No.348 - The Moment of Death and the State of Death

 

I. The Moment of Death and the State of Death

 

Though we all have lived and died through countless rebirths, none of us can recall the experience of death. We do not know what death is really like. According to the sutras, when we die, we are still fully cognizant of all that are going on around us. We may hear the calm voice of the doctor announcing our death or the sound of our family grieving. We may still be able to see people gathering around our body, trying to move our body that is now empty of heartbeats and breathing. We may still worry about the many things that still need to be completed. We may feel ourselves moving among our family and friends, wanting to tell them what they should do. However, everybody is overcome with grief, and no one is able to see or hear us.

 

In the Reader's Digest, there was once an article about one man's near-death experience. One day while he was driving, he had a severe accident; the car was totally demolished, and he was killed on the spot. When the ambulance, paramedics, the police, and his family arrived on the scene, his consciousness had already left the body, and he felt himself floating in the air. He could hear over the din a group of people arguing about how the accident happened. So, he went over to the police officer and tried to tell him what actually happened. But the officer could neither hear nor see him. None of the others took notice of his presence nor could they see him. At this time, he only had his consciousness and was no longer in possession of his body. He finally became aware that he was floating outside his body, looking at his own body like an onlooker. He then found himself passing, at an incredible speed, through a long, dark, and narrow tunnel.

 

Another person spoke of his near-death experience when he suffered a severe head injury and was brought back from the brink of death. He said, "I remember my head went ‘boom,' and I lost consciousness. Afterward, I just felt warm, comfortable, and peaceful." This is because once one's consciousness leaves the body, the consciousness is no longer constrained and can therefore feel a level of comfort and serenity that it has never before experienced. Another person also has this to say of his near-death experience: "When I was dying, I had an extremely good, wonderful, and peaceful sensation." Another man described his experience this way: "I felt I was as light as a feather. I was flying freely toward a world of brightness!" Death is not as chilling and ghastly as we may have imagined.

 

In the sutras, it is written that our life in this world is cumbersome and clumsy, not unlike a tortoise that is weighted down by its heavy shell. When we die, we are able to get rid of this burden and transform an existence that has been confined by the limits of the physical body. However, when we are faced with death, most of us still try to hold on to the seven worldly emotions and the six sensual desires. We still cannot let go of our sons, daughters, grandchildren, or our wealth. We do not want to die and cannot accept death gracefully. We think of dying as a painful experience, like tearing the shell off of a living tortoise. Buddhism does not share this view of dying. Buddhism teaches us that when we die, we are liberated from this body, and we feel extremely free and easy. It is like the relief of putting down a heavy piece of baggage. How light and free it is!

 

Whether we are smart or slow, good or bad, we all have to face death. Death is not a question of if, but a question of when and how. Even a powerful emperor like Emperor Chin-shih, who united the whole of China and became its first emperor, could not find any means to prolong his life. The mythical Peng Tsu might have lived to eight hundred years, but cosmologically, his life span was as short as that of an insect which lives only from morn till night. All beings that live must, without exception, also die. The difference lies only in the circumstances of death. The sutras divide the circumstances of death into four categories.

 

1. Death upon exhaustion of one's life span

 

This is what is called dying of old age. It is like a flickering flame that dies out naturally when its supply of oil is exhausted. We all like to live a nice long life, but a human life span has its limits. Life continues only with every breath we take, but as soon as we stop breathing, we die and are returned to the soil. There is a saying which goes like this: "Some only live from dawn till dusk. Others are born in spring or summer and die in autumn or winter. Some live for ten years, or a hundred, or even a thousand. Though we may live for a short or long time, is there really much difference?" What this says is that our life span has a limit, and no one can escape this reality.

 

2. Death upon exhaustion of one's merits

 

It is said in the sutras, "Humans do not understand life and death; human eyes do not discern [karmic] merits and demerits." Life is like an air bubble on the surface of water; when the air inside the bubble dissipates, the bubble no longer exists. After a rich man has squandered his wealth, he becomes poor. Similarly, when we have exhausted our merits, death will soon be knocking on our doors.

 

3. Death caused by accidents

 

This is what we call "premature death," which means that one dies when one is not supposed to. One may be killed in a car accident, ambushed in a war, murdered by an enemy, or attacked by a wild beast. Such deaths are sudden and unexpected. There is a Chinese proverb that is a fitting description of this kind of sudden death. It goes like this: "As long as one continues to breathe, possibilities abound. When death comes, everything comes to a standstill."

 

4. Death at will

 

The three circumstances of death described above are unpredictable and uncontrollable. On the contrary, death at will is without uncertainty and can be planned. In Buddhism, this is often referred to as "living and dying at will," and there are many great masters and Buddhist sages who can be born and die at will. They are not controlled by birth and death for they are totally in tune with the coming together and the breaking away of causes and conditions. Master Tao-an of the East Chin dynasty is a perfect example of such great masters. He was in total control of the passing of his life. On February 8th of the twentieth year of the Chien-yuan era, he assembled his disciples at the great hall of the Wu-chung temple in Chang-an. After praying and paying respect to the Buddha, he calmly told his disciples, "I am going to leave now! All of you should continue to spread the words of the Dharma and wake the ignorant up from their delusion."

 

Everyone was shocked and pleaded with the master, "Teacher, you are so healthy and strong. You should live for a long time to continue the work of the Buddha. How can you stop and leave us now? It is time for lunch; please have lunch first."

 

Tao-an answered, "Good, I'll have a little bit of lunch." Having said this, he ate his lunch as usual. After lunch, he returned to his room to rest, and he passed away while resting. Master Tao-an died at will, completely free of pain and suffering. If we practice the Dharma diligently, we can become free of karma, the force that binds us to death. We, too, can become enlightened and enter nirvana.

 

Now that we have discussed the circumstances of death, let us turn our focus into another aspect of death. What are the sensations of death? The sutras tell us of three sensations experienced in death. They are:

 

1. The imbalance of the great earth element: When one dies of a disease of the body, one feels a sinking sensation as the body feels like a big piece of land sinking into the ocean. Slowly and gradually, the body is immersed and the person feels suffocated. The sensation associated with this kind of death is described as "the great earth element being taken over by the great water element."

 

2. The imbalance of the great water element: When one dies of circulatory diseases, one initially has a sensation of being submerged in water, feeling wet and cold. Later, this gives way to a burning sensation, and the person feels very, very hot. The sensation associated with this kind of death is described as "the great water element being engulfed by the great fire element."

 

3. The imbalance of the great fire element: When one dies of pulmonary diseases, one feels a burning sensation, like a wildfire burning at dusk. Then the body feels a biting pain as if being blown into pieces by strong gusts and being scattered about like ashes. The sensation associated with this kind of death is described as "the great fire element being swallowed by the great wind element."

 

We will next turn our discussion to what it is like immediately after death and before our next rebirth. The sutras tell us that because our body is transformed from a finite and bounded form to a limitless and formless state when we die, the way we feel immediately following death is not all bad. This may seem a bit surprising, but there are three good reasons to explain this.

 

 

1. The limit of time and space: When we are alive, we are limited by time and space. We cannot travel simply by willing to be at a certain place, and we cannot revert the aging process that the passage of time brings upon us. Upon death, [and before our next rebirth,] we are liberated from the limits of the physical body, and our true nature can move about freely through the three realms of existence.

 

2. The burden of the body: It is said in the Dharmapada, "The physical body is the cause of all the sufferings on earth. The sufferings of hunger and thirst, hot or cold, anger and fear, lust, desires, hatred, and tragedy—all these stem from the existence of the body." When we are alive, we spend a lot of time taking care of our body. When we are hungry, we have to eat; when we are cold, we have to put on more clothing. When we are sick, we have to endure the pain. If we pause for a moment and take stock, we will notice that a lot of our concerns do pertain to the body. After death, the consciousness is no longer constrained by the confines of the body and all the problems associated with a physical body also vanish with it. There is no more hunger or sickness; a huge burden is lifted from our shoulders.

 

3. The supernatural element: While we are alive, our faculties are limited by our body. After death, we are no longer bound by the laws of physics. We will be able to see things that cannot be detected by the human eye. We will be able to hear sounds that cannot be heard by the human ear. We will be able to float freely in the air, as the force of gravity does not apply to us anymore. In this state, walls will not be able to stop us, and we will be able to travel simply by willing it.

 

Death is not an end; it is not a finality. On the contrary, it is the beginning of another new existence. When we die, the physical body ceases to function, but the consciousness lives on. During the time after death and before the next rebirth, the consciousness is in a state referred to in Buddhism as the "intermediate being" state. Depending on the cumulative karma from previous lives, an intermediate being will be reborn into one of the six realms. Once reborn, all memories of past lives will be lost. This is called the "confusion of rebirth." Thus, we cannot recall any memories of our past lives, and when we are reborn in our next life, we will not recall any of the memories of this present life. A poem written by Emperor Shun Chin says it well, "Before I was born, who was I? After my birth, who am I? If this grown man is me, then who is the fellow after death?"

 

Actually, it is not important for one to know one's past or future lives. From the Buddhist teachings, we learn that one never dies. What dies is the physical body, a combination of the four great elements. While the physical body dies, the consciousness continues without interruption. When we learn that the physical body is as lasting as a water bubble, then we begin to see the illusiveness of the world around us. We can then accept death without reservation.