Theos-Talk Archives (January 2004 Message tt00246)

>From The Heart Treasure of the Enlightened Ones by Dilgo Khyentse (original scripture by Patrul Rinpoche):

Not long ago, your consciousness was wandering alone,
Swept along by karma, it took this present birth,
Soon, like a hair pulled out of butter,
Leaving everything behind, you'll go on again and alone.

Be careful - a powerful enemy is approaching. Not an ordinary enemy, but an invincible one: death. No plea, however eloquent, can persuade death to hold off for a few years - or even a second. Not the most powerful warrior, at the head of the armies on earth, can make death turn a hair. Death cannot be bribed by wealth, however vast, nor stirred by even the most enchanting beauty.....Today you are alive and well in a place where you are free to cultivate Dharma. No one is telling you that your religion is forbidden, or that you are not alowed to recite the mani (Om Mani Padme Hum), the six-syllable mantra of Chenrezi (Avalokiteswara). So now is the time to prepare for death. We make serious efforts to ensure that in the future we will not run out of money, run out of food, or be without clothes. But of all future events, isn't death the most crucial?...This is the most important task in your life, and you shouldn't be indecisive about it. If you think you will practice when
you are older, or when you find a more suitable place, you may never get down to practicing at all. As Padampa Sangye said:

If you wait till you're no longer busy, you'll never get around to Dharma;
The moment you think of it, quick, do it, Tingri folk!

So, to so something really useful with whatever time may be left before we die, we must turn to the Dharma...

------

So Buddhists use the natural fear of death as a meditation - a reminder to do spiritual practice now because.. who knows how much longer we have left?

Instead of denying the fear of death, Tibetan Buddhist teachers say to "bring it on the path" and use it to goad yourself into practice. 

I hope this have added another perspective to the recent talk on dying.

-Ed Griffin



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"What makes a good artist, a good sculptor, a good musician? Practice. What makes a man a good linguist, a good stenographer? Practice. What makes a man a good man? Practice. Nothing else...-Henry Drummond





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