The Nine-Part Death Meditation (continued)
Last time, we started the nine-part meditation on death, which comes from an oral tradition of Tsongkhapa himself, who wrote it down in his lam-rim. For the death meditation, there are three root facts, three reasons for contemplating each, and then a conclusion for each of the three reasons.
The three root facts are:
- Death is inevitable
- The time of death is uncertain
- Except for the Dharma – in other words, taking some preventive measures – nothing can be of help at the time of death
“Preventive measures” is the meaning of the word “dharma.” It’s something that we do. “Dharma” literally means “to hold (one back),” so “to prevent” suffering – suffering in future lives, to be more specific, and not just the next life but all our future lives.
The first root fact, that death is inevitable, is what we discussed last time. There are three reasons: (1) It’s definite that the Lord of Death will come and no circumstance can turn it back. (2) Our lifespans cannot be extended when it’s time for us to die, and the remainder of our lifespans is decreasing without stop. We can’t bribe death to wait a while, and every day, every moment, we’re getting closer and closer to the end. (3) Death will come even if we’ve not had the time while still alive to practice the Dharma measures that would prevent our future downfalls. When death comes we can’t say, “Hey, wait a minute. I haven’t finished my work. I haven’t done the retreat that I wanted to do.” When it’s time to die, we die.
The conclusion that we come to is that we are going to take some preventive measures; we’re going to practice the Dharma while we can.
The Time of Death Is Uncertain
The second root fact is that the time of death is uncertain; it can come at any time. Not only will it definitely come, we never know when it will. This uncertainty is true because of three reasons.
(1) The Lifespan in This World Is Uncertain
The first reason is that in general, there’s no certainty of lifespan on our southern continent – the Rose-Apple Continent, or Jambudvipa, Dzambuling (’dzam-bu-gling), whatever you want to call it – especially during these degenerate times. There may be an average length of time that people live, but, obviously, that’s just an average; we can die much sooner or much later than that. Especially because of living in these degenerate times – meaning that we have wars, we have terrorist attacks, we have all sorts of diseases, and so on – there’s no certainty how long we will live. This is just a fact, and it’s something that we need to take seriously. Often we feel that “for sure I’m going to live until I’m ninety or a hundred.” But how can we be sure?
I think that’s the main point that we need to focus on here. We have this naive notion that either that we’re going to live forever or that we’re going to live to be very, very old – hopefully as old as possible. We also think that we’re going to be healthy and that our minds are going to be alert well into old age. Think about it. Is there any reason to be so certain that that’s going to be the case? There is no certainty, is there?
Let’s think about that. I think that the way to do that is to take an honest look at ourselves: “Do I have that false expectation that I’m going to live to be very old, be very healthy, etc.? What is that based on? Is there any rational reason to believe that?” and then come to the conclusion that, in fact, it’s uncertain how long we will live.
Participant: Or we feel that we’ll live a bit longer than now.
Dr. Berzin: Right. That’s another thing. Nobody thinks they’re going to die tomorrow. Even if we have terminal cancer, we could still think that we’re not going to die tomorrow. We think we have more time left. That’s another aspect of this – that we think we always have some time left.
[meditation]
Did you find any rational reason for thinking that you’re going to live to a ripe old age? I can’t think of any except wishful thinking.
Participant: Maybe it’s just part of our tendency to not think about things that are not easy for us to accept.
Dr. Berzin: Certainly one of the most difficult things to accept is our own deaths. It’s difficult enough to accept the death of other people, the death of our loved ones, but our own deaths are even more difficult to accept or imagine.
Participant: To me, it seems a bit like our minds are preoccupied with planning all the things we are going to do but that we never take into account the fact that we’re going to die.
Dr. Berzin: Right. That’s very true.
The example I’m thinking of is soldiers in a war. Do they go out with the idea that they’re going to survive? Well, there are so-called suicide missions. But I think most soldiers go out thinking they’re going to survive. It would be detrimental to go out thinking you’re going to get killed. Then, you would be afraid. Is that the point here? I think the point here is that you would then take as many preventive measures as you can, like wearing body armor and so on.
Obviously, in order to live longer, one would take preventive health measures by doing exercise, stopping smoking, and these sorts of things. But those are not Dharma measures. A Dharma measure is one that prevents worse rebirths, uncontrollably continuing rebirth, and the inability to help others. So, we would take advantage of the time we have now by taking the preventive measures that would help us avoid experiencing those situations, just as on a worldly level, we would take some sort of preventive measure to help us avoid getting sick and dying.
(2) The Causes of Death Are Many and the Causes of Life Few
The next reason for the uncertainty of the time of death is that there are more causes for dying than for remaining alive. Just think about it. All we have to do is cross a street. If there’s traffic, there’s a chance that we’re going to get hit.
I’m going to India in December. There are many chances of my getting not just hepatitis this time but swine flu. All one has to do to catch some disease is to go on a plane, on a crowded train, or into a crowded place. Then there are terrorist attacks. They can happen even in places where we think that we’re safe. Nowadays, terrorist attacks occur in the most unexpected places.
So, there are many, many circumstances that could lead to our dying and fewer circumstances that would contribute toward our remaining alive. Even if we do a lot of exercise and eat organic food, there’s no guarantee that we’re going to live long lives. We could still be hit by a car. And the older we get, the more the chances are that we’re going to die than continue to live. Each day, the odds that we’re going to die sooner rather than later get higher and higher.
Participant: You almost got killed by a cow.
Dr. Berzin: It was a water buffalo. Thank you for reminding me of that example. This was really incredible. I was in India, living in Dalhousie – this was early in my stay in India. There was a milkman who came every day to bring me milk from his water buffalo. It was monsoon season – so, heavy rain and mudslides. I was walking down the road, which was cut from the side of a steep mountain, and I heard a rumbling sound higher up on the mountain. I ran to get out of the way, and a water buffalo fell off the mountain and landed smack on the road right where I had been. If I hadn’t run, I would have been hit and crushed by this falling water buffalo. It turned out that it was the water buffalo that I got milk from every day. So, the most unexpected circumstances can happen. You have no control.
Participant: From the point of view of statistics, you could see the probabilities adding up during your lifetime. So, in the end, it’s inevitable that you’ll die.
Dr. Berzin: Well, in the end it’s inevitable. But I don’t think that the intention here is to work out the mathematical probabilities and statistics for there being more or fewer circumstances. What are the statistics that if you drive or ride in a car, you’re going to be in a car accident? What are the statistics that if you eat organic food, you’re going to live longer? I don’t know. But I don’t think that’s the point. Also, the smallest thing could cause you to die, like an infection.
Participant: I heard that of the people who go to hospitals here in Germany, forty thousand die every year from bacterial or other infections that they got in those hospitals .
Dr. Berzin: Yes. Hospitals are full of sick people. What do you expect? Our hope is that when we go to the hospital, we’ll get better.
So let’s focus on this reason – that there are more causes of dying than of staying alive.
[meditation]
I was also thinking of the example of people who engage in dangerous sports – rock climbing, and these sorts of things. There are a lot of dangerous sports where people see if they can defy death, in a sense. Looking at it rationally, is there any reason to do that? No, none at all.
Participant: What exactly is the point here? Is it that it’s more likely that we will die today than we won’t die today? Or is it that there are more things that could cause us to die than could cause us to stay alive?
Dr. Berzin: It’s that there are more things that could cause us to die. This fits in with the expectation that we are going to live to a really old age, which is a false expectation. We think that if we eat a healthy diet, do exercises, etc., we’ll live longer. But we live in a world in which anything can happen to us. We can catch some disease from other people just by going on the bus, let alone from having sexual contact with people we don’t know. Every time we cross the street, there’s a chance of being hit by something. Every time that we eat something in a restaurant or even eat something that we ourselves prepare, we could get sick because the food could be bad. So, there’s no reason to think that we’re going to live long lives. Death could come at any time.
Participant: So it’s like the causes for us to die outnumber the causes for us to live long.
Dr. Berzin: Right. What are the causes for living a long life? We can only list a few: healthy food, exercise, good genes, not smoking. However, there are far more factors for dying. Just think about it, every single moment of the day, we have to be mindful. Walking down the stairs – if we’re not mindful, we can trip and fall down the stairs. Crossing the street – I already used that example. Eating our food – if we’re not careful and eat our food too quickly, we can choke on it and die. The simplest loss of mindfulness can get us killed.
The point of thinking about all this is to realize that we need to take advantage of this precious human rebirth while we can because we never know when the end will come. The end will definitely come; there’s no way it’s not going to come. Everybody we know will die. Every person throughout history has died, so why shouldn’t we?
(3) The Body Is Extremely Fragile
The third reason why the time of death is uncertain is that the body is extremely fragile. That, I think, is very easy to demonstrate. A sharp instrument cuts the body so easily. We get hurt so easily. We can get bruised so easily. We catch cold and get sick so easily. No matter how strong somebody’s immune system is, no matter how strong somebody’s body is, when they get sick, they get sick. It’s very easy to die. If we lose enough blood, we die. There are all sorts of things that could happen.
Considering how complex the body is, it’s amazing that it ever works properly. From a Tibetan medical point of view, it’s unbelievably rare that everything is in balance. There’s always something out of balance.
Participant: That’s much more realistic.
Dr. Berzin: Right. That’s a very realistic reason for the body being as fragile as it is – and for having to spend the amount of time we do on taking care of it. That’s quite amazing, isn’t it? We have to feed it. We have to put it to sleep. We have to wash it. As Shantideva says, we are like slaves to our bodies. Yet, our bodies break so, so easily. So that’s another reason why the time of death is uncertain.
So let us think realistically about how fragile our bodies are and how easily they can break – and not just break or get sick but die.
[meditation]
Conclusion: We Need to Practice the Dharma Now
So there are these three reasons: In general, there’s no certainty of lifespan, especially in these degenerate times; there are more chances of dying and fewer chances of remaining alive; the body is extremely fragile, so we can easily get sick and die.
So, as a result of considering each of these points, we make the decision to take some preventive measures of Dharma from this moment onwards. There’s no guarantee that we have a lot of time left.
Participant: Is that any different from the previous one?
Dr. Berzin: The previous one was that we’re definitely going to die, and the conclusion was that we must practice some Dharma to avoid things getting worse. This one is emphasizing that, because it’s uncertain when death will come, we have to start practicing right now. So, it’s stronger.
[meditation]
Except for the Dharma, Nothing Can Be of Help at the Time of Death
We’re definitely going to die, we don’t know when, and the only thing that’s going to be of help is having built up strong, beneficial habits from having done Dharma practice. That’s the only thing that is really going to help us in terms of benefiting future lives and preventing a downfall to a worse state. That’s the whole point of doing Dharma practice.
Participant: It benefits us in this life as well.
Dr. Berzin: Well, this is the difference between Dharma-lite and Real Thing Dharma. Dharma-lite is in terms of this lifetime – to benefit us in this lifetime. Real Thing Dharma is in terms of future lives – to get out of rebirth and to reach the enlightened state of a Buddha.
So the only thing that is helpful – obviously, in this life as well – is building up beneficial habits, which we do by listening to the teachings, thinking about them, and meditating on them. This point is talking specifically about the time of death. When we die, we want to have the confidence that “yes, I’ve built up a lot of very strong beneficial habits and instincts, and these are so strong that they are going to continue in future lives.” That gives us some peace of mind when we die.
(1) Wealth and Possessions Cannot Help Us
The first reason is that wealth can be of no help. It doesn’t matter how much money we have in the bank, how many possessions we have. These things are not going to be of any comfort at the time of death. We might take some comfort in the fact that we’ve provided for our families when we’re gone. But in terms of our own future rebirths, they’re not going to be of any help, especially if we’ve spent all our lives just making money and accumulating possessions and haven’t taken the time to do any type of spiritual practice and to work on ourselves to overcome, or at least lessen, our anger, greed, etc.
So let’s reflect on how wealth and material possessions aren’t going to be of any help or comfort at the time of death.
[meditation]
Also, what I’m reminded of is how, if we’ve accumulated a lot of wealth and possessions, when we die, so many of our favorite things are instantly transformed into garbage: everybody just wants to get rid of them. Or, in many cases, the relatives and friends fight over the money or things of value. It can cause unbelievable problems and suffering. There are so many instances in which brother and sister, for example, have become complete enemies because of fighting over the inheritance.
So, certainly, all the possessions around us aren’t going to be of any help when we die.
(2) Friends and Relatives Cannot Help Us
The second reason is that friends and relatives can be of no help at the time of death. We’ve spent so much time and emotional energy on others who are close to us. Nevertheless, as they say, we’re born alone and we die alone. We can’t take them with us. In fact, the quote that is often used in Shantideva’s text says that it’s much better to die alone than to have people all around us crying and carrying on, causing us to be upset.
Think about it: When we’re dying, do we want to have friends and other loved ones around? How would that affect our minds when we’re dying? Probably it would cause our minds to feel a great deal of attachment and sorrow. We would be focused on leaving them behind rather than generating a state of mind that would be beneficial for our future lives.
[meditation]
Questions
If We Are Always Focused on Future Lives, Are We Left with Nothing for This Life?
Participant: All of this sounds a bit cold. “Future life, future life, future life.” It sounds exaggerated. What about this life?
Dr. Berzin: In Real Thing Dharma, the emphasis is totally on future lives.
Participant: In a future life, you are again going to focus on future lives. So, you remain with nothing.
Dr. Berzin: No, you don’t. The point is to use the life that you have now in the most productive way to overcome rebirth altogether. This life is very short compared to the beginningless and endless mental continuum. So, to put all the emphasis on something that is not going to be of ultimate benefit is pointless.
Now, putting the emphasis on future lives doesn’t negate trying, in this lifetime, to help others, to benefit others, to be warm, loving, and to take care of others. It doesn’t deny any of that in the slightest. We’re talking about using our time just accumulating more and more friends and seeking entertainment as opposed to using our time beneficially. At the end, when we die, what will be of help – having gone to ten thousand movies with our friends or having done a lot of training of our minds?
Participant: I am exaggerating a bit. But to say that the people we have been close to in this life mean nothing in the end is also a bit of an exaggeration.
Dr. Berzin: We’re talking about the time of death – that having all these people around us at the time of death is not going to be of any help.
What do you think is going to be of help to your state of mind when you die?
Participant: I’m saying I’m not sure that being alone is the answer. It depends on whether everybody’s crying or not.
Dr. Berzin: What I was saying was to reflect on having others to whom you are very much attached being around you when you’re dying.
Participant: I think that’s the point. It’s about those one is attached to, not about those one cares about and toward whom one doesn’t have much attachment.
Dr. Berzin: Right. It all has to do with attachment, with disturbing emotions.
Participant: Also, being a part of the sangha can help. Sangha is one of the Three Jewels.
Dr. Berzin: You’re using the Western term “sangha” to mean a religious community. When we talk about the Sangha, one of the Three Jewels, we’re talking about the arya community, those who have had non-conceptual cognition of voidness. Most of us don’t meet very many of those. Having people from the Dharma center around me doing pujas when I’m dying is something that I would find annoying, actually.
Participant: I know a woman who didn’t want to die alone. She had Dharma friends around her, and in her last days, they recited or read the sutras she liked.
Dr. Berzin: Having people around us, Dharma friends, reading the Heart Sutra or something to help us keep mindful of the Dharma might help.
But what is the point here? The point is for us to be mindful of the Dharma. At the time of death, we’re thinking of the next lifetime: “I’m dying. I am a hundred percent convinced of rebirth.” As we’ve discussed from the very beginning, all of this is based on the assumption that there is rebirth and that we have confident belief in that. The next point in the lam-rim that we’ll be discussing is, “My next rebirth could be in one of the lower realms, one of the worse realms.” We want to avoid that.
If I have spent all my time just going out with friends and engaging in worldly pursuits, whatever those pursuits might be, is that going to help my future lives? If I’ve trained to be able to kick a ball into a net and have spent all my life working on that, is that going to help me in my future lives? This is the point.
Participant: I don’t think that the people who originally listened to these teachings had never heard anything about Buddhism or that they went to parties every day. I think they were people like us. They had friends and relatives and still had attachment. But, on the other hand, they were also trying to find a balance in life.
Dr. Berzin: Right. So, you’re talking about those of us who are already Dharma practitioners having balance in our lives. Of course, we don’t ignore the people in our lives – friends and relatives. All of this can, of course, be interpreted in a fanatic, fundamentalist way, but I don’t think it’s intended to be understood in that way.
Having friends and relatives, spending time with them, helping them, helping others, and so on – all of that is fine. We’re not saying don’t do anything. But at the time of death, what will be of significance? What do we want to focus on when we die, and how will that affect our next life? “May I be able to continue to have precious human lives and to work toward enlightenment and to have all the circumstances, teachers, and so on so that I may continue to help others.”
Chances are we are not going to be with the same loved ones that we were with in this lifetime. There will be others. One is trying to develop the wish to benefit everybody. That doesn’t mean that we ignore the people who are in our lives now or that we can’t ever be with friends. It doesn’t mean that we never take care of other things. Of course, we need to have enough money to live. We need enough things to be able to take care of our families. This point is not denying that. However, putting all our efforts into those things to the neglect of Dharma practice is not going to give us any comfort at the time of death.
Participant: So why did Tsongkhapa phrase it in such a sweeping way?
Dr. Berzin: It’s because we are focusing on and trying to really understand this one point in meditation. Therefore, when we contemplate this, we think about all these other things: What does it mean, and how would I adopt this? Does it mean being a fundamentalist? What is the point of the meditation? Why is this piece of advice given? Is the point of the meditation just to find fault in it? Those are the things we’re trying to focus on in our meditation.
Participant: Even after the body has died, it takes several minutes or hours for the dissolution process to occur. While it is happening, we can’t perceive the people around us. We can’t hear them. We can’t talk to them. We can’t communicate with or get support from the people around us because our senses have already shut down. So the question is, what will be of benefit in this dissolution process or in the bardo state?
Dr. Berzin: That’s a very good point. At that time, when we’re no longer in touch with the friends and relatives around us and we are totally alone – we’re born alone; we die alone – what thoughts are going to be of benefit? Thoughts of attachment to the things that we’ve left behind? No. We have to be able to leave without attachment. Attachment is just going to cause suffering. We have to think ahead: “I have practiced in such a way that I can feel at least somewhat confident that the strong, positive instincts that I have created and reinforced are going to be of some help. I’ve built up a lot of positive force,” etc. The positive force could be from having helped others. That’s fine, but we have to let go. That’s a very important thing when we die: to be able to let go.
Participant: I haven’t witnessed it myself, but I have heard from other people that it’s very common for the dying person to wait for the people who are present to leave the room before they die. It seems like they almost automatically let go when they are alone in the room.
Dr. Berzin: So, it’s as if there were an automatic pilot of sorts in many of us to die alone, with peace of mind – peace of mind in the sense of not being distracted.
Participant: The fact that death comes automatically doesn’t validate that conclusion.
Dr. Berzin: That’s true.
The meditation that will come after the nine-part meditation is to imagine the time of our own deaths and to think about what the state of our minds would be like at that time and what would we like to have as an optimal state of mind. But we have one more reason and conclusion left, which we’ll leave for next time.