(A brief teaching by H.E. Tai Situ
Rinpoche, Nov.1982 at Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia)
4. Bardo at the Moment of Death
This
is the fourth one. Here basically, before that moment comes, we have to prepare
for that moment. When the moment comes, we have to prepare everything, it is
too late. Before that moment comes, what we can prepare is; do whatever
possible for us to do - something meaningful, and avoid whatever for us to
avoid - everything meaningless, and this way the accumulation of merits as
outside and accumulation of wisdom as inside.
Whatever we are able to develop and cultivate, we take the opportunity
that is made ready for that and on this moment are, anyway, we all have to face
this moment one day, definitely. Anybody
who are here, you know, today few people here I don't think out of this anybody
is still alive after 100 years. I don't
think so. I don't think so. I will not really appreciate that but I don't think
so. And we all must be gone. Even anybody in the whole world right now, even
babies who is born today or babies who are inside the mother, they will not be
here after one century, I don't think so. Even they are here, they are not in a
good shape you know. Anyway, because of this, we all have to know this quite
clearly.
During our death, that is the very important
moment for us, because this is the moment of this life to the next life. The
judgment there is our karma; no one else.
But in that moment if we have clear understanding and clear opportunity,
we can make great accumulations and purification on that moment. Because, at
that time, we mean it. Right now, few of
us can mean but everybody don't think so. Even they pray, they pray with some
certain amount of faith and there is the degree of pureness and confidence and
real kind of strength in it. But when we die, you know, in that moment if we
have learn how to think and how to dedicate and how to take that opportunity,
then the moment is very, very pure. That moment one minute thinking will be much
stronger and powerful than years of thinking in one whole life when you are
happy and you are alive because you are really facing the most serious event,
serious moment. Because of this, we have to know which will disturb us. Our
fame will disturb, our wealth will disturb; our relation will disturb. Those 3
things are which will disturb us most during our death. If we have attachment
for our fame, if we have attachment for our wealth, if we have attachment for
our relation, that is biggest obstacle. Therefore, when the moment comes we
have to be ready to release everything. “Now no more of these I need. Even I
attach and hold on my wealth but I can take nothing. My wealth will be in my
cold hands. I am gone.” And fame is also the same. The relation is also the
same. Because of that, that moment have to be clear. “I have done everything my best. Now I have
nothing to feel sorry about, feel regret about, and what I have done is my
best.” We must have these simple feeling in the moment of death.
To be able to feel that, we must do
everything from now, our best. And with
this feeling, then we do whatever meaningful we can do with our material
belongings, our fame, and whatever meaningful things we can do to our good
related person, family or friend or whatever. Then we dedicate all of our merit
towards the all sentient beings and we pray and wish that all beings be free
from samsara. And we pray that according to our capability, say “May I reborn
again into human realm. “May I cultivate more and then able to achieve certain
kind of realization” or “May I be reborn to the Dewachen, the Sukhavati Pure
Land.” Or whatever we are
capable of saying. If you capable of
saying “May I go to hell and help all the beings of hell, until they are free
from hell, may I remain in the hell” - if you can mean it, that is the best.
But anyway, according to your capability you do whatever you can pray.
And then, after the death of the person, then
the people who live - who are alive, their responsibility is very great. Because,
from this moment until 49 days, the being is not really entered into a next
realm. Somehow this is the between of
this life to the next life. Therefore, the person has to do all sorts of
accumulations and the dedications which are aimed on behalf of that person who
passed away. That is very important. And this is the moment of the death and
here one aspect of special meditation and puja and performance used to do, that
is transference of consciousness. But I think you should learn this later from
when another Rinpoche comes, you learn from them because it needs the some time
you know. I cannot explain right now here in a short time. It need at least one
whole evening on that. And this is the Moment of Death Bardo.
Briefly
about H.E. Tai Situpa and Karma Kagyu Lineage
H.E.12th
Tai Situ Rinpoche (born on 15th Feburualy1954) founded the Palpung –
Sherabling Monastery in Northern India in the
Himalayan Regions. He is the Root Guru of the present 17th Gyalwa
Karmapa.
The 11th
Tai Situ Rinpoche was the Root Guru of 16th Gyalwa Karmapa and the 16th Gyalwa
Karmapa was the Root Guru of 12th Tai Situpa. By tracing back to the
past, the two of them took turn to be Guru in one life and became the disciple
in the next life. This is the way how the lineage is kept unbroken from Guru to
disciple in the Karma Kagyu
This lineage
was founded by Vajra Dhara (Dorje Chang), sambhogakaya form of Buddha Sakyamuni,
who taught Tilopa , an Indian Mahasidha. And this lineage from India continued to Tibet unbroken until the present 12th
Tai Situ Rinpoche who is the only holder of the Special Oral Transmission
Lineage of the Karma Kagyu Tibetan Buddhism. When a person receives this
Special Oral Transmission, he or she will get immediate good experience in his
or her meditation practice. According to Rinpoche, to receive this Special Oral
Transmission Blessings, the devotee’s Karma must be ripe at that time. This
blessing is powerful because it comes from the whole Karma Kagyu Lineage.
