and letting go.

Where the mind is not, there, there is no karma.

All karma belongs to the mind only, not to the body.

Tanzan and Ekido were once traveling together down amuddy road. A heavy rain was still falling.

Coming around a bend, they met a lovely girl in a silk

kimono and sash, unable to cross the intersection. The girlpleaded with the bikkus to help her cross the river that wasahead.

"Come on, girl" said Tanzan at once. Lifting her in hisarms, he carried her over the mud. His instantaneousreaction was guided by his instincts to help the needy,there being no other consideration.

Ekido was aghast at his friend bikkus action. All along asthey were crossing the river, his eyes were riveted on hisfriend Tanzan and the young girl perched on his shoulders.That sight refused to go off his mind till late in the

44


45/58

evening, though the river crossing lasted hardly tenminutes and though Tanzan dropped the girl long back and

though the girl thanked and moved her way long back.Ekido did not speak again until that night when theyreached a lodging temple. Then he no longer could restrainhimself. "We monks don't go near females," he toldTanzan, "especially not young and lovely ones. It isdangerous. Why did you do that?"

"I left the girl there," said Tanzan. "Are you still carryingher?"

It is not the lifting and carrying that is worrisome. It is

carrying even without lifting that is. The first one hadlifted and left her. He was not involved with his mind inthe action of either the initial lifting or the subsequentdropping. But the other had only seen the incident. Yet hecould not drop her from his mind till late in the eveningand even in the next few days.

Tanzen was not accumulating any karma, since even as hisbody was performing the act of carrying the girl on hisshoulders, his mind was not involved in the action. Ekidowas accumulating unfavorable karma. In his case, his mind

was totally absorbed with the thought of his friend Tazencarrying the girl and the supposed sin that he wascommitting.

Yogavasishta says that all karmas belong to the mind only,not to the body.

This detachment is an art to be cultivated initially.Thereafter it would become pat of ones nature.

Detachment then is the first requirement. When you detachyou become a witness. When you attach you become a

player. When you are a player you cannot help being

45


46/58

injured and defeated. When you are a disinterestedobserver, you enjoy each and very goal, irrespective of

who the successful one is.It is easy to be detached when a mass grave is dug andhapless victims of terror are buried in a distant land, where

people dress differently and speak a different language andmay be even their skin is different from ours. But if it isthe neighbor who was killed and is buried in the streetcorner grave yard that detachment becomes difficult. Butif it happens to be ones own beloved who gets killed, sayin an accident, the trauma does not end for weeks on end.The difference is in the degree of identification. We are

not identifying ourselves with people or events that happenthousands of miles away. Our identification is strongerwith the neighbor. But our identification is total if it iswith ones own self. The need is therefore to cultivateequal sense of detachment with everything and every

body, whether close by or far away. Strangely withdetachment indifference does not set in. On the contraryone becomes identified with everything everywhere, but ina dispassionate manner. It is compassion which replaces

passion. Passion is when you identify yourself.Compassion is when you are de-identifying yourself.

However enforced detachment does not work. It results ina pathological indifference. De-identifying widens thecircle of involvement, albeit a disinterested one.Identifying narrows the circle of involvement, but turnsout to be very involved. Involvement results inexpectation, expectation leads to elation ordisappointment. Both wrong from spiritual elevation pointof view. Both reinforces ignorance and blinds vision.

2. Be like a Bee.

46


47/58

The bee collects pollen from hundredsand thousands of different flowers and converts them intosweet honey. The very process of collecting andconverting endangers its life and that of its community.Yet, the bee continues its work. So should a person be, notworried about who will knock his savings, he should dohis task unattached to the result that he begets from thetask.

The bee has excellent relationship with the flowers. Inreturn for the nectar and pollen that the flower gives, the

bee makes sure of propagation of plants to continue thegeneration of plants which produced the flowers. Ourrelationship with others should be such. Taking withoutgiving means ending relationship. Furthering relationshipwould mean a mutually beneficial relationship of givingand taking. A two way street, not one way

Remember what Lord Buddha had said,

To whom not anything is dear-to him not anything is grievous

3. Pull on like a python:

47

The Python does not go out to hunt its prey.Whatever comes in its way, it eats. Formonths together, if no food is found, itstarves and lies dormant.


48/58

Bhagavata says, one should live like a python. Be satisfiedwith what comes in the way and if nothing is coming in,

wait patiently.4. Give when you live

The cow and a pig were living harmoniouslyserving the same master. They were goodfriends, as good as a pair like a cow and a pigcan be. They liked each other. But heart ofheart the pig was always having a grouse thatsome how the cow is always more respected

by every one and he, looked down upon.

This sense of being looked down upon as a inferiorcreature hurt the pig very much, for he knows any day heis more intelligent than the cow.

One day the pig decided to open hisheart and share its woe with thecow. The pig asked. Good friendCow, tell me how. I am more usefulto man. I give every thing in me, my flesh and skin too.Even my tail is used to make bristles. Even then I am not

given the same respect as you are. Why?

The Cow reflected a awhile and answered.Perhaps I give when I liveThere is no point in postponing a good deed. Do it today.

5 . Live them. Dont just learn them.

Reverentially opening up the red clothwrapped holy book and pretendingto read them while the mind isengrossed in the days chores is noway of inching forward to

48
http://tp//images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.stentorian.com/pig.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.stentorian.com/animfarm.html&h=232&w=288&sz=14&tbnid=x6NNnVxHGnzPBM:&tbnh=88&tbnw=110&hl=en&start=21&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dpig%26start%3D20%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DNhttp://tp//images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/genome/guide/img/cow.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/genome/guide/cow/&h=449&w=347&sz=19&tbnid=HdQSlHfOU1go1M:&tbnh=124&tbnw=95&hl=en&start=21&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcow%26start%3D20%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN


49/58

immortality. The Gurus want us to learn and practice whatthey preached. Simply memorizing the verses in the books

is a needles exercise of burdening the brain. Erudition andscholarship and pretensions and pious appearance can foolno one, not the least, your own self.

For this very reason, Vedanta says: You may read thescriptural passages day after day; you may offer sacrifices,

prayers and invocations to the spirits or angels for help, orworship the spirits of the departed ancestors for wisdomand knowledge; but as long as you do not realize the truenature of your Self so long will you not feel that reunion ofthe individual soul with the universal Soul you shall not

attain spiritual freedom and perfection

One should live what is learnt. One may recollect that isknowledge, experience and work in the form of memories,tendencies and impressions that leaves the body embeddedin the mind at the time of death. When the essence of whatis laid out in the book is practiced, mind remains sereneand calm at the time of separation of the mind from the

body. Like a honey bee if one collects the essence from thebooks and lives by them, the sweet memories andimpressions are available to one to savour even after

discarding the body.

6. Follow Bhishmas Ten Commandments:

"Yudhishthira asked, 'What should a man do in order topass pleasantly through this and the other world?How, indeed, should one conduct oneself? What practices

should one adopt with this end inview?'

"Bhishma said: One should avoid thethree acts that are done with the body,four done with the speech and three

49


50/58

done with mind. The threeacts that are done with the body and should be wholly

avoided area. the destruction of the lives of other

creaturesb. theft or appropriation of what belongs to other personsc. debauchery2. The four that are done with speech, that are to beavoided, never indulged in or even thought of are:

a. are evil conversationb. harsh wordsc. publishing other people's faults

d. falsehood3. The three that are done with the mind that are to beshunned are

a. Coveting the possessions of othersb. doing injury to othersc. disbelief in the ordinances of the Vedas,

These are the ten paths of action. One should never do anyevil act in word, body, or mind. By doing good and evilacts, one is sure to enjoy or endure the just consequencesthereof. Nothing can be more certain than this.'"

7. Follow the Brahmins advice to his son .(From the Mahabharata)

The Son asks:What should a wise man do, seeing that the period ofhuman life is passing away so very quickly?

Father responds:

Death is that which spares none

Death is that by which the world is assailed. Each nightthat passes continuously draws one closer to death. When Iknow that Death waits for none,

50


51/58

how can I pass my time withoutcovering myself with the garb of

knowledge?Man should regard his wisdom to beuseless as he nears death. When

death is approaching steadily who is there that would, likea fish in shallow water, feel happy? Death comes to aman before his desires have been gratified. Deathsnatches away a person when he is engaged in pluckingflowers and when his heart is otherwise set, like a tigress

bearing away a ram. Do thou, this very day, accomplishthat which is for thy good. Let not this Death come to

thee.

Death drags its victims before their acts areaccomplished, hence the acts of tomorrow should be donetoday, those of the afternoon in the forenoon. Death does not wait to see whether the acts of itsvictim have all been accomplished or not. Who knowsthat Death will not come to him even today? In prime ofage one should betake oneself to the practice of virtue.Life is transitory. If virtue be practiced, fame here andfelicity hereafter will be the consequences. Like a tiger bearing away a sleeping deer, Deathsnatches away a man addicted to the gratification ofdesires and engaged in the enjoyment of sons andanimals. Before he has been able to pluck the flowersupon which he has set his heart, before he has beengratified by the acquisition of the objects of his desire,Death bears him away like a tiger bearing away its prey. Death overpowers a man while the latter is still inthe midst of the happiness that accrues from thegratification of desire, and while still thinking This has

been done; this is to be done; this has been half-done.Death bears away the man, however designed according

51
http://images.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.usvi.net/gamefishing/assets/images/print2.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.usvi.net/gamefishing/html/shallow_water_.html&h=300&w=271&sz=20&tbnid=0Mz5ZZdJkcEsIM:&tbnh=111&tbnw=100&hl=en&start=40&prev=/images%3Fq%3DFish%2Bin%2Bshallow%2Bwater%26start%3D20%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN


52/58

to his profession, attached to his field, his shop, or hishome, before he has obtained the fruit of his acts.

Death bears away the weak, the strong, the brave,the timid, the idiotic and the learned, before any ofthese obtains the fruits of his acts.

When death, decrepitude, disease, and sorrowarising from diverse causes, are all residing in thy

body, how is it that that thou live as if thou artperfectly hale?

As soon as a creature is born, Disability and Deathpursue him for destroying him. All living things,mobile and immobile, are affected by these two.

He who never injures living creatures by thought,

word or deed, is never injured by such agencies asare destructive of life and property. Nothing canresist the messengers (Disease and Disability) ofDeath when they advance except Truth whichdevours Untruth.

In Truth is immortality. For these reasons oneshould practice the vow of Truth; one shoulddevote oneself to a union with Truth; one shouldaccept Truth for ones Veda; and restraining onessenses, one should vanquish the Destroyer byTruth.

Both immortality and Death are planted in thebody. One comes to Death through ignorance andloss of judgment; while Immortality is achievedthrough Truth.

That person whose words, thoughts, penances,renunciation, and yoga meditation, all rest onBrahma, succeeds in earning the highest good.

There is no eye that is equal to the eye ofknowledge.

There is no penance like that involved in Truth. There is no sorrow equal to attachment.

52


53/58

There is no happiness other than renunciation.8. Keep the slate clean

The mind is like a slate. Whateverimpressions that are formed in the mind are to

be removed constantly, be they good or bad. Itis these impressions that cloud the vision. Byfrequent cleaning you make sure that yourvision is not impaired and prejudiced by likes

and dislikes. Meditation for instance is a cleaning process.A clean slate/state of mind at death is most preferred. Aslate full of markings of impressions of likes and dislikes,

prejudices and preferences, love and hate and aversion and

attachment is a sure recipe for disturbed state of after life

9. Use God as an eraser:

God can be very useful if one knows how to use him.There are several uses of God, but the best way to use himis as an eraser. Use God to erase all impressions in mind,

impressions of anger, lust, greed, hatred, vengeance andeven love, attachment, desire and dislikes. Every time youvisit him in his temple, remind yourself that thoughapparently you are visiting him, you are in fact revisitingyou to have a closer look at yourself and your innate

tendencies that need be curbed andeventually erased. If during the visit youare upset that the priest did not takecognizance of you or the coconut turnedto be a rotten one, know that the trip iswasted. Instead of removing anxieties thetrip has only reinforced them. You have

53
http://www.johnssketchpad.com/cartoonport/eraser.jpghttp://www.nebraskahistory.org/images/oversite/store/catalog4/slate-pencil.jpg


54/58

no been able to use God. You are too much filled withyour own self; there is no place for god in you.

Q 19: How can the relatives aroundhelp the dying?

A: The relatives around the dying one have a

very important role to play in facilitating thedying in meeting Death with calmness and equanimity.They can chant for the dying, not necessarily in the sameroom where the dying is housed. It could be done silentlytoo.

These chants are designed to be used for

Providing spiritual relief Easing the transfer to the ethereal body Facilitating inner healing and rebirth

Enriching one's personal contemplation of andrelationship with the Divine Spirit.

54

If my doctor told me I had only six

minutes to live, I wouldn't brood.

I'd type a little faster. Issac

Asimov

INCLUDEPICTURE "http://images.google.co.in/i
http://www.scifi-universe.com/upload/personnalites/grand/isaac_asimov.jpghttp://www.scifi-universe.com/upload/personnalites/grand/isaac_asimov.jpg


55/58

We are familiar with the scene of children wanting to sleepand yet afraid of sleeping. They start weeping. The sleep

process as far as the innocent child is concerned is atemporary death. The child is afraid of losing contact withthe mother. The bedtime stories came into vogue as aresult of this fear of the child. The mind of the child, onhearing the story is transported to images of the charactersin the story. Forgetting the fact of sleep the child slowlyshifts attention to story and unconsciously slips into sleepmode.

Chants perform the same function as far as the spirituallyun-awakened are concerned.

Some children would want their mothers tokeep patting them until they sleep. This is another way ofensuring connectivity with the mother, for the fear of sleepis due to fear of losing contact. The dying would also feelcomforted if a close relative is to hold hand until death.

Q 20: What should be our approachto the dying?

A: Be sympathetic, loving and caring.

Let the dying feel always well attended and providedfor.

Dont discuss doctors diagnosis, treatments andfailures in the presence of the dying.

Let the room be dimly lit, not too bright anddefinitely not at all dark.

55


56/58

Dont give the dying the news of