Buddhist
Reflections on Death
by
V.F. Gunaratna
The Wheel Publication No. 102/103
Copyright (C) 1982 Buddhist
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I
To the average man death is by no means a pleasant
subject or talk for discussion. It is something dismal and oppressive -- a veritable
kill-joy, a fit topic for a funeral house only. The average man immersed as he is in the
self, ever seeking after the pleasurable, ever pursuing that which excites and gratifies
the senses, refuses to pause and ponder seriously that these very objects of pleasure and
gratification will some day reach their end. If wise counsel does not prevail and urge the
unthinking pleasure-seeking man to consider seriously that death can knock at his door
also, it is only the shock of a bereavement under his own roof, the sudden and untimely
death of a parent, wife or child that will rouse him up from his delirious round of
sense-gratification and rudely awaken him to the hard facts of life. Then only will his
eyes open, then only will he begin to ask himself why there is such a phenomenon as death.
Why is it inevitable? Why are there these painful partings which rob life of its
joys?
To most of us, at some moment or
another, the spectacle of death must have given rise to the deepest of thoughts and
profoundest of questions. What is life worth, if able bodies that once performed great
deeds now lie flat and cold, senseless and lifeless? What is life worth, if eyes that once
sparkled with joy, eyes that once beamed with love are now closed forever, bereft of
movement, bereft of life? Thoughts such as these are not to be repressed. It is just these
inquiring thoughts, if wisely pursued, that will ultimately unfold the potentialities
inherent in the human mind to receive the highest truths.
According to the Buddhist way of
thinking, death, far from being a subject to be shunned and avoided, is the key that
unlocks the seeming mystery of life. It is by understanding death that we understand life;
for death is part of the process of life in the larger sense. In another sense, life and
death are two ends of the same process and if you understand one end of the process, you
also understand the other end. Hence, by understanding the purpose of death we also
understand the purpose of life. It is the contemplation of death, the intensive thought
that it will some day come upon us, that softens the hardest of hearts, binds one to
another with cords of love and compassion, and destroys the barriers of caste, creed and
race among the peoples of this earth all of whom are subject to the common destiny of
death. Death is a great leveler. Pride of birth, pride of position, pride of wealth, pride
of power must give way to the all-consuming thought of inevitable death. It is this
leveling aspect of death that made the poet say:
"Scepter and crown
Must tumble down
And in the dust be equal made
With the poor crooked scythe and spade."
It is the contemplation of death that helps to
destroy the infatuation of sense-pleasure. It is the contemplation of death that destroys
vanity. It is the contemplation of death that gives balance and a healthy sense of
proportion to our highly over-wrought minds with their misguided sense of values. It is
the contemplation of death that gives strength and steadiness and direction to the erratic
human mind, now wandering in one direction, now in another, without an aim, without a
purpose. It is not for nothing that the Buddha has, in the very highest terms, commended
to his disciples the practice of mindfulness regarding death. This is known as "marananussati
bhavana". One who wants to practice it must at stated times, and also every now
and then, revert to the thought maranam bhavissati -- "death will take
place." This contemplation of death is one of the classical meditation-subjects
treated in the Visuddhi Magga which states that in order to obtain the fullest
results, one should practice this meditation in the correct way, that is, with mindfulness
(sati), with a sense of urgency (samvega) and with understanding (?ana).
For example, suppose a young disciple fails to realize keenly that death can come upon him
at any moment, and regards it as something that will occur in old age in the distant
future; his contemplation of death will be lacking strength and clarity, so much so that
it will run on lines which are not conducive to success.
How great and useful is the
contemplation of death can be seen from the following beneficial effects enumerated in the
Visuddhi Magga: -- "The disciple who devotes himself to this contemplation of
death is always vigilant, takes no delight in any form of existence, gives up hankering
after life, censures evil doing, is free from craving as regards the requisites of life,
his perception of impermanence becomes established, he realizes the painful and soulless
nature of existence and at the moment of death he is devoid of fear, and remains mindful
and self-possessed. Finally, if in this present life he fails to attain to Nibbana, upon
the dissolution of the body he is bound for a happy destiny." Thus it will be seen
that mindfulness of death not only purifies and refines the mind but also has the effect
of robbing death of its fears and terrors, and helps one at that solemn moment when he is
gasping for his last breath, to face that situation with fortitude and calm. He is never
unnerved at the thought of death but is always prepared for it. It is such a man that can
truly exclaim, "O death, where is thy sting?"
II
In the Anguttara Nikaya the Buddha has said,
"Oh Monks, there are ten ideas, which if made to grow, made much of, are of great
fruit, of great profit for plunging into Nibbana, for ending up in Nibbana." Of these
ten, one is death. Contemplation on death and on other forms of sorrow such as old age,
and disease, constitutes a convenient starting point for the long line of investigation
and meditation that will ultimately lead to Reality. This is exactly what happened in the
case of the Buddha. Was it not the sight of an old man followed by the sight of a sick man
and thereafter the sight of a dead man that made Prince Siddhattha, living in the lap of
luxury, to give up wife and child, home and the prospect of a kingdom, and to embark on a
voyage of discovery of truth, a voyage that ended in the glory of Buddhahood and the bliss
of Nibbana?
The marked disinclination of the
average man to advert to the problem of death, the distaste that arouses in him the desire
to turn away from it whenever the subject is broached, are all due to the weakness of the
human mind, sometimes occasioned by fear, sometimes by tanha or selfishness, but at
all times supported by ignorance (avijja). The disinclination to understand death,
is no different from the disinclination of a man to subject himself to a medical check-up
although he feels that something is wrong with him. We must learn to value the necessity
to face facts. Safety always lies in truth. The sooner we know our condition the safer are
we, for we can then take the steps necessary for our betterment. The saying, "where
ignorance is bliss it is folly to be wise" has no application here. To live with no
thought of death is to live in a fool's paradise. Visuddhi Magga says,
"Now when a man is truly wise,
His constant task will surely be,
This recollection about death,
Blessed with such mighty potency."
Now that we have understood why such potency
attaches itself to reflections on death, let us proceed to engage ourselves in such
reflections. The first question that the reflecting mind would ask itself will be,
"What is the cause of death?" Ask the physiologist what is death, he will tell
you that it is a cessation of the functioning of the human body. Ask him what causes the
cessation of the functioning of the human body, he will tell you that the immediate cause
is that the heart ceases to beat. Ask him why the heart ceases to beat, he will tell you
that disease in any part of the human system, if not arrested, will worsen and cause a
gradual degeneration and ultimate breakdown of some organ or other of the human system,
thus throwing an undue burden on the work of the heart -- the only organ that pumps blood.
Hence, it is disease that ultimately cause the cessation of the heart beat. Ask the
physiologist what causes the disease, he well tell you that disease is the irregular
functioning (dis-ease) of the human body, or by the violation of rules of healthy living
or by an accident -- each of which can impair some part or other of the human system, thus
causing disease. Ask the physiologist what causes the entry of a germ or the violation of
health rules or the occurrence of an accident. He will have to answer. "I do not
know, I cannot say." Certainly the physiologist cannot help us this stage of our
reflections of death, since the question is beyond the realm of physiology and enters the
realm of human conduct. When two persons are exposed to germ infection, why should it
sometimes be the man of lower resistance power who escapes the infection while the man of
greater resistance succumbs to it? When three persons tread the same slippery floor, why
should one slip and fall and crack his head and die, while the second slips and sustains
only minor injuries, while the third does not slip at all? These are questions which
clearly show that the answer is not to be expected from the physiologist whose study is
the work of the human body.
Nor is the answer to be expected
from a psychologist whose study is the work of the human mind only. Far, far beyond the
confines of physiology and psychology is the answer to be sought. It is here that Buddhist
philosophy becomes inviting. It is just here that the law of Kamma, also called the law of
Cause and Effect or the law of Action and Reaction makes a special appeal to the inquiring
mind. It is Kamma that steps in to answer further questions. It is Kamma that determines
why one man should succumb to germ-infection while the other should not. It is Kamma that
decides why the three men treading the same slippery floor should experience three
different results. Kamma sees to it that each man gets in life just what he deserves, not
more, nor less. Each man's condition in life with its particular share of joys and sorrows
is nothing more nor less than the result of his own past actions, good and bad. Thus we
see that Kamma is a strict accountant. Each man weaves his own web of fate. Each man is
the architect of his own fortune. As the Buddha said in the Anguttara Nikaya,
"Beings are the owners of their deeds. Their deeds are the womb from which they
spring. With their deeds they are bound up. Their deeds are their refuge. Whatever deeds
they do, good or evil, of such they will be heirs." As actions are various, reactions
also are various. Hence the varying causes of death to various persons under various
situations. Every cause has its particular effect. Every action has its particular
reaction. This is the unfailing law.
When Kamma is referred to as a law,
it must not be taken to mean something promulgated by the state or some governing body.
That would imply the existence of a lawgiver. It is a law in the sense that it is a
constant way of action. It is in the nature of certain actions that they should produce
certain results. That nature is also called law. It is in this sense that we speak of the
law of gravitation which causes a mango on the tree to fall to the ground, not that there
is a supreme external power or being which commands the mango to fall. It is in the nature
of things, the weight of the mango, the attraction of the earth, that the mango should
fall. It is again a constant way of action. Similarly, in the realm of human conduct and
human affairs, the law of cause and effect, of action and reaction, operates. (It is then
called Kamma or more properly Kamma Vipaka). It is not dependent on any extraneous
arbitrary power, but it is in the very nature of things that certain actions should
produce certain results. Hence the birth and the death of a man is no more the result of
an arbitrary power than the rise and fall of a tree. Nor is it mere chance. There is no
such thing as chance. It is unthinkable that chaos rules the world. Every situation, every
condition is a sequel to a previous situation and a previous condition. We resort to the
word 'chance' when we do not know the cause.
Sufficient has been said for us to
know that in Kamma we find the root cause of death. We also know that no arbitrary power
fashions this Kamma according to its will or caprice. It is in the result of our own
actions. "Yadisam vapate bijam tadisam harate phalam" -- as we sow, so
shall we reap. Kamma is not something generated in the closed box of the past. It is
always in the making. We are by our actions, every moment contributing to it. Hence, the
future is not all conditioned by the past. The present is also conditioning it.
If you fear death, why not make the
wisest use of the present so as to ensure a happy future? To fear death on the one hand
and on the other, not to act in a way that would ensure a happy future, is either madness
or mental lethargy. He who leads a virtuous life, harming none and helping whom he can, in
conformity with the Dhamma, always remembering the Dhamma, is without doubt laying the
foundation of a happy future life. "Dhammo have rakkhati dhamma carim" --
The Dhamma most assuredly protects him who lives in conformity with it. Such conformity is
facilitated by the contemplation of death. Death has no fears for one who is thus
protected by Dhamma. Then shall he, cheerful and unafraid, be able to face the phenomenon
of death with fortitude and calm.
III
Another approach to the understanding of death is
through an understanding of the law of aggregates or Sankharas which states that
everything is a combination of things and does not exist by itself as an independent
entity. "Sankhara" is a Pali term used for an aggregation, a combination, or an
assemblage. The word, is derived from the prefix San meaning "together"
and the root kar meaning "to make." The two together mean "made
together" or "constructed together" or "combined together".
"All things in this world," says the Buddha, "are aggregates or
combinations." That is to say, they do not exist by themselves, but are composed of
several things. Any one thing, be it a mighty mountain or a minute mustard seed, is a
combination of several things. These things are themselves combinations of several other
things. Nothing is a unity, nothing is an entity, large or small. Neither is the sun nor
moon an entity, nor is the smallest grain of sand an entity. Each of them is a Sankhara, a
combination of several things.
Things seem to be entities owing to
the fallibility of our senses -- our faculties of sight, hearing, touching, smelling and
tasting, and even thinking. Science has accepted the position that our senses are not
infallible guides to us. A permanent entity is only a concept, only a name. It does not
exist in reality. In the famous dialogues between King Milinda and Thera Nagasena, the
latter wishing to explain to the King this law of aggregates, enquired from the King how
he came there, whether on foot or riding. The King replied that he came in a
chariot.
"Your Majesty," said Nagasena, "if
you came in a chariot, declare to me the chariot. Is the pole the chariot?"
"Truly not," said the King. "Is the axle the chariot," asked Nagasena.
"Truly not," said the King. "Is the chariot-body the chariot?" --
"Truly not," said the King. "Is the yoke the chariot?" -- "Truly
not," said the King. "Are the reins the chariot?" -- "Truly not,"
said the King. "Is the goading stick the chariot?" -- "Truly not,"
said the King.
"Where then, Oh King,"
asked nagasena, "is this chariot in which you say you came? You are a mighty king of
all the continent of India and yet speak a lie when you say there is no
chariot."
In this way by sheer analysis, by breaking up what
is signified by chariot into its various component parts, Nagasena was able to convince
the King that a chariot as such does not exist, but only component parts exist. So much so
that the King was able to answer thus, --
"Venerable Nagasena, I speak no lie. The word
'chariot' is but a figure of speech, a term, an appellation, a convenient designation for
pole, axle, wheels, chariot-body and banner staff."
Similarly, "human being", "man",
"I" are mere names and terms, not corresponding to anything that is really and
actually existing. In the ultimate sense there exist only changing energies. The term
"Sankhara" however refers not only to matter and properties of matter known as
"corporeality" (rupa), but also to mind and properties of mind known as
"mentality" (nama). Hence, the mind is as much a combination or aggregate
as the body.
When it is said the mind is a
combination of several thoughts, it is not meant that these several thoughts exist
together simultaneously as do the different parts of the chariot. What is meant is a
succession of thoughts, an unending sequence of thoughts, now a thought of hatred,
thereafter a thought of sorrow, thereafter a thought of duty near at hand and thereafter
again the original thought of hatred etc., etc., in endless succession. Each thought
arises, stays a while and passes on. The three stages of being are found here also -- uppada,
thiti, bhanga -- arising, remaining and passing away. Thoughts arise, one following
the other with such a rapidity of succession that the illusion of a permanent thing called
"the mind" is created; but really there is no permanent thing but only a flow of
thoughts. The rapid succession of thoughts is compared to the flow of water in a river (nadi
soto viya), one drop following another in rapid succession that we seem to see a
permanent entity in this flow. But this is an illusion. Similarly, there is no such
permanent entity as the mind. It is only a succession of thoughts, a stream of thoughts
that arise and pass away. If I say that I crossed a river this morning and recrossed it in
the evening, is my statement true as regards what I crossed and what I recrossed? Was it
what I crossed in the morning that I crossed in the evening? Is it not one set of waters
that I crossed in the morning, and a different set of waters that I crossed in the
evening? Which of the two is the river, or are there two rivers, a morning river and an
evening river? Had I recrossed at mid-day, then there would also be a mid-day river.
Asking oneself such questions one would see that every hour, every minute it is a
different river. Where then is a permanent thing called 'river'? Is it the river bed or
the banks? You will now realize that there is nothing to which you can point out and say,
"This is the river." "River" exists only as a name. It is a convenient
and conventional mode of expression (vohara vacana) for a continuous unending flow
of drops of water. Just such is the mind. It is a continuous stream of thoughts. Can you
point to any one thought that is passing through the mind and say, "This truly is my
mind, my permanent mind?" A thought of anger towards a person may arise in me. If
that thought is my permanent mind how comes it that on a later occasion a thought of love
towards the same person can arise in me? If that too is my permanent mind, then there are
two opposing permanent minds. Questioning on these lines one comes to the inevitable
conclusion that there is no such thing as a permanent mind; it is only a convenient
expression (vohara vacana) for an incessant and variegated stream of thoughts that
arise and pass away. "Mind" does not exist in reality. It exists only in name as
an expression for a succession of thoughts. Chariot -- river -- body and mind -- these are
all combinations. By themselves and apart from these combinations they do not exist. There
is nothing intrinsically stable in them, nothing corresponding to reality, nothing
permanent, no eternally abiding substratum or soul.
Thus if body is only a name for a
combination of changing factors and the mind is likewise only a name for a succession of
thoughts, the psycho-physical combination called "man" is not an entity except
by way of conventional speech. So when we say a chariot moves or a man walks it is correct
only figuratively or conventionally. Actually and really, in the ultimate sense there is
only a movement, there is only a walking. Hence has it been said in the Visuddhi Magga:
"There is no doer but the deed
There is no experiencer but the experience.
Constituent parts alone roll on.
This is the true and correct view."
Now, how does this cold and relentless analysis of
mind and body become relevant to the question of death? The relevancy is just this. When
analysis reveals that there is no person but only a process, that there is no doer but
only a deed, we arrive at the conclusion that there is no person who dies, but that there
is only a process of dying. Moving is a process, walking is a process, so dying is also a
process. Just as there is no hidden agent back and behind the process of moving or
walking, so, there is no hidden agent back and behind the process of dying. If only we are
capable of keeping more and more to this abhidhammic view of things, we will be less and
less attached to things, we will be less and less committing the folly of identifying
ourselves with our actions. Thus shall we gradually arrive at a stage when we grasp the
view, so difficult to comprehend, that all life is just a process. It is one of the
grandest realizations that can descend on deluded man. It is so illuminating, so
enlightening. It is indeed a revelation. With the appearance of that realization there is
a disappearance of all worries and fears regarding death. That is a logical sequence. Just
as with the appearance of light darkness must disappear, even so the light of knowledge
dispels the darkness of ignorance, fear and worry. With realization, with knowledge, these
fears and worries will be shown as being empty and unfounded. It is so very easy to keep
on declaring this. What is difficult is to comprehend this. Why is it so difficult?
Because we are so accustomed to thinking in a groove, because we are so accustomed to
overlook the fallacies in our thinking, because we are so accustomed to wrong landmarks
and wrong routes in our mental journeying, we are reluctant to cut out a new path. It is
we who deny ourselves the benefits of Samma Ditthi (Right views) The inveterate
habit of identifying ourselves with our actions is the breeding ground of that inviting
belief that there is some subtle "ego" back and behind all our actions and
thoughts. This is the arch mischief maker that misleads us. We fail to realize that the
ego-feeling within us is nothing more than the plain and simple stream of consciousness
that is changing always and is never the same for two consecutive moments. As Professor
James said, "The thoughts themselves are the thinkers." In our ignorance we hug
the belief that this ego-consciousness is the indication of the presence of some subtle
elusive soul. It is just the mind's reaction to objects. When we walk we fail to realize
that it is just the process of walking and nothing else. We hug the fallacy that there is
something within us that directs the walking. When we think, we hug the fallacy that there
is something within us that thinks. We fail to realize that it is just the process of
thinking and nothing else. Nothing short of profound meditation on the lines indicated in
the Satipatthana Sutta can cure us of our "miccha ditthi" (false
belief). The day we are able by such meditation to rid ourselves of these cherished false
beliefs against which the Buddha has warned us times without number, beliefs which warp
our judgment and cloud our vision of things, shall we be able to develop that clarity of
vision which alone can show us things as they actually are. Then only will the realization
dawn on us that there is no one who suffers dying, but there is only a dying process just
as much as living is also a process. If one can train himself to reflect on these lines,
it must necessarily mean that he is gradually giving up the undesirable and inveterate
habit of identifying himself with his bodily and mental processes and that he is gradually
replacing that habit by a frequent contemplation on Anatta (N'etan mama,
this does not belong to me). Such contemplation will result in a gradual relaxation of our
tight grip on our "fond ego". When one thus ceases to hug the ego-delusion, the
stage is reached when there is complete detachment of the mind from such allurements. Then
shall one be able, cheerful and unafraid, to face the phenomenon of death with fortitude
and calm.
IV
We have seen how reflections on the great law of
Kamma and the great law of Aggregates or Sankharas can assist us to form a correct view of
death and help us to face death in the correct attitude. Now there is a third great law, a
knowledge of which can assist us in the same way, namely, the law of change or Anicca.
It is the principle behind the first noble truth, the truth of Dukkha or
Disharmony. It is precisely because there is change or lack of permanency in anything and
everything in this world, that there is suffering or disharmony in this world. This
principle of change is expressed by the well known formula Anicca vata sankhara --
"all sankharas are impermanent." Nothing in this world is stable or static. Time
moves everything whether we like it or not. Time moves us also whether we like it or not.
Nothing in this world can arrest the ceaseless passage of time and nothing survives time.
There is no stability anywhere. Change rules the world. Everything mental and physical is
therefore transitory and changing. The change may be quick or the change may be
perceptible or it may be imperceptible. We live in an ever changing world, while we
ourselves are also all the while changing.
A sankhara, we have learnt,
is a combination of several factors. These factors are also subject to the law of change.
They are changing factors. Hence a Sankhara is not merely a combination of several
factors. It is a changing combination of changing factors, since the combination itself is
changing. It is because there is change that there is growth. It is because there is
change that there is decay. Growth also leads to decay because there is change. Why do
flowers bloom only to fade? It is because of the operation of the law of change. It is
this law that makes the strength of youth give way to the weakness of old age. It is on
account of the operation of the law that though great buildings are erected, towering
towards the sky, some distant day will see them totter and tumble. It is this aspect of
the law of change, the process of disintegration, that causes colour to fade, iron to
rust, and timber to rot. It is such reflections that must have led the poet Gray,
contemplating a burial ground in a country church yard, to say,
"The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power,
All that beauty, all that wealth ever gave,
Await alike the inevitable hour.
The path of glory leads to the grave."
Sometimes the working of this law is not apparent.
Even that which looks so solid and substantial as a rocky mountain will not always remain
as such. Science tells us, that maybe after thousands of years, it will wear down by the
process of disintegration, and that where a lake now is, a mountain once was. If things
arise they must fall, Uppajjitva nirujjhanti, says the Buddha -- "having
arisen, they fall." Aeons and aeons ago the earth and the moon were one. Today, while
the earth is still warm and alive, the moon is cold and dead. The earth too, science tells
us, is very slowly, but surely losing its heat and water. Gradually and slowly it is
cooling down. Aeons and aeons hence it will cease to support life. It will be a cold and
lifeless planet. It will be a second moon. This is just one of several instances where the
mighty law of change works imperceptibly. The Buddha also has foretold the end of the
earth.
Just as the law of change can cause
decline and decay it can also cause growth and progress. Hence it is that a seed becomes a
plant and a plant becomes a tree, and a bud becomes a flower. But again there is no
permanency in growth. Growth again gives way to decay. The plant must die. The flower must
wither. It is an unending cycle of birth and death, integration and disintegration, of
rise and fall. Hence it is that Shelley has aptly said,
"Worlds on worlds are rolling over from
creation to decay,
Like bubbles on a river, sparkling, bursting, borne
away."
It is no arbitrary power that brings about these
changes, progressive and retrogressive. The tendency to change is inherent in all things.
The law of change does not merely declare that things change but also declares that change
is of the very essence of the things. Think of anything, and you will find it to be a mode
of change and a condition of change. Change (aniccata) is the working hypothesis of
the scientist. One of the mightiest tasks of the scientist, also his proudest boast, was
to destroy the idea of stability and fixity in the organic world. We have heard of the
supposed entity of the atom being shown up as a combination of energies. While science has
applied the law of change to the physical domain to split up unity into diversity, the
Buddha has applied the self-same law to the entire mind-body complex and split up the
seeming unity of being into the five aggregates known as "Pa?cakkhandha".
The Buddha has gone further and explained why this aggregate is temporary, why it should
some day disintegrate and why a fresh integration should arise upon the disintegration.
Everything works upon a triple principle of Uppada, Thiti and Bhanga -- arising,
remaining and passing away. Even in the case of a thought these three stages are
present.
When the Buddha dealt with the four
chief elements of the world of matter and showed that they too are subject to the great
law of change, he proceeded to show that the human body which is also formed of the same
elements must necessarily be subject to the same great law of change. "What then of
this fathom-long body" asked the Buddha. "Is there anything here of which it may
rightly be said, 'I' or 'mine' or 'am'? Nay verily nothing whatsoever."
The sooner one appreciates the
working of this law of change, the more will he be able to profit by it, attuning himself
to that way of living, that way of thinking and speaking and acting, where this law will
work to his best advantage. The man who knows the subtle working of this law of change,
will also know how "nama" (mentality) can change by purposeful action.
However deeply he gets involved in evil, he will not regard evil as a permanent
obstruction because he knows that the evil mind can also change, He knows that by constant
contemplation on what is good, good thoughts tend to arise in the mind. The constant
contemplation of good will cause Kusala Sankharas (good tendencies) to arise in the
mind and these kusala Sankharas will dislodge the Akusala Sankharas (evil
tendencies) -- a process which hitherto appeared to him to be impossible. When his
thoughts and tendencies change for the better, when his mind is permeated thus with good
tendencies, his speech and deeds automatically change for the better -- a pleasant
surprise for him. With purer and purer conduct (sila) thus acquired, deeper and
deeper concentration (samadhi) is possible. Increased power to concentrate
accelerates the pace towards the achievement of that Highest Wisdom known as Pa??a.
Thus the bad in him changes into good. A bad man changes into a good man. By purposeful
action the law of change is made to operate to his highest benefit. He now becomes a good
man in the truest sense of the word. The good man is always a happy man. He has no fear of
death because he has no fear of the life beyond. Of such a man has it been said in the
Dhammapada:
"The doer of good rejoices in this world.
He rejoices in the next world.
He rejoices in both worlds."
The powerful change brought about in his life will
ensure upon its dissolution, the birth of a more fortunate being -- a result which he can
confidently expect at his dying moment. Not for him then are the fears and terrors of
death. Furthermore when one follows minutely the working of the Law of Change in respect
of one's own body and mind and also in respect of another's body and mind, one begins to
acquire so close a familiarity with change that death will not appear as just one more
example of the process of change to which one has been subject all along since birth. It
will appear as something to be expected, something that must occur to fit in with what had
occurred earlier. To one who can thus reflect on death, there is nothing to fear. Cheerful
and unafraid, he can face the phenomenon of death with fortitude and calm.
V
There is another angle from which we can study death
and that is from the angle of law of conditionality which is closely akin to the law of Anicca
or Change. Not only are Sankharas made up of several things but they are also
conditioned by several factors, and when these conditioning factors cease to exist, the
conditioned thing also ceases to exist. This is the law of conditionality and has been
thus expressed in very general terms: Imasmim sati, idam hoti -- when this exists,
that exists, Imassa uppada ,idam uppajjati -- when this arises, that arises. Imasmim
asati, idam na hoti -- when this is not, that is not. Imassa nirodha, idam
nirujjhanti -- when this ceases that ceases. As this principle is of universal
applicability, the working of the process of life and death also comes within its
operation. The chain of life-conditioning factors consists of twelve links or Nidanas
which together are known as the Paticca Samuppada or Law of Dependent Origination.
A knowledge of this law is most necessary. In the Maha Nidana Sutta of the Digha
Nikaya, Buddha addressing Ananda said, "It is through not understanding, through
not penetrating this doctrine, that these beings have become entangled like a ball of
thread."
The formula of Dependent Origination
runs as follows:
Conditioned by ignorance, activities arise.
Conditioned by activities, consciousness arises.
Conditioned by consciousness, mentality and
corporeality arise.
Conditioned by mentality and corporeality, the six
faculties arise.
Conditioned by the six faculties, contact arises.
Conditioned by contact, sensation arises.
Conditioned by sensation, craving arises.
Conditioned by craving, grasping arises.
Conditioned by grasping, becoming arises.
Conditioned by becoming, rebirth arises.
Conditioned by re-birth, old age and death arise.
This is the process that goes on and on ad
infinitum. Hence has it been said:
"Again and again the slow wits seek re-birth,
Again and again comes birth and dying comes,
Again and again men bear us to the grave."
This important law is easier told than understood.
This is one of the profoundest doctrines preached by the Buddha. It is only frequent and
hard thinking on it that will bring out its deepest meanings. This is not the place to
explain these twelve links in full, but in order to dispel some of the misconception
surrounding the notion of death, it is necessary to make some observations on the first
link -- Avijja, or Ignorance, and thereafter on the second and third links, viz.
activities and consciousness, because it is these two links that involve death and
re-birth.
These twelve links, it must be
understood, do not represent a pure succession of cause and effect, a straight line of
action and reaction. It is wrong to call this a causal series, as it is not a chain of
causes in strict sequence of time. Some of the links (though not all) arise
simultaneously, and the next is of condition rather than cause. There are 24 modes of
conditioning (paccaya) which may operate in the relation of one factor to another.
Each factor is both conditioning (paccaya dhamma) and conditioned (paccayuppanna
dhamma). Many of these factors are both simultaneously and interdependently
working.
A few observations now, on the first
link of Avijja or ignorance. When it is said the Ignorance is the first link, it
does not mean that Ignorance is the first cause of existence. The Buddha has definitely
said that the first cause, the ultimate origin of things is unthinkable, Anamataggayam
sansaro, pubba-koit na pa??ayati, "Beginningless, O monks, is this course of
existence. A starting point is not to be found." Bertrand Russell has stated,
"There is no reason to suppose that this world had a beginning at all. The idea that
things must have a beginning is really due to the poverty of our imagination."
Ignorance, then, is not the primary origin of things but is the originating factor of
suffering in the process of life and death, so far as man is concerned. All the twelve
factors are continuing factors. It is only if we ponder deeply that we will be convinced
of this truth, namely, that there can be no beginning to a process that has no end.
What is meant by Ignorance as being
the first link in the series? By Ignorance is here meant the Ignorance of the essentially
fundamental facts of existence, namely, the fact of suffering or disharmony, the fact of
the cessation of suffering or disharmony, and the fact of the way leading to the cessation
of suffering or disharmony. In other words, it is the ignorance of that which the Buddha
has called the Four Noble Truths. Ignorance is always a dangerous condition. In such a
condition you are at the mercy of everyone and everything.
"'Tis Ignorance that entails the dreary round
Now here now there -- of countless births and deaths.
But no hereafter waits for him who knows."
The second link is Activities. By Activities is here
meant volitional activities, called in Pali Sankhara. The formula states --
"Dependent upon Ignorance arise activities." This means that ignorance of the
essentially fundamental facts of life becomes a conditioning factor for the volitional
activities of man. It is only a knowledge and a realization of the Four Noble Truths that,
according to the Buddha, enables a man to see things as they actually are. In the state of
ignorance of these Truths man, prevented as he is from seeing things as they actually are,
adopts various courses of action. These activities are not merely the outcome of ignorance
once and for all, but ignorance continues to condition these volitional activities so long
as existence continues. These volitional activities or mental energies are multifarious.
In the context of the Paticca Samuppada, "Sankhara" can therefore
be said to signify "Kamma" or "Kammic Volition". The first link
of Ignorance and the second link of Activities refer to the past birth. The next eight
links refer to the present existence and the last two refer to the future existence.
The third link is Vi??ana or
Consciousness. The formula states -- "Dependent upon Activities arises
Consciousness." By consciousness is here meant re-linking consciousness or re-birth
consciousness. By this formula is therefore meant that the conscious life of man in his
present birth is conditioned by his volitional activities, his good and bad actions, his
Kamma of the past life. To put it in another way, the consciousness of his present life is
dependent on his past Kamma. This formula is highly important since it involves a linking
of the past life with the present and thereby implies re-birth. Hence, this third link is
called patisandhi vi??ana or re-linking consciousness or re-birth
consciousness.
It may be wondered how activities of
the past life can condition a present birth. Material sciences seek to explain birth on
the premises of the present existence only. The biologist says that it is the union of
father with mother that conditions birth. According to the Buddha, these two conditioning
factors by themselves are insufficient to result in birth, otherwise every complete union
of father with mother should result in birth. These two are purely physical factors and it
is illogical to expect that a psycho-physical organism, a mind-body combination known as
man could arise from two purely physical factors without the intervention of a psychical
or mental factor. Therefore, says the Buddha, a third factor is also necessary in addition
to the two purely physical factors of the sperm and the ovum.
This third factor is patisandhi-vi??ana
or re-linking consciousness. The wick and the oil will not alone produce a flame. You may
drown a wick in gallons of oil but there will never be a flame. You may use a wick of the
most inflammable type but there will never be a flame. Not until a bright spark of light
comes from elsewhere will the action of the oil and the wick produce a flame. We have
considered that the activities of the past are certain energies -- mental energies. The
Kamma of the past releases these energies which are potent enough to create the condition
for the being to be reborn in an appropriate place according to the nature of activities
performed. These energies it is that produce the patisandhi vi??ana, the third
factor. It will thus be seen that these potential energies work in cooperation with the
physical laws to condition the natural formation of the embryo in the mother's womb. Just
as sleep is no bar to the continuance of bodily operations in consequence of the principle
of life continuing within it, even so death is no bar to the continuance of the operation
of being which is only transformed to another suitable realm or plane there to be reborn
and to re-live, in consequence of the will-to-live remaining alive and unabated at the
moment of dissolution. The life-stream, the process of being thus continues, while the
Kammic forces it generates give it shape and form in the appropriate sphere of existence,
investing it with its new characteristics and securing for it "a local habitation and
a name". A seed coming in contact with the soil produces a plant, but the plant is
not born of the seed and the soil only. There are other factors drawn from unseen
extraneous sources that come into play, such as light and air and moisture. It is the
combined presence of all these factors that provide the opportunity for the birth of the
plant. The unseen extraneous factor where the birth of a being is concerned is the
terminating kammic energy of the dying man, or to express it in another way, the
reproductive power of the will-to-live.
Is there any need to doubt the
potency of the past Kamma to create a present existence? Do you doubt that the activities
of one existence can condition consciousness in another existence? If so, calmly reflect
on the incessant and multifarious nature of human activities, the one feature of human
life, the unfailing characteristic of every moment of individual existence. When you have
sufficiently grasped the fact of the incessant and multifarious nature of human
activities, ask yourself the question who or what propels these activities? A little
reflection will reveal that the activities of man are propelled by a myriad of desires and
cravings which ultimately spring from the desire to live. This will-to-live by whatever
name you may call it, motivates all activities. We eat, we earn, we acquire, we struggle,
we advance, we hate, we love, we plot, we plan, we deceive -- all in order that we may
continue living. Even the desire to commit suicide, paradoxical as it may seem, arises
from the desire to live -- to live free from entanglements and disappointments. Just
consider the cumulative effect of hundreds of desire-propelled activities performed by us,
day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute for a long period of years. These are all
Kammas, these are all energies released. These are all strong creative forces that are
generated.
It is difficult to imagine that with
the present life will end all the desire-forces it has brought into existence. There will
always be at any given moment an outstanding balance of unexpected Kammic energies. These
powers, energies or forces contain within themselves the potentialities of attracting for
themselves the conditions for further existence. These energies or forces are potent
enough to create the conditions for re-living when the body which sustained these forces
ceases to live. These then will constitute the terminating Kammic energy of the dying man,
or to express the same idea in another way, this is the reproductive power of the
will-to-live. In short, the will-to-live makes it possible to relive.
Now we see how the terminating
Kammic energy of the dying man becomes the third factor, the psychical factor which along
with the two physical factors of the sperm and the ovum, conditions future birth. It is
this relinking consciousness that becomes the nucleus of a new nama-rupa or
mind-body combination. This is the resultant terminal energy generated by the volitional
activities of the past. Science teaches us that energy is indestructible but that it can
be transmuted into other forms of energy. Why then cannot these powerful energies of the
past Kamma, impelled as they are by the pulsation of craving and motivated as they are by
the will-to-live, continue to exert their potent influences albeit in some other manner
and in some other sphere? What is it that travels from one existence to another, you may
ask. Do activities (Kammic energies) travel or do their resultant forces travel? Or does
consciousness itself travel? The answer is an emphatic, "No". None of these
travel, but the Kammic energy of actions performed is a tremendous force or power which
can make its influence felt and to effect this influence, distance is no bar. Distance is
never a bar to Kammic energies making themselves felt. In the Maha-Tanha-Sankhaya Sutta
of Majjhima Nikaya, the Buddha's teachings that Vi??ana or consciousness
travels from existence to existence. "Foolish man," said the Buddha, "has
not consciousness generated by conditions been spoken of in many a figure of speech by me
saying, 'apart from conditions there is no origination of consciousness'?" No
physical contact is necessary for mind to influence matter. Sir William Crooke, in his
Edinburgh lectures on mental science has said, "It has also been proved by experiment
that by an act of will the mind can cause objects such as metal levers to move." When
the matter on which mental energies act is situated far away, in other planes and spheres
of existence, we are only employing a figure of speech when we say that Kamma has traveled
or that energy has traveled. Many a simile has been employed by the Buddha to show that
nothing travels or transmigrates from one life to another. It is just a process of one
condition influencing another. The resultant Kammic energies of human activity, not yet
expanded, are so powerful that they can condition the formation of an embryo in another
world and give it consciousness.
One important point must not be
overlooked. The Patisandhi-vi??ana or re-linking consciousness arises only in the
unborn child. In the pre-natal stage the re-linking consciousness may be said to exist
only passively (in the bhavanga state) and not actively, since the child is still
part of the body of the mother and has no separate, independent existence nor does it
contact the external world. When however, the child is born and assumes a separate
existence and begins to contact the external world, then it may be said that the bhavanga
nature of the pre-natal state of mind gives way for the first time to a fully conscious
mind process, the Vithi-citta.
Distance is no bar to the sequence
of cause and effect. Reference had already been made to the Buddha's reprimand of a
bhikkhu called Sati for declaring as having been taught by the Buddha that consciousness
passes from existence to existence. In the re-linking consciousness arises the whole
energy of the previous consciousness, and thus the embryo while inheriting the
characteristics of the new parents inherits also the impressions of the past experiences
of the dying man. How else can one explain characteristics not accounted for by heredity?
How else can one account for different characteristics in twins born of the same parents
and growing under the same environment?
We have now studied death from
several angles. From whatever angle we look at death it is an integral part of the great
process of life. Death is like the break up of an electric bulb. The light is extinguished
but not the current, and when a fresh bulb is fixed the light re-appears. Similarly there
is a continuity of life current, the break up of the present body does not extinguish the
current of Kammic energy which will manifest itself in an appropriate fresh body. The
simile is not on all fours with life. Whereas there is nothing to bring the electric
current and the fresh bulb together (a conjunction left to chance), the type of life led,
the nature of thought entertained, the quality of deeds performed will be strong enough to
cause an immediate relinking consciousness of like nature to arise, on the principle that
like attracts like. Thus the dying man is drawn to an environment, good or bad, which he
has created for himself by his thought, word and deed, for on these depend the nature of
our future life. Every moment we are creating our future. Every moment then we must be
careful.
If we can visualize the immensity of
the past and the immensity of the future, the present loses its seemingly compelling
importance. If we could but visualize the vistas of innumerable births and deaths through
which we will pass in the future, we should not, we could not fear just this one death out
of the endless series of birth and deaths, rises and falls, appearances and disappearances
which constitute the ceaseless process of samsaric life.
VI
There is yet another law the understanding of which
helps in the understanding of death. It is the Law of Becoming or Bhava, which is a
corollary to the Law of Change or Anicca. Becoming, or Bhava, is also one of
the factors in the scheme of Dependent Origination. According to Buddhism the Law of
Becoming, like the Law of Change, is constantly at work and applies to everything. While
the Law of Change states that nothing is permanent but is ever-changing, the Law of
Becoming states that everything is always in the process of changing into something else.
Not only is everything changing, but the nature of that change is a process of becoming
something else. Not only is everything changing, but the nature of that change is a
process of becoming something else, however short or long the process may be. Briefly put,
the Law of Becoming is this: "Nothing is, but is becoming." A ceaseless becoming
is the feature of all things. A small plant is always in the process of becoming an old
tree. There is no point of time at which anything is not becoming something else. Rhys
Davids in his American lectures has said, "In every case as soon as there is a
beginning, there begins also at that moment to be an ending."
If you stand by the sea and watch
how wave upon wave rises and falls, one wave merging into the next, one wave becoming
another, you will appreciate that this entire world is also just that -- becoming and
becoming. If you can stand by a bud continuously until it becomes a flower, you will be
amazed to see that the condition of the bud at one moment appears to be no different from
its condition at the next moment and so on, until before your very eyes, the change has
taken place through you could not discern it at all. The process is so gradual, one stage
merging into the next so imperceptibly. It is a becoming. If you close your eyes to this
process, if you see the bud one day and then see it a day later, then only will you see a
change. Then only will you speak in the terms of "buds" and "flowers"
and not in terms of a process of a becoming.
If you can keep on looking at a
new-born babe without a break for ten years you will not perceive any change. The baby
born at 10 a.m. appears just the same at 11 a.m. or at 12 noon. Each moment shows no
difference from the next. One condition merges into the next so imperceptibly. It is a
becoming, a continuous process of becoming. Close your eyes to this process and see the
baby once a month. then only will you perceive a change. Then only can you speak in terms
of "baby" and "boy" and not in terms of a process or a becoming.
If you think you can watch minutely
the progress of time, see whether you can divide it into present, past, and future as do
grammarians speaking of present tense, past tense and future tense. In the view of
Buddhist philosophy, time is one continuous process, each fragmentary portion of time
merging into the other and forming such an unbroken continuity that no dividing line can
precisely be drawn separating past time from present, or present time from future. The
moment you think of the present and say to yourself "this moment is present
time" it is gone -- vanished into the past before you can even complete your
sentence. The present is always slipping into the past, becoming the past, and the future
is always becoming the present. Everything is becoming. This is a universal process, a
constant flux. It is when we miss the continuity of action that we speak in terms of
things rather than processes or becomings.
Biology says that the human body
undergoes a continual change, all the cells composing the body being replaced every seven
years. According to Buddhism, changes in the body are taking place every moment. At no two
consecutive moments is the body the same. In the last analysis, it is a stream of atoms or
units of matter of different types which are every moment arising and passing away. The
body is thus constantly dying and re-living within this existence itself. This momentary
death (Khanika marana) takes place every moment of our existence.
In the Visuddhi Magga it is
said that in the ultimate sense, the life span of living beings is extremely short, being
only as much as the duration of a single conscious moment. "Just as a chariot
wheel" continues the Visuddhi Magga "when it is rolling, touches the
ground at one point only of the circumference of its tire, so too the life of living
beings lasts only for a single conscious moment. When that consciousness has ceased, the
being is said to have ceased." Thus we see that every moment of our lives we are
dying and being reborn. This being so why should we dread just one particular moment of
death, the moment that marks the end of this existence? When there are innumerable moments
of death, why fear the occurrence of one particular moment? Ignorance of the momentary
nature of death makes us fearful of the particular death that takes place at the last
moment of existence here, especially as the next moment of living is not seen nor
understood. The last moment in this existence is just one of the innumerable moments of
death that will follow it.
It is not life in this existence
only that is a process of becoming. The process of becoming continues into the next
existence also, because there is a continuity of consciousness. The last consciousness (cuti-citta)
in one life is followed by what is known as a re-linking consciousness (patisandhi-vi??ana)
in the next life. The process of one consciousness giving rise to another continues
unbroken, the only difference being a change in the place where such consciousness
manifests itself. Distance is no bar to the sequence of cause and effect. Life is a
process of grasping and becoming, and death is a change of the thing grasped leading to a
new becoming. Grasping is a continuous feature where human living is concerned. It is this
grasping that leads to becoming. What causes grasping? Where there is thirst, there is
grasping. It is this thirst, this desire, this craving, this will-to-live, this urge which
is known as Tanha that causes grasping. The Kammic energy resulting from this Tanha
is like fire. It always keeps on burning and is always in search of fresh material upon
which it can sustain itself. It is ever in search of fresh conditions for its continued
existence. At the moment of the dissolution of the body, that unexpected desire-energy,
that residuum of Kamma, grasps fresh fuel and seeks a fresh habitation where it can
sustain itself. Thus proceeds the continuous flux of grasping and becoming which is
life.
Let us now examine the unduly
dreaded dying moment which marks the end of man's present existence, only to commence
another. The physical condition of any dying man is so weak that the volitional control by
the mind at the dying moment lacks the power to choose its own thoughts. This being so,
the memory of some powerfully impressive and important event of the dying man's present
existence (or his past existence) will force itself upon the threshold of his mind, the
forcible entry of which thought he is powerless to resist. This thought which is known as
the maranasa??a-javana thought and precedes the cuti-citta or terminal
thought, can be one of three types. Firstly, it can be the thought of some powerfully
impressive act done (kamma) which the dying man now recalls to mind. Secondly, the
powerfully impressive act of the past can be recalled by way of a symbol of that act (Kamma
nimitta) as, for instance, if he had stolen money from a safe, he may see the safe.
Thirdly, the powerfully impressive act of the past may be recalled by way of a sign or
indication of the place where he is destined to be re-born by reason of such act, as for
instance when a man who has done great charitable acts hears beautiful divine music. This
is called Gati nimitta or the sign of destination. It is symbolic of his place of
re-birth. These three types of thought-objects which he cannot consciously choose for
himself, are known as death signs and any one of them as the case may be, will very
strongly and vividly appear to the consciousness of the dying man. Then follows the cuti
citta or terminal thought or death consciousness. This last thought series is most
important since it fashions the nature of his next existence, just as the last thought
before going to sleep can become the first thought on awakening. No extraneous or
arbitrary power does this for him. He does this for himself unconsciously as it were. The
most important act of his life it is, good or bad, that conditions the last thought moment
of a life. The kamma of this action is called Garuka kamma or weighty Kamma. In the
majority of cases the type of act which men habitually perform and for which they have the
strongest liking becomes the last active thought. The ruling thought in life becomes
strong at death. This habitual kamma is called Acinna Kamma.
The idea of getting a dying man to
offer cloth (Pamsukula) to the Sangha or the idea of chanting sacred texts to him
is in order to help him to obtain a good terminal thought for himself by way of Asa??a
Kamma or death-proximate Kamma, but the powerful force of inveterate habit can
supervene and in spite of the chantings by the most pious monks available, the memory of
bad deeds repeatedly performed may surge up to his consciousness and become the terminal
thought.
The reverse can also occur. If the
last few acts and thoughts of a person about to die are powerfully bad, however good he
had been earlier, then his terminal thought may be so powerfully bad that it may prevent
the habitually good thought from surging up to his consciousness, as is said to have
happened in the case of Queen Mallika, the wife of King Pasenadi of Kosala. She lived a
life full of good deeds but at the dying moment what came to her mind was the thought of a
solitary bad deed done. As a result she was born in a state of misery where she suffered,
but it was only for seven days. The effects of the good Kamma were suspended only
temporarily.
There is a fourth type of Kamma that
can cause the terminal thought to arise. This last type prevails when any of the foregoing
three types of Kamma is not present. In that event one of the accumulated reserves of the
endless past is drawn out. This is called Katatta Kamma or stored-up Kamma. Once
the terminal thought arises, then follows the process of thought moments lawfully linked
with it. This terminal thought process is called maranasa??a javana vithi. The
terminal thought goes through the same stages of progress as any other thought, with this
differences that whereas the apperceptive stage of complete cognition known as Javana
or impulsion, which in the case of any other thought occupies seven thought-moments. At
this apperceptive stage the dying person fully comprehends the death-sign. Then follows
the stage of registering consciousness (tadalambana) when the death-sign is
identified. This consciousness arises for two thought-moments and passes away. After this
comes the stage of death consciousness (cuti citta). Then occurs death. This is
what happens in this existence.
Now let us consider what happens in
the next existence. Already the preliminaries for the arrival of a new being are in
preparation. There is the male parent and there is the female parent. As explained
previously a third factor, a psychic factor, is necessary to complete the preliminaries
for the arising of a live embryo, and that is the relinking consciousness (Patisandi-Vi??ana)
which arises in the next existence in the appropriate setting -- the mother's womb. On the
conjunction of these three factors, life starts in the mother's womb. There is no lapse of
time, no stoppage of the unending stream of consciousness. No sooner has the
death-consciousness in the dying man passed away than rebirth consciousness arises in some
other state of existence. There is nothing that has travelled from this life to the next.
Even the terminal thought did not travel. It had the power to give rise to the passive or bhavanga
state. At the moment of birth which marks a separate existence, through contact with the
outer world, the unconscious or sub-conscious bhavanga state gives way to the vithi-citta
or conscious mind. From birth onwards activity again comes into play, propelled by desire
in some form or another. So proceeds the onward course of the life-flux, desire-propelled
and desire-motivated.
Now what is the relevancy of a
knowledge of the law of conditionality to the question of our attitude towards death? Once
we thoroughly comprehend the fact that the will to live proceeds from life to life, we
come to appreciate the view that this life and the next is but one continuous process. So
also the life following and the next thereafter. To one who understands life thus as
nothing more nor less than a long continuous process, there is no more reason to grieve at
death than at life. They are part of the same process -- the process of grasping, the
process of giving effect to the will-to-live. Death is only a change in the thing grasped.
The man enriched with the knowledge of the law of conditionality comprehends that birth
induces death and death induces birth in the round of sansaric life. He therefore cannot
possibly be perturbed at death. To him birth is death and death is birth. An appreciation
of the law of conditionality will reveal to him the importance of living his life well and
when he has lived his life well, death is the birth of greater opportunities to live a
still better life. That is how he regards death.
It all depends on the way one looks
at death. Suppose there is only one gate to a house, is that an exit gate or an entrance
gate? To one who is on the road side of the gate it is an entrance gate. To the inmate of
the house it is an exit gate, but for both of them it is the self-same gate which is thus
differently viewed. As Dahlke says, "Dying is nothing but a backward view of life,
and birth is nothing but a forward view of death."
In truth, birth and death are phases
of an unbroken process of grasping. Death is a departure to those whom the dying man
leaves behind. It is also an arrival to the members of the new family into which he is
re-born. It is death or birth according to the way we look at it, but we can only be
one-way observers. If we observe the death-process, we are not in a position to observe
the birth process, and if we observe the birth process, we are not in a position to
observe the death process. So, birth and death do not get co-ordinated in our minds as one
connected process. By our failure to see the close sequence of the two processes, the
co-ordination of birth with death or death with birth, we are led to the illusion, or at
least the wish, that we can have the one (birth) without the other (death). We want life
but we do not want death. This is an impossibility. Clinging to life is clinging to death.
The salient feature of life is clinging-grasping -- and the logical result of clinging
according to the law of conditionality is death. If you want to avert death, you have to
avert life, you have to reverse the process of conditionality. This can only be done by
abandoning the desire to cling, the desire to grasp. Let there be no attachment to life.
If you attach yourself unduly to the things of life, happiness you may have for a brief
time, but some day when the things to which you have attached yourself disintegrate and
disappear as they must, by virtue of that mighty law of change working in conjunction with
the equally mighty law of conditionality, then the very objects of joy become objects of
sorrow. You will then agree with the poet who said, "Earth's sweetest joy is but pain
disguised." As great was the joy of attachment so great will be the sorrow of
detachment. Is not this suffering? Is not this wearisome -- one day to pursue a phantom
with excitement, next day to abandon it with disgust, one day to be exalted and the next
day to be depressed? How long will your sense of self-respect allow you to be thrown up
and down this way and that, like a foot-ball? Is it not far more satisfactory, far more
dignified, far safer and far wiser to go through life unattached? If misfortune has to
come, it will; if sickness has to come, it will. We cannot change the events of life but
we can certainly change our attitude towards them. The laws of change and conditionality
will help us here. Fears and sorrows will change into hopes and joys. To such a one living
a life of calm and peace, viewing life with equanimity, death holds no fears and terrors.
Cheerful and unafraid, he can face the phenomenon of death with fortitude and calm.
VII
Let us now consider the cases of two persons who
were overpowered with grief at the bereavement they had to suffer. First let us consider
the case of Patacara. She lost her husband who was bitten by a snake. She was too
weak to cross a river with both her children -- a new born babe and a child about one year
old. So she left the elder child on the bank and waded through the water with her new-born
babe with the greatest difficulty. Having reached the thither shore and having left the
new-born babe there, she was returning through the water to reach the elder child. She had
hardly reached mid-stream when a hawk swooped down on the new-born babe and carried it
away thinking it to be a piece of flesh. When Patacara seeing this cried out in frantic
grief raising both her hands, the elder child on the other bank thinking that his mother
was calling him, ran into the river and was drowned. Alone, weeping and lamenting, she was
proceeding now to her parental home whither she had intended going with her husband and
her two children, when one by one these calamities occurred. As she was proceeding she met
a man returning from her home town and inquired from him about her parents and her
brother. This man gave the dismal news that owing to a severe storm the previous day, her
parental house had come down, destroying both her father and her mother and also her
brother. As he spoke he pointed to some smoke rising into the air far away and said,
"That is the smoke rising from the one funeral pyre in which are burning the bodies
of your father, mother and brother." Completely distracted with grief, she ran about
like a mad woman regardless of her falling garments. Agony was gnawing at her heart, agony
of the most excruciating type. Advised to go to the Buddha, she went and explained her
plight. What did the Buddha tell her? "Patacara, be no more troubled. This is not the
first time thou hast wept over the loss of a husband. This is not the first time thou hast
wept over the loss of parents and of brothers. Just as today, so also through this round
of existence thou hast wept over the loss of so many countless husbands, countless sons,
countless parents and countless brothers, that the tears thou has shed are more abundant
than the waters of the four oceans." As the Buddha spoke these words of wisdom and
consolation, Patacara's grief grew less and less intense and finally, not only did her
grief leave her altogether, but when the Buddha preached to her and concluded his
discourse, Patacara reached the stage of Stream-entry (Sotapatti), the first stage
of sainthood.
Now what is that contributed to the
removal of grief from the mind of Patacara? It is the keen realization of the universality
of death. Patacara realized that she had lived innumerable lives, that she had suffered
bereavement innumerable times, and that death is something which is always
occurring.
While Patacara realized the
universality of death by reference to her own numerous bereavements in the past,
Kisagotami realized it by reference to the numerous bereavements occurring to others
around her in this life itself. When her only child died, her grief was so great that she
clung to the dead body, not allowing any one to cremate it. This was the first bereavement
she had ever experienced. With the dead child firmly held to her body she went from house
to house inquiring for some medicine that would bring back life to her child. She was
directed to the Buddha who asked her to procure a pinch of white mustard seed, but it
should be from a house where no death had taken place. She then went in search of this
supposed cure for her child which she thought was easy to obtain. At the very first house
she asked for it but when she inquired whether any death had taken place under that roof
she received the reply, "What sayest thou, woman? As for the living, they be few, as
for the dead they be many." She then went to the next house. There also she came to
know that death had made its visit to that house as well. She went to many houses and in
all of them she was told of some father who had died or of some son who had died or of
some other relative or friend who had died. When evening came she was tired of her
hopeless task. She heard the word "death" echoing from every house. She realized
the universality of death. She buried the dead child in the forest, then went back to the
Buddha and said, "I thought it was I only who suffered bereavement. I find it in
every house. I find that in every village the dead are more in number than the
living." Not only was Kisagotami cured of her grief, but at the end of the discourse
which the Buddha delivered to her, she too attained the stage of Stream-entry (Sotapatti).
Let us now contrast the cases of
Patacara and Kisagotami with that of the ignorant rustic farmer the Bodhisatta was in a
former life as mentioned in the Uraga Jataka. Rustic though he was, he practiced
mindfulness on death to perfection. He had trained himself to think every now and then
"Death can at any moment come to us." This is something on which the majority of
us refuse to do any thinking at all. Not only did he make it a habit to think so, but he
even saw to it that all members of his household did the same. One day while he was
working with his son in the field, the latter was stung by a snake and died on the spot.
The father was not one bit perturbed. He just carried the body to the foot of a tree,
covered it with a cloak, neither weeping nor lamenting, and resumed his plowing
unconcerned. Later he sent word home, through a passer-by, to send up one parcel of food
instead of two for the mid-day meal and to come with perfumes and flowers. When the
message was received, his wife knew what it meant but she too did not give way to
expressions of grief; neither did her daughter nor her daughter-in-law nor the
maid-servant. As requested they all went with perfumes and flowers to the field, and a
most simple cremation took place, with no one weeping. Sakka the chief of gods came down
to earth and proceeding to the place where a body was burning upon a pile of firewood,
inquired from those standing around whether they were roasting the flesh of some animal.
When they replied, "It is no enemy but our own son." "Then he could not
have been a son dear to you," said Sakka. "He was a very dear son," replied
the father. "Then," asked Sakka, "why do you not weep?" The father in
reply uttered this stanza:
"Man quits his mortal frame, when joy in life
is past.
Even as a snake is wont its worn out slough to cast.
No friends' lament can touch the ashes of the dead.
Why should I grieve? He fares the way he had to
tread."
Similar questions were asked from the dead son's
mother who replied thus:
"Uncalled he hither came, unbidden soon to go.
Even as he came he went, what cause is here for woe?
No friends' lament can touch the ashes of the dead.
Why should I grieve? He fares the way he had to
tread."
"Sisters surely are loving to their brothers.
Why do you not weep?" asked Sakka of the dead man's sister. She replied:
"Though I should fast and weep, how would it
profit me?
My kith and kin alas would more unhappy be.
No friends' lament can touch the ashes of the dead.
Why should I grieve? He fares the way he had to
tread."
Sakka then asked the dead man's wife why she did not
weep. She replied thus:
"As children cry in vain to grasp the moon
above,
So mortals idly mourn the loss of those they love.
No friends' lament can touch the ashes of the dead.
Why should I grieve? He fares the way he had to
tread."
Lastly Sakka asked the maid-servant why she did not
weep, especially as she had stated that the master was never cruel to her but was most
considerate and kind and treated her like a foster child. This was her reply:
"A broken pot of earth, ah, who can piece
again?
So too, to mourn the dead is nought but labor vain.
No friends' lament can touch the ashes of the dead.
Why should I grieve? He fares the way he had to
tread."
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