A family member, friend or chaplain could also read verses from texts such as the They will remind the dying person of past meritorious deeds and will chant verses or say prayers. If possible monks could be invited to the dying person’s bedside. Are there any rites that need to be performed? There are no specific rituals that are required but there are a number of steps that can be undertaken in order to best prepare. Some traditions place a mandala blanket on the patient to act as a visual aid. In order to help the dying person maintain religious thoughts flowers and images of the Buddha can be placed near them. The more calm and prepared a person is the better their rebirth is considered to be. The last moments of life can affect the nature of rebirth. The best thing that can be done for the dying person is to make sure they are mentally prepared for death. How to Prepare for Death What can I do to help? A common wish at funerals in Sri Lanka is: "May the deceased be reborn under Maitreya the future Buddha". This merit might eventually outweigh any bad karma. While a good death moment cannot cancel out any bad karma, it can be a head start to a better way of which is conducive to generating merit. Karma operates on an extremely large time scale in Buddhism. The last moments of a person’s life are important because their last thoughts and feelings will be a deciding factor in conditioning the first moment of the next life. Good karma will allow for a good rebirth and vice versa. Each intentional action, good or bad, gives rise to karma/kamma. How is a person’s rebirth decided?Ī person’s rebirth is dependent on their previous thoughts and actions.
Rebirth as a human being is considered to be particularly fortuitous as it is thought to be rare and it is held that one has the best chance for enlightenment when in this state of existence. These are from the highest to the lowest: gods, demi-gods, human, animal, hungry ghost and hell creature. Within Buddhism there are five or six possible forms that rebirth can take. Those who attain enlightenment ( nirvana/ nibbana) do not get reborn upon their death. Tibetan Buddhists believe that there is an in-between stage known as the bardo which can take up to 49 days Theravada Buddhists (from Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia) consider that rebirth can be immediate. Depending on the personal beliefs of the individual this can take different amounts of time. When a person dies they are reborn into another life. The ultimate aim of Buddhist practice is to become free from samsara. Death and Dying in Buddhism What do Buddhists Practice? What do I need to know?īuddhists recognise that there is a continuous cycle of life, death and rebirth.
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