Supreme Contemplation
(By Tsem Rinpoche)
There are many reasons why the topic of death and impermanence are particularly emphasized in Tibetan Buddhist teachings. For those who lack understanding, the contemplation of death may seem morbid. However, for pure practitioners the consistent contemplation of death gradually result in positive outcomes.
There are many motivational speakers today who center their talks around the meaning of life. They often ask their audience thought-provoking questions such as, “If today was your last day, what would you do?” or “What would you most care about during your last breath?”. Upon introspection, most people find themselves surprised with their own answers, and would be motivated to refocus their life and personal goals.
Similarly in Tibetan Buddhism, by contemplating on death you will come to firm realisations about how short and fragile life is, and how everything that we experience… joy, sadness, happiness, suffering, are impermanent. If you have actualised the meditation on death – you will be very kind. You will want to be of benefit to others. You will want to do Dharma work and you will transform yourself and change yourself. Why? Because you know that ultimately we all have to go.
‘Death’ is the first chapter within the consolidated teachings of the Buddha, written by the king of Dharma Lama Tsongkhapa, which is impermanence and death. By regularly meditating on death, it makes you face the biggest challenge in life, your own mortality. Once you can handle that, all the other challenges become small… and your fear of them start to lose hold on you.
Recently I came across this wonderful article written by Andrew Holecek, an author and spiritual teacher. In his article called ‘The Supreme Contemplation’, Mr Holecek emphasizes on the stark reality of death and provides relevant examples as to how best apply death meditation in our every day lives. It is well written and I hope that all of my students and friends will take the time to read up this article and even share it with your friends… it will benefit anyone regardless of age. Without proper meditation on death, true spiritual practice will be hard to arise.
Tsem Rinpoche
The Supreme Contemplation
Practicing with the Four Reminders
Andrew Holecek
One of the best ways to prepare for death is to acknowledge that we really are going to die. We’re falling in the dark and have no idea when we’ll hit the ground. Buddhist scholar Anne Klein says, “Life is a party on death row. Recognizing mortality means we are willing to see what is true. Seeing what is true is grounding. It brings us into the present. . . .” We all know that we’re going to die, but we don’t know it in our guts. If we did, we would practice as if our hair were on fire. One way to swallow the bitter truth of mortality and impermanence—and get it into our guts—is to chew on the four reminders.
The four reminders, or the four thoughts that turn the mind, are an important preparation for death because they turn the mind from constantly looking outward to finally looking within. These reminders, also called the four reversals, were composed by Padmasambhava, the master who brought Buddhism from India to Tibet. They can be viewed as representing the trips Prince Siddhartha took outside his palace that eventually transformed him into the Buddha. During these trips, Siddhartha encountered old age, sickness, and death, and developed the renunciation that turned his mind away from the distractions and deceptions of the outer world and in toward silence and truth.
As a meditation instructor, I often prescribe the four reminders as the best remedy to get students who have stalled on the path back on track. As with mindfulness itself, the four reminders provide another way to work with distraction. They bring the key instruction from The Tibetan Book of the Dead—“do not be distracted”—to a more comprehensive level. The four reminders show us that it’s not just momentary distraction that’s problematic but distraction at the level of an entire life. If we’re not reminded, we can waste our whole life.
The Tibetan Buddhist teacher Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche presented them this way:
FIRST Contemplate the preciousness of being so free and well favored. This is difficult to gain and easy to lose. Now I must do something meaningful.
SECOND The whole world and its inhabitants are impermanent. In particular, the life of beings is like a bubble. Death comes without warning; this body will be a corpse. At that time the dharma will be my only help. I must practice it with exertion.
THIRD When death comes, I will be helpless. Because I create karma, I must abandon evil deeds and always devote myself to virtuous actions. Thinking this, every day I will examine myself.
FOURTH The homes, friends, wealth, and comforts of samsara are the constant torment of the three sufferings, just like a feast before the executioner leads you to your death. I must cut desire and attachment, and attain enlightenment through exertion.
How long should we contemplate these reminders? Until our mind turns. Until we give up hope for samsara (the worldly cycle of birth and death), and realize the folly of finding happiness outside.
Most of us spend our lives looking out at the world, chasing after thoughts and things. We’re distracted by all kinds of objects and rarely look into the mind that is the ultimate source of these objects. If we turn our mind and look in the right direction, however, we will find our way to a good life—and a good death. Instead of being carried along with the external constructs of mind, we finally examine the internal blueprints of mind itself.
It’s often said that the preliminaries are more important than the main practice. The significance of these four reminders, as a preliminary practice, cannot be overstated. Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche said that if we could truly take them to heart, 50 percent of the path to enlightenment would be complete. These contemplations develop revulsion to conditioned appearances, point out their utter futility, and cause awareness to prefer itself rather than outwardly appearing objects. They turn the mind away from substitute gratifications and direct it toward authentic gratification—which can only be found within.
The four thoughts remind us of the preciousness of this human life; that we are going to die; that karma follows us everywhere; and that samsara is a waste of time that only perpetuates suffering. Memorize them. They will reframe your life, focus your mind, and advise you in everything you do. As Dr. Samuel Johnson, the author of the first English dictionary, said: “When a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully.”
What would you do if you had six months to live? What would you cut out of your life? What would you do if you had one month, one week, one day? The Indian master Atisha said, “If you do not contemplate death in the morning, the morning is wasted. If you do not contemplate death in the afternoon, the afternoon is wasted. If you do not contemplate death in the evening, the evening is wasted.” The four reminders remove the waste.
We see others dying all around us but somehow feel entitled to an exemption. In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, the sage Yudhishthira is asked, “Of all things in life, what is the most amazing?” He answers, “That a man, seeing others die all around him, never thinks he will die.” If we acknowledge death and use it an advisor, however, it will prioritize our life, ignite our renunciation, and spur our meditation. The Buddha said: “Of all footprints, that of the elephant is the deepest and most supreme. Of all contemplations, that of impermanence is the deepest and most supreme.”
Bring these supreme reminders into your life and realize that life is like a candle flame in the wind. Visualize friends and family and think, “Uncle Joe is going to die, my sister Sarah is going to die, my friend Bill is going to die, I am going to die.” Put pictures of dead loved ones on your desk or shrine; put sticky notes with the word “death” or “I am going to die” inside drawers or cabinets to remind you; read an obituary every day; go to nursing homes, cemeteries, and funerals. The essence of spiritual practice is remembrance, whether it’s remembering to come back to the present moment or recalling the truth of impermanence. Do whatever it takes to realize that time is running out and you really could die today. You are literally one breath away from death. Breathe out, don’t breathe in, and you’re dead.
One of the marks of an advanced student is that he or she finally realizes that today could be the day. Realizing impermanence is what makes them advance. For most of us, however, as Paul Simon sang, “I’ll continue to continue to pretend / My life will never end. . . .” We essentially spend our lives moving deck chairs around on the Titanic. No matter how we position ourselves—no matter how comfortable we try to get—it’s all going down.
These teachings exhort us not to spend our lives, which most of us do—literally and figuratively. Reinvest. Take the precious opportunity that has been given to you, and do not waste your life. The four thoughts that turn the mind turn it from reckless spending to wiseinvesting. We spend so much effort investing in our future. We invest in IRAs, 401(k)s, pension plans, and retirement portfolios. Spiritual advisors exhort us to invest in our much more important bardo (post-death) retirement plan. That’s our real future.
Don’t worry so much about social security. Finance your karmic security instead. Invest in your future lives now. Investing so much in this life is like checking into a hotel for a few days and redecorating the room: what’s the point? B. Alan Wallace says, “In light of death, our mundane desires are seen for what they are. If our desires for wealth, luxury, good food, praise, reputation, affection, and acceptance by other people, and so forth are worth nothing in the face of death, then that is precisely their ultimate value.”
On a personal note, understanding impermanence has been the greatest gift in my study and practice of the teachings on death. I’m thickheaded, but I finally get it: I am going to die—and it could be today. My life has been completely restructured because I now believe it. The rugged truth of impermanence has simplified my life, shown me what is important, and inspired me to really practice. Sogyal Rinpoche says in The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying:
Ask yourself these two questions: Do I remember at every moment that I am dying, and that everyone and everything else is, and so treat all beings at all times with compassion? Has my understanding of death and impermanence become so keen and so urgent that I am devoting every second to the pursuit of enlightenment? If you can answer “yes” to both of these, then you really understand impermanence.
These reminders may seem like a morbid preoccupation with death, but that is only because of our extreme aversion to dying. For most of us, death is the final defeat. As Jack LaLanne, the fitness and diet guru, once said, “I can’t afford to die. It would wreck my image.” We live in denial of death, and suffer in direct proportion to this denial when death occurs. The four reminders remind us of the uncompromising truth of reality, and prepare us to face it.
The four reminders, joined with mindfulness meditation, instill a strength of mind that benefits both self and other. Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche says,
The strength of shamatha [mindfulness meditation] is that our mind is slow enough and stable enough to bring in the reality, to really see it. Then when someone we know is dying, we aren’t so shaken up. We may be sad, in the sense of feeling compassion, but we have thoroughly incorporated the notion of death to the point that it has profoundly affected our life. That is known as strength of mind.
That stability naturally radiates to stabilize the mind of the dying person, which helps them when everything is being blown away.
Dying people are sometimes jealous of those still alive. “Why do I have to die when everyone else keeps on living? It’s so unfair. Why me?” At that point they need to remember that those left behind are not returning to a party that lasts till infinity. Those left behind are returning to a challenging life that is filled with endless dissatisfaction and suffering. As you are dying, remember that it’s just a matter of time before everyone else joins you, just as you are about to join the billions of others who have already left this life for another one. Those left behind are a minority. No one is going to get out of this alive.
And he who dies with the most toys still dies.
Adapted from Preparing to Die by Andrew Holecek, © 2013. Reprinted with permission of Snow Lion, an imprint of Shambhala Publications. www.shambhala.com.
Photographs by Shimon and Tammar
Images: Gallerystock
[Extracted from: http://www.tricycle.com/feature/supreme-contemplation]
Please support us so that we can continue to bring you more Dharma:
If you are in the United States, please note that your offerings and contributions are tax deductible. ~ the tsemrinpoche.com blog team
Dying’s easy; it’s living that’s hard. The harder it gets, the stronger the will to live. And the greater the fear of death, the greater the struggle to keep on living. Death is something inevitable. In Buddhism , practitioners views impermanence as one of their essential doctrines that posits that say that everything changes and nothing lasts forever. Buddhism teaches us that impermanence is fundamental to everything. Death of humans is seen as a natural and essential part of life. The Buddha taught that because no physical or mental object is permanent, desires for or attachments to either causes suffering Tibetan Buddhists strongly believe in life after death and reincarnation. In fact, the concept of death is so deeply interwoven in Tibetan culture that Tibetans try to spend their lives doing meritorious deeds and performing sin cleaning rituals in order to get a favorable rebirth. Buddhists believe death is a natural part of the life cycle. They believe that death simply leads to rebirth. Accepting impermanence helps to cultivate positive well-being. interesting read and plenty to learn. Coming into Dharma is the best choice to prepare for ourselves.
Thank you Rinpoche, for sharing this article by Mr Andrew Holecek.
It is very true that we often play by our emotion or uncontrolled habits of negative thought. Joy or sorrow feeling is really a feeling that is impermanent. It is a fact that ultimately every one have to die, including myself. And, it is a true fact that we can’t face death including myself. We live our life as it is never end, and, thus, we never prepare ourself or not even willing to prepare. When I look at picture whom I love when he was alive, I even feel taboo and hide the pictures far away from my side. I never think why I did that until today I understand how strong my attachment is. By meditate on death, it might help me to be more happier perhaps, as it is I live my life everyday as last day, and, this could help me to let go of my emotion, my attachment. Come to think of that, to know death, to feel death is not so bad because it help us to let go. To be more happy and to train us to be more focus
Death is inevitable and we do not know when it will be our turn. After reading this article, it is a wake up call for me to contemplate deeply on death and impermanence. At the time of our death it will be too late for us to reflect on what we want to do or should have done. Being brought up as a Taoist Buddhist, discussing death was considered a taboo. But ever since I started practicing Tibetan Buddhism and with the guidance of our kind Guru, H.E. Tsem Tulku Rinpoche, death is just part of the cycle of samsara. Nothing is permanent in this world and when we die there is nothing we can bring with us except Dharma.
???
It’s a really sad fact that human, especially Chinese don’t want to face death, although they know that they can’t run away from death. In Chinese culture, talking about death is very inauspicious, this believe was brought down thousand years ago. During the dynasties time, people even called their emperor 万岁爷 (hundred thousand age master). I have seen by my my own eyes, a father landed a big slap on his 8 years old son’s face, just because the son talked about death. Until that extreme. Are all the Chinese lying to their own self with this culture?
Yesterday, during our weekly discussion with KFR team, Pastor Henry brought up a topic, “Who wants to die peacefully?”. The conclusion is, there’s actually no peaceful death, as long as we are not enlightened. During the very last moment of our death, is very depending on our mind, whether we die in sleep, we die in car accident, we die in fire, we die drowning, as long as we can’t keep our mind calm, there won’t be any peaceful death. During that moment, only Dharma can keep our mind calm. Only visualizing our protector and Guru to lead us down the darkest part, will keep our mind calm.
Thus, like Rinpoche told us in the article, we must always be prepared to death. It is because we won’t know when it will come. This is a very interesting and meaningful article. Thank you Rinpoche. ??
Life and death are a part of a cycle known as samsara, in which one’s actions in this life and all previous incarnations of life lead to further reincarnation. We need to accept that death comes in the normal course of life. Life is uncertain and death is certain. Death comes in a moment and it’s time is unexpected. The nature of all phenomena is impermanence. We have to learn to let go. It is by recognising how precious and how short life is that we are to make use of it meaningfully. We should always contemplate death and impermanence as a way of breaking through to our true nature.
Thank you Rinpoche for this reminder and powerful teachings on death.
I am blessed to meet my Guru H.E. Tsem Rinpoche at the right time in my life. I couldn’t have learned and grown in this way by the guidance of Rinpoche. Death is not a scary thing when we realise the truth and we left no regret and not wasted or miss-used what we have given in this life for practicing Dharma.
We seriously need to think all the time have we fully utilise the very little time we left with yet we are not even in control with. People always say we are living in samsara hence we have samsara responsibilities to do. But the so call samsara responsibilities will never end even the day we stop breathing. Those responsibilities are made to keep us in samsara.
For the last decades, Kechara and many departments founded by H.E. Tsem Rinpoche are catered for people like us who’s running the rat raise in samsara to get in touch with Dharma. Many came in without Dharma intention but along the way we fall for Dharma. Rinpoche is a living Buddha, walking Dharma, Dorje Shugden activist, philanthropy and a beloved father. Very fortunate and grateful to have Rinpoche in my life who’s given me Dorje Shugden practice, lots of teachings, guidance and love.
Death is certain, nothing we can do to avoid or to escape from death, everyone in this wotld knows it, but mostly ppl do not want to face it, and they keep thinking they wont die so soon, they will for sure live till 70 / 80 years old.
Death is ceetain, but many ppl viewing it as something negative, why r u so negative? Keep focusing about death, keep talking about death. We should life our life fullest and be positive, there are so much more to explore in this world, we should open up our eyes and see this beautiful world….. this is what I often hear ^_^
But actually, death is not negative, it is a path we will definitely go thru regardless of what age we are, when we contemplate on death, we will realize many things we do in life is a waste of time, because it cant help us a single bit at the time of death, in fact, when we enjoy so much and own so much in life, it strengthen our desire and at the time of death, we will go through much more suffering or mentally pain before we depart.
Hence practice Dharma is definite, never waste our time for not practicing Dharma, because if we missed out today, tomorrow may not come anymore.
Once we were born in this world, live is just like a bullet launched and it must reach its destination, which is death.. Death is just a matter of time.The early we accepted this, the more powerful of our lives which we will be able to direct our lives for a good purposes. Most of us know this especially as a Buddhist but we always forget this because of not focusing and comtemplanting of this. Actually the stress, suffering and loneliness in our lives is because we never think of death. Let’s be more focus and contemplate death everyday for a better life especially preparing ourselves for next life.
Often we are so “busy” with our life, with what we want, where we want to go and so on that we tend to forget that we all will die, and we don’t know when or how. We tend to not think about it as it may remind us of friends and family who have passed away, of our own short time on earth and what we have done or not.
It is a powerful and necessary meditation to contemplate death and impermanence as it is for sure and our comfortable situation at the moment, will not last and it will change – this is for sure. So, we need to follow what we have kindly been taught to improve our life and the life of others as nothing is more important than that. In the end, what will we regret, what is most important?
In buddhism, dealth is very important subjet to remind us about impermanence, don’t be attach what we have in this life whether you are suscessful, wealthty and poweful . We should realise it and practice dharma and collect merit for our future life until enligtenment end of incarnate back samsara, stop all uncertain suffering. This article is good to told us don’t wasting more time and comtenplate when dealth is coming, are you prepare for it. What can you do when dealth come near to you. In regards what is going on this life, whether how unhappy, loneliness, angry to all people should let it go. don’t be trap into suffering of samsara.
“Death is certain, when is uncertain.” – Tsem Rinpoche
“If not now, then when?” – Tsem Rinpoche
“Be the light, don’t wait for the light.” – Tsem Rinpoche
These are the 3 quotes that find them the most meaningfu within many quotes in the world. If we contemplate, follow and act, the end result will be gaining real happiness in life.
In our human circle of life, death is one of the procedure, all of us have to face. Many people never have knowledge of life after death and it’s quite sad when that moment came and they are not prepared. Hence, we need to be more aware and think more deep of how to face death when it comes to us. Practicing Dharma is not only to benefit ourselves, but most important is to benefit others as well. Involving more activities in guiding, helping the unfortunate to better their lives is more valuable in life achievement for ourselves rather than random luxury tour holidays. As we know time is catching up for us therefore we must contemplate not to waste our precious time lavishly. This article is great reminder for me to involve into Dharma and understand of impermanence.
Powerful article. What is the main issue here is that people tend to shy away from thinking about their own mortality as it is deemed to be taboo to even thinking about it but in reality it is the most important matter to think about which will lead us to contemplate deeper and become a better person. People tend to think they won’t die that soon and won’t even give a thought of where they will end up in after they had passed on and that is why I think people are celebrating their birthdays instead of remembering it as a year if not a day nearer to death.
Personally I felt that there is no permanent happiness in samsara but all the sufferings. Hence, we must always remind ourselves about death and be prepared for it and not wait till it hit us. We are one breath away from death. By meditating on death, we will learn to let of our attachments, anger, fear, etc. Only by preparing ourselves for death that will keep us calm during the time of death and hopefully to get a good rebirth.
Most of the people I know will not really discuss about death. They will be more interested to talk about how to make more money as if the time is always on their side. Unfortunately it’s not and even we see or even witness many sudden death happening around us but many of us will still deny or ignore the fact that death is always unexpected.
Being a Buddhist and after learning from Rinpoche, it open my eyes on facing death and it’s important to face it and prepare for it. To many people it’s a taboo topic to talk about but it’s in fact a realistic topic not just to think and talk but to act on for the benefit of our future live. It’s definitely not an easy meditation to do but it make sense for us to focus and to prepare ourself and also to set our motivation in every action anf every breath we take.
The 4 reminders as mentioned in the article is a great start for our contemplation. It’s not easy for me but something I can start on and to train my mind.
One of the reminder I can ask myself is what if I die in the next moment and will I do now?
On the day that we are born there is only one inevitable course of our life, death. Death is inevitable the only question is when and how. Yet we never talk about our death, we avoid that completely. Even when we hear of or read about death either of people we know or not know, we feel unrelated to such occurrences. Another method of our avoidance.
During our discussions on this very important topic, we were asked if we are ready to die. Guess what, we are not. We find excuses not to face death.
When we contemplate on something that we fear and try to avoid is to me the SUPREME CONTEMPLATION and this article is a great education for us to contemplate on death and overcome our fear so that we may live our lives to prepare to accept the departure from our physical body and be ready for our rebirth.
It does sound morbid to think and contemplate on death yet it can be empowering for us to value this precious life and do what we can to have our future lives be good ones. This is the power of Dharma.
It is true that we do not think about our death. Even when we say that everyone eventually dies, we just say it but do not really contemplate on it deeper, accept it, prepare for it, and change ourself to be a better person to benefit others. We always brush it off that terminal sickness and grievous accident happens to the next guy but not us. We know we are not immortals yet we do not really accept that death can be at our doorstep that soon. We hope that when death comes a knocking, it will be peaceful and without pain. We hope that it will be peaceful to die in our sleep. But how do we know what we will go through during the time when we are dying? The physical fear and pain of clutching our heart, gasping for air, unable to call out for help. The mental pain and anguish we go through that we are not prepared to die because we have not lived a full life. Or we have not make enough money to provide for our loved ones. Or that we have not bought the branded luxuries and had not partied enough. Or that we have not emptied out bucket list and have not travelled the World and the Seven Seas to enjoy the scenery, food, culture of the World.
I do not think that ordinary people like me will die a good death because we are still very emotionally, mentally and physically attached to feelings, thoughts and things of this world. I thank Rinpoche very much for the teachings and practice on death. It sounds simple, looks easy yet hard to practice. But practice makes perfect, as they say. Hopefully.
In Chinese culture, death is a taboo subject. Only permitted to use the word death when someone actually died. Especially during Chinese New Year, the word must not be used. It’s like inviting death to come to your house as the old folks said.
Before knowing Dharma, I don’t think much about this subject. Of course I want to live till I am old and healthy and pass away in my sleep after doing whatever I want to and seeing my kids grow up.
In Dharma, we are taught that everything is impermanent which is an excellent matter to ponder. I may not be able to fully grasp the meaning of it yet, but I will continue to think about this every time when I find myself out of focus. Interesting posts to read https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/inspiration-worthy-words/dear-henry-contemplate-daily.html?nomobile and https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/kechara-13-depts/last-night-i-spoke-about-death-meditation-in-more-detail.html
Meditation on death and impermanence is fundamental in Buddhism. In the Lamrim, there is a whole chapter on remembering death which comes after the teaching on the precious human life. In the section on remembering death, we are taught the nine-round death meditation and meditation on the aspects of death. Pabongka Rinpoche said that these instructions are taken from Lama Tsongkhapa’s works and they have special points drawn from Tsongkhapa’s own experience. By understanding death and realising how short life is, we tend to make life meaningful, and by understanding the death process, we overcome the fear of death. Impermanence is the first thing that the Buddha taught, as the first feature of the first noble truth, the truth of suffering. It is also the last thing that the Buddha taught before He passed into nirvana. He said: “All conditioned phenomena are impermanent. This is the last teaching of the Tathagata.”
“Don’t worry so much about social security. Finance your karmic security instead. Invest in your future lives now. Investing so much in this life is like checking into a hotel for a few days and redecorating the room: what’s the point? B. Alan Wallace says, “In light of death, our mundane desires are seen for what they are. If our desires for wealth, luxury, good food, praise, reputation, affection, and acceptance by other people, and so forth are worth nothing in the face of death, then that is precisely their ultimate value.””
I like this paragraph very much because it is very logical and a rude awakening for many. We are often worried about our future and invest time to ensuring that we’ll be financially fine and healthy when we’re older. And it stops there. We don’t realize that we can also prepare for our future lives. This point is something that people in general struggle with because their argument is how do I know there is a future lives. I tell them I know because my guru is back from his previous life and continues his dharma work very similar to his previous incarnation, Kentrul Thupten Lamsang.
Letting go is something that is widely discussed especially in self help courses, motivation and counseling sessions. Being creatures of habit, humans in general shy away from the uncharted territories. Letting go of a habit that doesn’t serve us requires understanding so deep, we feel it in our gut.
Rinpoche orchestrates opportunities and creates environments for us to realize how our attachments do not benefit us during death. Keeping us busy on our dharma work which automatically makes us focus out, helps us wean off our attachments, enabling us to come to realizations of our wrong views. And this environment is Kechara Forest Retreat.
We are one breath away from our next life…. May we remember death constantly like Je Atisha.
What a refreshing read! Thank you Rinpoche for this reminder and although I know I am still not excellent in this practice yet even though having several near death experiences, but these 4 key reminders is surely a motivational started to understanding why on earth are we practising in case we go off track. It is a great way to remember why I choose to be on this spiritual path in the first place and if and with this learn to appreciate whatever precious time I have left without so much of the self-grasping and attachments. If I/we can master this practise, I believe we would really have found peace even at the time of death, for now it definitely does help in stabilizing and silencing the voices that clouds.
Rinpoche’s blog is like an online version of a Dharma scripture presented in modern day technology. The Zhongnan Mountains’ zen monks turn the pages of poetic Dharma texts for guidance and answers, the modern folks like us can click on tsemrinpoche.com for guidance and answers. All are the same just presented in different form to suit different people. Thank you Rinpoche.
When I read about old age, death and impermanence, I am reminded of my mother who is in a ripe old age but failed to see the truth of karma & reincarnation, hence making no effort in contemplating the meaning of death.
Realization on impermanence is important not only in spiritual growth but also as a person. Nothing last forever, we will grow old and die. As such it is imperative to make peace with everyone around us. Making a misery out of living is a painful way to punish oneself in this lifetime as well as next, because we are not doing anything to remedy the situation.
Thank You very much, Rinpoche, for sharing this profound article by Mr Andrew Holecek.
感谢仁波切的智慧分享，令人触动深层思维，探索死亡的真面目及如何面对。死亡，人生一大事，是人们不願正视，廻避的課提，但
When we contemplate on death we will fully understand what impermanence means. When we understand death and impermanence we will appreciate our precious human life, become less attached to our worldly enjoyments, and our faith in the Dharma will grow. We become less unhappy, more open-minded, wiser, more carefree and relaxed. When confronted with death, our petty problems become insignificant. We will not let ourselves be affected by small things and we will have a clearer and more detached view of life in this world. This will reduce our psychological problems. I agree that strength of mind can be developed by contemplating on the four reminders together with the practice of shamatha.
Thank you for sharing Rinpoche.
This read has subconsciously planted an internal alarm clock within my brain. And I know that as the days go by..the sound of the alarm will only get louder until I truly “wake up”
With folded hands and warmest regards,
Jim
These are supreme thoughts! I don’t think I can function like a normal layperson once my mind is turned. I will be practising dharma every moment like a mad monk! _/\_
Thank you for posting this article Rinpoche! It brings tremendous hope knowing there is a ‘cure’ strong enough to cut thru even the most preoccupied mind.;O
Dear Rinpoche. Amazing read and it really puts and knocks reality into our heads. This sharing is a great reminder to me personally.
Question: What can we share with people who are not convinced that it’s extremely important on what’s after death? I have a lot of friends who says that since we have a very short life now, why not enjoy it to the fullest, after all, I can still accept that I will die one day and at least when I die, I have enjoyed my life meaningfully (doing all the charity works, etc.).
Thank you.
Great read!! Reflecting on death is very powerful. It really puts what really matters into focus. Meditating on death everyday will cause you to question everything you are doing and why you are doing it. You really see that you are wasting so much time and you will begin to really apply the teachings. Death meditation is by far my favorite contemplation. If you want results remember death. Thank you Rinpoche for the reminder. With hands folded.