We should remember that, when there is a process of practicing the right method, the problem of life and death is no longer an obstacle. Although death still creates a psychological shock manifested through suffering, suffering and longevity for the body, if one knows how to practice, one can overcome suffering through the path of meditation, by reciting Buddha "single-mindedly unmatched" , or by reciting the mantra to attain  "the three karmic karma",  etc. In general, all the disciplines in Buddhism are capable of protecting the flow of emotions, creating peace, Relax for practitioners in any situation.

 In this discourse, we would like to analyze and share about the issue of common karma, private karma and the necessary preparation for the sick. I think that preparing the sick without understanding the process of death is still not sufficiently basic to overcome crisis and fear. What is necessary for life is facing death. People are always in crisis, fear, and insecurity before death. I would like to share some views according to the Buddhist scriptures on the matter just mentioned, in order to help practitioners review the teachings of the Buddha, taking them as luggage on their path of cultivation.

GAMBING FOR DEATH

In the treasure of Vietnamese folk tales, telling the funny story about King Yama's fear of death is as follows:

 Once, Pluto suffered a serious illness. Because of his advanced age, weak health, he felt sad and worried in his heart, because maybe he faced death this time; and that also means that his position of Pluto is over. The more he worried, thought, the more emotionally charged his emotions ripped through with fear. The King of Hell summoned all the gods and gave a speech to say,  "If any of you find a good doctor to cure me from illness, he will be promoted to the most important position in the court." . "  Hearing that, one of the officials said:

- Lord Pluto, would you like us to find an Eastern or Western physician?

- You guys just find a good healer, as long as you cure all my illnesses.

 So the gods split everywhere to find good doctors, even the prisoners in the prison heard this news and excitedly asked for information about the physician, in order to get the redemption to get out of the prison soon. They searched everywhere for months and still couldn't find it. At this news, Pluto was more impatient and sad. He continued to gather the court officials and came up with a new tip:

- The time is quite long, you still have not found a physician, so now you go find clues where there are good physicians, to places like clinics, clinics, especially big hospitals. Where you find no unjustly crying for life, surely there is a good physician, please invite them all here for me. If you are late to let me die to become a ghost, it is unjust for me.

According to Pluto, this time they went to different places of medical examination and treatment, especially the famous hospitals in the world, but they still couldn't find any place without souls and complaints. Returning to the Lord with Pluto, he continued to ask them to go to places with less injustice, where there would surely be a better physician. Yes, fortunately his life still has hope.

Fortunately, the group of top officials found a place for examination and treatment of two doctors who had only a few unjust spirits crying. They then asked the two of them to visit Pluto. The two doctors who knew that they were required to go to the Underworld to cure Pluto were terrified. Because they are new doctors, not experienced much, do not know if they can cure the disease of Pluto, and if not treated, what will happen? Along the way, these two are in a confused mood.

Upon arriving, the mandarin brought them to the Pluto immediately. Upon hearing that these two men were said to be the best in the world to come to the audience, Pluto was very happy and shook hands and said:

 - I congratulate you two, for your youth, who have made great achievements in bringing life to many people. Today, I allow you two the opportunity to cure me. If you treat me and save me from death, I will be blessed, even your relatives will be immortal. On the contrary, if it is not cured, in order for me to die, then ye shall bear the same fate with me.

Upon hearing Pluto's words, the two doctors were frightened, trying to calm down, saying,

- We are not a famous physician, not a good doctor, so we cannot cure your illness. Please forgive us the sins of death. Otherwise, our parents and children will have no care. He wants us to compensate anything, as long as we do not make us die.

Hearing that, Pluto turned to ask:

- What did you guys say? Why are you only a few unjust souls in medical examination and treatment, and yet you say that you are not a good doctor. So how long have you been practicing?

The two doctors quickly answered:

- Sir, we just opened the treatment just one hour ago!

 Pluto was stunned:

- Just opened an hour and there are several injustice? Then I ...

It is thought that people on earth are afraid of death, and those who hold the soul, manage life in the underworld are not afraid. Through this story, it is clear that they are equally afraid of death as people in the positive realm.

Buddhist teachings do not accept the fact that Pluto manages the soul in Hades. It is only a fictional story that is completely untrue, Vietnamese folk handed down to criticize this misconception, or if so, Pluto is more afraid of death than anyone.

Whether or not Pluto governs the soul in the underworld, we do not need to discuss it, but through the above story, fear of death is a great obsession for those who have life. Buddhism believes that when there is a germ, then there is also the germ of death. Many people, because they do not understand, do not want to accept death. On the contrary, the person who has the wisdom and knowledge of death lives leisurely, free, serene and meaningful. Living in the world, if anyone understands death, he will feel relaxed, peaceful, and not dependent on the long or short time present. Just need to understand the value of life to live meaningfully, bring happiness and happiness to yourself and those around you.

 Pluto's words to the two doctors are worthy to consider and ponder : “If you heal the sick, help me not to die, you will be given grace, you and your loved ones will be immortal. ”  Clearly Pluto himself could not be immortal, how can he give it to others? It is also a problem for those  "craving for mercy"  on this earth.

Genghis Khan is a person who is very good at tactics and strategies, and is considered to be the aggressor. Winning many places, dream hegemony achievements, but he still carries heavy suffering, obsessive about death. It was this urging him to find ways to be immortal. At that time, he went to the most famous Taoist spiritual masters of China to help him achieve his wishes. He invited Khuu Su Co - a prominent Taoist, famous at that time, only lost to Truong Tam Phong in the past, and his contemporaries could not be compared.

 Knowing Genghis Khan's will, the monk Khuu Suu taught Genghis Khan the magic of calming the mind, living in harmony between the principles of yin and yang by the method of practicing nursing, qi, and deity. . These are three important keys to prolonging life, going against the inevitable law of the universe physically, but it is impossible not to die.

 The art of immortality everlasting in China at the time seemed wonderful, but in reality Zhang San Feng could not live above 104 years old, and Qiu Hui was even less so. On the basis of the doctrine of immortality, there are quite large holes. Everyone wants to live a long life, but forgets to ask the question: What is a long life for? What are the benefits to yourself and the public?

Many people of the age of old age suffer from great suffering, of which the greatest suffering is the tastelessness, loneliness, gloomyness, no caregiver, helper, filial descendants, especially when relatives physical abuse, physical pain. So, does the art of everlasting life really bring about peaceful values ​​to people or is it just a dream? Normally, when people have a full and well-off material life, they want to live long to maintain their enjoyment and to be called the happy person in the world.

 In fact, the nature of immortality is only to raise hope, expand greed for worldly sensual enjoyment, it is not real peace and happiness. Many Chinese have misconstrued this problem, thinking that immortality is going to become Fairy, Saint, or included in the history book forever. Because of that, many people tried to find life by immortalism, but suffered because they could not find it. Because even the creator of that doctrine can't live long, let alone those who study.

The Buddhist perspective is more practical, judging human life on the basis of moral and intellectual life. Ethics and wisdom help people overcome fear before death. Living with conscience, with great compassion, in accordance with the law, Buddhism calls it a state of " fearlessness" , meaning living without fear.

Just like in us, if anyone has a flaw in morality, he is afraid of being criticized, preaching his bad things to the masses, fear of imprisonment, prosecution or revenge, etc. do not do evil, unethical, unethical, the fear can not occur, or if there will be easily controlled. 

 To have a relatively perfect moral life, to achieve certain values, requires us to have the wisdom and knowledge to practice, to make life better and more perfect. That is also the reason why Buddhism does not focus on life expectancy, because the life expectancy or premature death depends on causal factors. Therefore, the Buddha also lived to only eighty years of age, while at present, there are people who set a world record of life expectancy to live to one hundred and twenty years.

In the old days of Buddha, Ananda lived to be one hundred and twenty years old. He lived a long life is extremely necessary, because the huge treasure of encyclopedic dictionaries on Buddhism, dharma and the path of practice all need wisdom, his notes. Without Ananda, how many generations of monks, nuns, Buddhists in the next life will lose many teachings and values ​​of Buddha's practice. It is possible that from that perspective, he made the vow to live a long life so that anyone who needs the Buddha's teachings, he can report clearly, in detail and guide the practitioner to practice the results.

As for us, without aspiration like Ananda, there is no need to live too long to do anything. Living so long, the cognitive senses of the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind all have to wear and tear, not to mention they are damaged. Therefore, people live long lives but in a state of insufficient health, only bring feelings of suffering, rotten Bodhi mind, discouragement, disappointment and impasse only.

DEATH CASES

Buddhist psychology teaches people how to face fear before death. So what is the theory like? Buddhist scriptures offer four situations of human life that cannot be extended. Based on that doctrine, one cannot assume that one who has longevity is blessed. Whether or not you are blessed depends on the way of life that is useful for life with the willingness to serve and to be committed. The four end-of-life situations include: fullness of life, karma ending, longevity and karma ending, and negative external influences.

The first scenario is that when human life is fulfilled, fullness is a concept that is not based on the dimension of long or short time, it depends heavily on the activity of karma, related to the life that he has created. out. Some people just want to live to the age of fifty, because with such a moderate age, they have enough strength to do many things, then leave to be reborn in the next life. Then for the next few decades, they absorbed the spiritual inheritance and merit they had cultivated in their previous life.

 Normally, people working to sixty or sixty-five years old then retire. On the contrary, the monks up to the age of seven or eighty can still make Buddha good, because their minds are still lucid, lucid, and the bases are not obscured. They work effectively thanks to the support of the spiritual dimension during the practice, the older they become, the deeper the practice experience, so they can guide how to practice and practice better and better. when still young.

The history of the thirteen Dalai Lama generations in Tibet has never had a single person over seventy years old, even some who only lived to forty years old have gone to be reborn. Therefore, it is not possible to base on age to determine whether or not this person is blessed, but it is important that his life conforms to his cycle and wishes, and then continues to go to Buddha. elsewhere is in need. Otherwise, other places will lack their presence, and at the same time the needs are also difficult to be fully met.       

The second situation, when the karma ends, all activities must be stopped. Karma  is considered to be the living substance of sentient beings, whether it belongs to consciousness or the presence of consciousness in the form of rebirth, continuity, reincarnation, etc.The function of karma  is to motivate people to be present in life, and when karma ends, one's life is ended. Many of them have the willingness to dedicate themselves to service, by the time they are completed, they will also leave peacefully, without fear and regret.

Queen Ma-da after giving to the world Ta-she Prince Siddhartha has abandoned the mundane world and left. The saint - Prince Siddhartha appeared, bringing spiritual values ​​of peace not only to Indians, but also to many other peoples of the world from more than 26 centuries ago to that time. our system today. According to the classic description, after seven days of Prince Siddhartha's birth, Queen Ma-da went away safely, being born to heaven and heaven. At that time, the Buddha Shakyamuni had not preached the Pure Land Method, the  Amitabha Sutta, and the sutras did not describe her being born in the Western Pure Land, only referring to the heavenly island of Dao Loi for a chance. continue to practice.

The two factors of longevity and career are two important data that determine whether human life in the long or short term is present in life.

 The third situation, when the karma ends and the life is over, this case will create a quick, gentle and peaceful death. The person who died did not suffer physical pain from the illness, but died simply, when he slept, he died, or experienced a minor painless disease, then gently went to sleep. In order to have such a simple and gentle death, we need to invest methodically and artistically in the spirit of the Buddha's teaching.         

The fourth situation, death or death (horizontal death). People who die in this situation are living a healthy life but encounter horizontal death, which people often call death suddenly or sudden death, that is, karma has not ceased and life is still dead.

 The Mahayana Buddhist literature, especially the  Medicine  Sutra, mentions nine situations of death and  death, such as unjust death, slanderous death, death from mountains, traffic accident, and floods. , died due to natural disasters, etc. Despite their long life aspirations, efforts to practice, career and happiness, they were still unable to prolong their lives, suffering from one of the extreme situations of death, Not in accordance with the law of birth and death.

The  Nikaya  does not explicitly list nine specific death situations like the  Medicine Sutta , only dealing with deaths unrelated to karma and longevity. For example, when the road is hit by heavy rain, heavy winds are crushed by trees, standing on the side of the road, the car hits the road to death, or the beach is submerged by waves, etc., such as a tsunami in the Southeast countries. Asia recently, causing deaths for several hundred thousand people. All such deaths are caused by many factors that affect the environment and nature.

Ask the question: why is there a situation of martyrs at the same time so many people come? The answer is because the use of karma is so diverse and complex, people sow seeds for longevity but less destructive life. For example, deforestation, mass killing of wild animals, rare animals, or in a certain life, people have eaten too many animals without knowing that doing the above acts is to sow karma. If one feels happiness in destroying or killing, then the karma of killing is triggered in a strong way, which will dominate human life. Therefore, there are people who live and still have longevity, but because they are covered by the above karma, they have to suffer the consequences of death (unfortunate death) .

I have the opportunity to watch people teach how to fish on TV, only learn how to fish but they also have to pay a lot of money. On the boat, the people standing, the guys sitting, they run the boat away to where there are many fish, and each holds a fishing rod, then throws the fishing line with bait. Each region has a different way of fishing, there are areas using fishing rods about four or five inches long, and there are areas where the fishing rods are up to two or three meters long.

Schools for fishing  (Fishing School)  whether fishing as joy, congratulate each other when it is fished. Others continued to throw the fish into the water; He left the fish swinging, struggling forever to be amused, until he threw it into the water, the fish was already or was about to die. In Vietnam, there is a similar fishing habit recently. On the outskirts of Saigon such as Nha Be, Thu Thiem, Thanh Da etc ... people organize many recreational fishing spots with a ticket price of several hundred thousand dong for each turn to the fishing, free one meal, distributed fishing rods, bait and a guide for how to fish.          

Finding fun in fishing is like spending money to buy karma. It is not understood that such games contribute to the very heavy karma of killing. This karma of killing acts as a hindrance, stopping the life of a human being.

The Buddha presented four situations of death just mentioned to remind people not to cut off the lives of animals intentionally, need to know the seeds of life and love. If we have the opportunity, we should consciously protect by engaging in activities to protect the ecological environment.

The cases of martyrdom occur largely in two situations. Firstly, the situation created by oneself through the act of killing and generating karma in a conscious way. Second, situations created by others. There are situations that create death for many people at the same time, making us afraid to appear in a crowd. From 1997-1999 in India, violence and terrorism occurred everywhere in the form of fanatic religious ideology. People mercilessly killed each other without hesitation, where there are crowds, there are bombs, mines, mass killings. The fear of death is spread throughout the vast region.

The incident of the American twin towers was attacked on September 11, 2001 is also caused by the extremists of Islam, killing thousands of people. The terrorist event caused the whole world to be haunted, there was no greater fear and left many lasting consequences afterward, so much so that whenever he saw the tragic disaster that was shown on television , many people still have to cry. In addition, people kill each other in many other ways such as sending envelopes with toxic chemicals, sending a briefcase containing mines, impregnating poison in food, or attacking, controlling aircraft. ...

Without the compassionate material of Buddhism, hatred and retaliation will still spread everywhere, especially to the relatives of the victims who died in the painful tragedy. Therefore, it is necessary to find a more flexible and better solution to prevent the spread of killing seeds.

 In 1999, Pakistan and India vied for sovereignty over the land of Kasmir, causing countless deaths. During that time, the number of people killed increased gradually, day by day, and not only soldiers from both sides but also civilians with many innocent women and children. In that fight and killing, there was a gesture that I thought was in keeping with the Buddhist spirit. Hindu soldiers after killing the enemy, they hold the body to chant prayers, pray, sit for a few hours in meditation, then lower the grave to bury the enemy, and make a tombstone. back identity.

Some people believe that the actions of Hindu soldiers are mere diplomatic acts, aimed at condemning the crimes of Pakistanis. In fact, no matter what the form, we still see it as a way and a noble gesture. Indeed, it is the behavior and expression of human love, making life toward the higher and better things. 

Seen from the perspective of the war, when the two sides are ready to kill each other, facing the immediate death of people who are full of life, seeing their unhappy fate, suffering, the living should take human gratitude to treat each other; If so, the hatred in karma will be greatly reduced. On the other hand, it is this that also minimizes the activity of creating the death and death situations for yourself.

When the spiritual development of people at a high level will no longer be enemies of each other. Humans hate each other because of hatred, and it is made up of greed and ignorance. When anger arises, at that moment also begins to appear delusion. A person with wisdom can stop that anger immediately, otherwise he will immediately appear the psychology of self, wanting to do something to become an important axis of rotation in the partner. If the partner's situation does not meet the requirements, it is annoying and frustrating. From there, the three factors of greed, hatred and delusion unite and interact with each other, making us unhappy living and dying peacefully.

DEATH OF PRISON

Facing death is a great spiritual need, even those who do law enforcement such as those who try to shoot prisoners at the execution site also need to practice and contemplate the death. Because it relates to the matter of cause and effect, even though because of the nature and requirements of the work that they have to perform according to the court's judgment, cause and effect are still real.

When executing death row inmates, the executioners often relied on psychological factors to reduce suffering, so the executions took place between midnight and four or five in the morning. Because at that time there were few people attending, the suffering was not scattered, especially the relatives did not have to witness the death row inmates shot but there was no way to save them, and the death row inmates did not suffer much more. , sometimes psychologically controlled in the following aspects:

The first is guilt. They think they have committed so many sins, they want to end their lives now.

The second is regret of life. If they can overcome the guilt, have the spiritual guidance of the masters, expect to extend their life to atone for the mistake created consciously that the law does not allow, because the law Dharma does not believe that in their minds there is a positive change. For the law, they must receive sentences that are compatible with the crimes they have created for society is fair.

When the mind regrets life that faces death, they often measure time exponentially  "an hour equals a hundred years"  , finding time passing so quickly. Then they live with the influence of psychological time, not a physical time anymore. The more you fear death, the shorter the illusion of time will shorten.

 For example, when the death row inmate has three days left to be executed, he feels that the remaining time is only three hours or only thirty seconds. If anyone had the opportunity to observe the faces of death row inmates when they graduated, their eyes would be bloodshot. Some people think that, due to guilt, they cry a lot. In fact, it is the biological response of the body when faced with death that they have not prepared psychologically ready to accept. By the time their emotions well up, they can't sleep, their eyes are red, their emotions are stuck. Therefore, some people sought death before executing suicide, because they could not bear the feeling of being shot in front of many people.

The Japanese Zen story tells that one prisoner was sentenced to death, the time he lived was only ten days. According to the legal tradition of the Holy Father, death row inmates have the right to invite religious dignitaries to provide spiritual guidance before executing orders. The executed person was a Shintoist, sympathetic to Buddhism. During his time in prison, he had the opportunity to contact a Buddhist. Knowing he was a death row inmate, the Buddhist advised him to invite a Buddhist monk (especially a Zen master) to help him to live in peace, not to die miserably.

Hearing the Buddhist say, he was very happy and thought that he was about to be saved. While in distress, he wanted to invite the outstanding Shaolin Monk to break the prison, help him escape and live comfortably. Buddhists advised him to write a note to the prison authorities, in the hope of asking an abbot at Dong Kinh Tu to help him. When the letter was sent to Dong Kinh temple, the Zen master was preparing to go to Buddhism far away. He informed the prisoner that five days later he would be at the prison to help him.

Believed, he was extremely miserable because he thought that when he met Zen Master, his life time was only five days, so it was too little. Thinking of that, he lost sleep, suffered pain and suffered a stroke, hemiplegia. Exactly five days later, the Zen master came to the prison to meet the death row inmate and told him:

- Death is an illusion and life is an illusion. If you understand the concept of illusion, you will freely live depending on its existence.

After listening, he was extremely disappointed and said:

- If I had known that he had come here to teach only that much, I would not have invited him to do anything. I myself still know that life is an illusion, because there are only five days left and I will not live. Therefore, I cannot accept the illusion as you just said. I was paraplegic, he told me to imagine how I could contemplate.

  The Zen master again said:

- If you do not accept that practice, you will have to suffer more. Now forget about the time that only five days left. Don't think about the time when you have to die and think that I'm living with the present moment and living a meaningful life. I live with all the fresh air with my neighbors in the present moment. I live with someone who is giving me spiritual support.

 You should practice this now and continuously for the rest of the time. Just practicing that much, he will live peacefully, will see all the meaning of life is here.

 This time, he no longer reacted, executing the Zen Master's sentence and it flowed into his stream of emotions. From there, the pain of death in his soul vanished. He was awake forever, unable to sleep until the last day, not by fear but awake to feel life, at least for a day, a meaningful night.

A few days later, nearing the execution time, suddenly a representative of the executive branch brought the decision to abolish the death penalty to give him. Because in the course of the investigation, the prosecution agency has recorded his contributions to society. Therefore, he only served a life sentence. Only then did he understand the meaning that the Zen master taught " to live in the present ", because the meaning and value of life lies right there, not for how long life lasts. good.

 Since then, he has begun his efforts to practice diligently, consistently, and in just a few months, he has overcome the polio. In the prison at the time, he became a symbol of miraculous transformation for many inmates to follow. From a criminal with murder, he became a gentle man, awakened thanks to the guidance of the Zen teacher.

Often when there is happiness, people are more easily immersed and contented with the happiness they have, but in extreme suffering, sometimes people are awakened and enlightened to many things, making them live an experience and more seasoned. One should not grieve or be afraid of death, sorrow and fear bring no benefit, only make death more crisis and painful. Thinking of death with fear will increase the intensity of negative emotions. If the increase in suffering is excessive, someone cannot bear it, wants to end his life sooner, which is also a form of death. This means that the impulse that cuts off your life is not due to the end of life, but rather to the psychological inhibition of the overflowing negative stream of emotions.

In the Sutta, when talking to a king about how to know the suffering of delusion, Buddha told the king to observe the suffering of death row inmates with insight. At that time, when judging criminals, they often applied many forms such as beheading, slashing at the back or four horses (for four horses to pull in four directions to tear the body). Depending on the type of crime, different penalties apply. As long as those punishments make the feelings of the trial very miserable and the witnesses shudder without daring to commit crimes. 

The Buddha said that in the past, when he was a Bodhisattva, he witnessed a very frightening event, before being executed, that death row inmate had to witness the scene of killing sinners by hand. delusion. They let the death row inmates see the deaths of other death row inmates about two meters in front of them. The death row inmate was executed by executioners, at the same time the executioner sliced ​​the death row into three pieces at the same time, or saw another death row inmate with hands, feet, feet, blindfolded, and then used many sharp swords stabbed into the body, or cut off pieces of skin, pieces of meat, etc.

 When witnessing the scene of death by such gruesome forms, the death row inmates who are about to be executed will feel extremely frightened, mentally depressed and very easy to create hallucinations. If the feeling at that time is misery, the illusion of suffering will increase many times. For example, before execution, they were covered by a towel soaked in water, water droplets seeped down, and they hallucinated that their blood was flowing. They think that in a few minutes, we will collapse from the blood, their mind will become chaotic, they may have a heart attack or stop breathing before execution.           

 Through the story above, the Buddha showed the king a great fear of human death. Buddha advised the king:

- Instead of punishing by killing them, Great King should put them on a moral path, so that they have a chance to renew their lives. If the Great King killed them, they no longer have the opportunity to become honest people to give up evil deeds, do good deeds, and benefit the society.

Unfortunately, the king did not listen to the Buddha's advice. The king said that a person who committed a serious sin needs to be punished by execution to pay a penalty. That is probably fair. Killing offenders is only a small justice, but it creates a great injustice. Especially for those who directly execute sinners, must take the karma of killing.

Although they kill people for the sake of justice, ensure social security, punish murderers to set an example for others to fear but do not dare to commit crimes. They do not know, killing people for whatever purpose they must carry the karma of killing. People directly executing judgments or executing death sentences to create peace for society can create grievances for many people, but if they understand the love when performing their duties, the karma will be greatly reduced. 

In the face of death, the emotional frequency of a person is very strong, no physical resistance can be prevented. If the executor arouses feelings of compassion, the one who is executed will have no resentment. At the same time, the karma of karma between the executioner and the executed is not established. Therefore, the karma of the future executioner will repel the tendency to die or be longevity.

Buddhism teaches a great deal of the skill of sowing the seeds of love found in the Bhikkhu rite that monks and nuns must learn and apply every day. Maybe you look at the monks and nuns just like you, eating, wearing, and living are no different. Those who do not study Buddhist traditions will identify and misjudge them.

The young monks and nuns, from the time of shaving their hair into the temple, have been trained in how to practice the monks and nuns, including the four-verse verses extracted from the  Pure Happiness  of the  Avatamsaka Sutra  teaching about compassion and mindfulness. , meditation, retreats and selflessness, great altruism. For example, the first verse teaches that, upon opening your eyes, starting a new day, putting your first foot on the ground will see the seeds of love and compassion of the renunciants.

Monks were taught: I know that when I open my eyes, step on my bed, barefoot, or wear sandals, I have pedaled countless insects that the naked eye cannot see nor Is there any way to avoid trampling those sentient beings? Therefore, I accidentally brought suffering and death to these small species. I hope that those beings are super-born and liberated. Then reciting the mantra of rebirth causes the energy of compassion to be increased with great concentration.

  The same action accidentally trampled on killing the lives of small beings, but spiritual practitioners must practice spreading compassion by the Bhikkhuni method. Doing so for the karma to be mitigated and the sudden death of those species does not affect their lives. Learning and doing this way, the home-cultivator can still do it, just by memorizing the four verses of the bhikkhuni, you can become a practitioner.

DEATH OF TRAIN

  In the Three Kingdoms Story there is a pretty good detail related to the character Cao Cao. He was intelligent, talented, but suspicious, killing many innocent and righteous people. He gave a very scary philosophy: it is better to kill unjust, not to unjust, to kill rather than wrong. From that point of view, Cao Cao created an enormous karma. He was well aware that his cruel killing was in the service of dreams and ambitions. Cao Cao aspires to become the king of Chinese painting.

Cao Cao is someone who doesn't believe in gods. Hearing many people whispering that the old banyan tree next to his house had the gods coming, he immediately sent the person to cut off the banyan tree. Some courtiers advised him not to cut it off, because the banyan tree was a resting place for the gods. If he cut that banyan tree, his life would not be safe. Cao Cao still did not believe it and said, "I will cut this banyan tree to see who will die first." Unfortunately, after cutting down the banyan tree, Cao Cao fell ill. The courtiers came to visit, recalling the old story: "If you hear us and don't touch the banyan tree, today you won't be suffering like this."

Hearing the officials mention it, Cao Cao angrily chased them out. When the officials were gone, he felt a crisis, uneasy, repentant, regretting his work. He began to fear the spirit of death, the more worried and afraid of death, the more he became depressed, his mentality collapsed, his physical power dissipated. So just a few days later Cao Cao passed away forever.

Cao Cao's death was explained by the Chinese as he cut down the banyan tree, angry by the gods for his life. According to Buddhist psychology, Cao Cao's death was not harmed by the angry spirit, but by the illusion of harming him, he harmed himself. Cao Cao fell ill due to old age is common sense, is a natural law of life. It is the same for humans who have a body that is sick, whether old or young, but older people are more susceptible to illnesses and are harder to recover than younger people. So the fact that people are ill is a fact of life, a rule that no one can deny.

People who sow so much karma too much like Cao Cao when they get old, they must die painfully. According to Chinese history books, Cao Cao shouted terribly when he was dying, and when he slept, when he closed his eyes, he saw many people holding trees, holding sticks, swinging swords, dancing swords, slashing, or carrying stones. throw at him. So he got up and ran around the house, sometimes he knelt down and asked for his life; This is a real phenomenon. Those who do not understand the development of the illusion will argue that Chinese historians have exaggerated the story.

 The most recent event in Cambodia was the genocide of Pol Pot, the leader of the Khmer Rouge. Pol Pot is a Buddhist, but doesn't understand Buddhism. Due to misperception, Pol Pot fell into a sinful path. He advocated countless countless deaths, corpses piled up. Therefore, in the last years of his life, Pol Pot had to live with the anguish of illness, to hide and hide in the deep forest, the cave, the rice was not enough, the blanket was not warm enough, sometimes even have to take plants as food.

 In 2001, I was able to watch documentary films about Pol Pot, clearly recording his life in the jungle. He had a stroke, had to be in a wheelchair, and his suffering at that time was immense. He said that his ears always heard screams for death, which caused him a serious psychological crisis. When he died, his hands were constricted, one had to use a special wine to massage, but it could not be straightened, he stopped breathing after only a few minutes. How to explain scientifically or forensic to the wall just stopped breathing and cramped like Pol Pot?

In exhaustion, he allowed BBC reporters to interview and record the last hours of his life. He accepted it on the condition that he paid him five thousand US dollars, because he was so poor at the time. At that time, he still told reporters a very cold sentence:  "My conscience is always clear, I do not regret bringing death to many people."

This is sad, because as a Buddhist he did not understand the ethics of the Buddha. Perhaps, he is only nominally Buddhist or traditional. So he did not hesitate to cause pain and unhappiness to his people. There are people in life who do many unwholesome deeds. When faced with death, the mind regains consciousness, repents, and regrets. However, there are also situations where people become more stubborn, which is a typical example.

For the stubborn people, when the enemy fell below the arrow, his bullets still could not open any forgiveness, sometimes pointed the gun at the corpse and shot to shattered. According to the operation of karma, if we use a gun to kill a person with a hundred conscious bullets, the karma of killing will increase one hundred times. Don't think of killing a person as just a unit of killing, but karma depends on one's killing attitude greatly.

Cause and effect of morality based on physical basis plus mind, the heart is the key to making the value of cause and effect take place good or bad, light or heavy, and more or less. Therefore, it is necessary to practice compassion so as not to fall into such a situation.

HATE THE DEAD       

Chinese or Vietnamese history has also recorded stories of living people taking revenge on the dead. Because of their hatred, they left the dead in the tomb uneasy. In a life where there is hatred for someone, when he has enough conditions to take revenge, he is already dead, so they do not hesitate to throw a grave, lift that person's remains to chop, slash, to kill times. second, third time, fourth time to get angry.

In modern Western psychology, there is a method of breathing. This method according to Buddhist psychology is dangerous. The method of exhaust is similar to the way a chimney is made in a house. Without the chimney, the house no longer has oxygen to breathe, because it cannot release smoke out. It is said that when suffering increases, the flow of emotions is controlled, then by all means release it to reduce suffering. Some people say that you should push all your suffering into a sandbag, then associate it with the object of the suffering, or think of the other person as a ball, then break it with your hammer to smash it. Satisfying the pitch and feeling happy. Instead of killing people in jail, doing those things still satisfies their anger without breaking the law.

In India, people have a habit of tormenting mannequins to satisfy anger. For example, when they hated the prime minister so much, they were willing to spend hundreds of dollars hiring a man to mannequin the prime minister, then bring it to the crowd, claiming to be a judge reading the indictment, accusing, cursing. , insult, denounce for everyone to hear. After that, people stabbed into the dummy body with knives, or cut them into pieces, soaked with gasoline. Such acts, though not directly killing people, but that mind has a killing karma is very clear, because that act of killing is a concrete manifestation of the mind. Releasing anger in this case is extremely dangerous, creating very heavy karma.

In our present life, if we unfortunately have to carry karma as a soldier or the task of executing an offender, we need to be able to spread compassion. Because, just by witnessing the pain of a dying person, one can also bring the suffering legacy to the mind. When I get old, I do not do it anymore, but those unjust spirits still hang around me, easily touching my nervous system, destabilizing the body. If it touches the eyes, the eyes may become blurred, so when we see other people chopping off a chicken, we think they cut off our heads and so on.

Having a chance to visit Cho Quan mental hospital, we will hear many stories about hallucinations. In some cases, when we bring gifts to them, they beg us not to bring poison to kill them, some people will see us when they come, run away and so on. Seeing those situations, we can know , because in the past they used to take poison to kill others. After taking action, their conscience was uneasy, unable to find a way out, falling into a deadlock. Since then, they have panic and always hallucinate that other people will do the same to take revenge on themselves, or they have witnessed their loved ones killed by poison, excessive suffering and suffering so they suffer from mental…

The association of death so horrible can make people delusional, leading to painful death. The Buddha taught: "The mind of the person in the killing determines the life, happiness, suffering of the person directly related to that action."

Beijing  respectively,  the Buddha taught:  "When visualizing lines merely emotional feelings flow." It simply does not allow the conscious consciousness to interfere, nor does it allow inference, synthesis, induction, judgment, evaluation to influence and dominate. At that time, the pain of suffering before death may be present, but it does not affect the psychology. This is one of the methods the Buddha taught to "neutralize" the crisis that is coming to him. Of course, this method requires great concentration and peace of mind to succeed.

Duy Thuc learn  refers to the concept of "present quality," ie visualization. Visualization is the cognitive flow without any conscious intervention. For example, when standing in front of you, we know the first person in yellow, the second in blue, the second in brown, black, etc. not to mention this beautiful yellow shirt, black shirt. ugly, the other Western or Vietnamese style, this one is fashion or classical style, etc. That is, awareness has not been assessed at all. This belongs to the normal use of consciousness, there is no activity of ego that Buddhist psychology calls the Mahā-na consciousness.

 For example, we used to have a guilt about the person wearing the yellow shirt, when we see anyone wearing the yellow shirt, we don't like or like that person. At that moment, the flow of emotions went in the wrong direction. Or my lover who used to wear long dresses and white lady dresses, now I see someone wearing a similar dress, I feel like etc. Therefore, people often say,  "When you love, love the whole way back."

All the situations that follow are due to the attachment of Māna-na. Therefore, the  Samyutta  Sutta , the Buddha taught,  "Keep contemplating the flow of emotions merely the flow of emotions, without the activity of the Mahā-tā-consciousness and consciousness attached to the object of perception."

 Similarly, even though in the past we have witnessed people being killed in any form, we do not allow such images to show influence, psychological domination, so the stream of awareness, tranquility in us newly set. If in the moment that image comes back, we should visualize compassion, when we see the dead in pain, unhappiness, we also think of compassion, while on the road, we accidentally see people with accident, we immediately start compassion.

However, compassion also depends a lot on the culture and laws in which we live. As in Vietnam, when we go out to meet a victim, we can help the other person take him to a hospital, but in the West we do not dare to do so, for fear of being involved in the law. Due to the provisions of the law, we can be inconvenient, time consuming because of that connection. So our compassion is narrowed.

  The laws of each place are different, the cause and effect are distorted from one form to another. In Vietnam, when we see a person in an accident die, we can recite the mantra and associate compassion, pray for the dead to be freed, and in the West, it's best to call the police. Let them worry. In case of necessity, we should also be witnesses for fairness. Knowing that sometimes being a witness leads to troubles, or prolonged lawsuits that affect jobs and jobs, but we should still do it. Because there are cases where the law requires witnesses, and everyone is afraid of trouble, the other person will encounter unhappiness.

In present-day Cambodia, vehicles are allowed to be used in two forms: vehicles registered with the public authority (vehicles with a license plate issued by a government agency) and vehicles used No registration with state agencies (vehicles without number plates). During my Buddhist visits in Cambodia, I was once told by monks here that three-quarters of vehicles in circulation in this country are not registered with government agencies. Because of the thought that there are many benefits to the vehicle without registration, first, there is no tax, secondly, no insurance costs, thirdly, if someone dies, just run away, the police will not find it. , so many people in Cambodia risked their lives.

On the way, we witnessed a very tragic traffic accident. The victim was crushed by the car. Witnessing the accident, we do not know what to do? When causing an accident, they suffer a psychological crisis, not daring to believe that the other accident happened before their eyes. Drivers who cause accidents often flee, because they are afraid of relatives of victims of anger, assault, sometimes killing themselves. However, if you run away and know how, compassion can still be present.

For example, when causing an accident, we sincerely pray to Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva to save him or her from death, if so, even if we have to pay a huge compensation, we are ready. In all cases, the skillful practitioner will turn the suffering into merit, or take the mind of the rebirth mind if you follow the Pure Land method.

If you are a practitioner following other disciplines, please use your spiritual practice in that discipline to transform the situation. From there, the unjust career between you and the other person can be resolved in your present life, no longer carried to the next life. If we know the identity of the victim, we are ready to be held responsible before the law, not to escape, because the person who caused the accident may flee in the present, but in cause and effect, his karma How to avoid it and still have to pay in the future.

  12 years ago, I saw a movie called " The Star Understands My Heart."  The film is about a tragic character, a woman with 5 children and a husband as a driver. Unfortunately, in a traffic accident, he was seriously injured, then died. The person who caused the accident for him to flee, the authorities tried his best, but could not find any clues or traces about who caused the accident. Because the person who caused the accident fled to another Chinese province. Before escaping, he had promptly taken the identity papers of the victims to know where his victims' homeland and country were. Every month, he secretly deducts three-fourths of his income to send to the families of the victims.

The wife of the victim regularly receives such a sum of money each month, but she does not know who has compassion for her family. She was deeply touched by that noble gesture. At first, she intended to give the money to the children in the orphanage, but then she thought, if I send all that money to the orphanage, what would I take to support the whole family in this difficult time. In the end, she agreed to spend the unknown money, and in her heart, she thanked the person who helped her so much. She did not know that the sender was the one who created the wrongful shield and suffering for her family.

From the above story, we learn how to show the responsibility to reduce the pain of others. If we fall into a similar situation, we also know how to share the suffering of the victim's family so that in the future the cause and effect will be light. At a young age, with the strength, the opportunity to create material wealth, it is necessary to confront cause and effect, hoping that the bad seeds planted in the past keep showing as much as possible. This phenomenon is called  "falling karma . " For some people who are not knowledgeable about the law of cause and effect, when the industry is overflowing, it is easy to be rotten and will not go to the temple, not to be a Buddha.

 When we understand the law of  "borrowing and repaying" , we should be happy to accept the truth of paying back, without borrowing. It is like the law of debt in the world, when we borrow money and owe for a long time the interest will increase. If it takes too long, "mother and child interest", it is difficult to pay. If we bear the waist, lose our stomach, accept the debt, the debt will be gone. Acceptance of suffering will quickly quell suffering. Otherwise, the entanglements, troubles, and suffering will follow, we will be hard to succeed in life.

KNOW THE DEAD TO DON'T DEAD

Facing death is one of the great challenges for humans. Buddhism teaches people to have the courage to accept that truth. The bravery stems from the perception of insight that death is an obvious fact, a law that everyone must go through once. Determined not to fear death, because death depends on each person's karma sooner or later. How long a person is born and how long he or she lives, one day, one month, one year, two or hundred years depends on the karma of the longevity he or she has cultivated in the previous life, plus the number of good karma sown in the present life.

It is necessary to be aware of the Buddha's teaching in the sutta: " death is a rule, there is life, there must be death. Do not initiate the desire to overcome death. "  This is what the Buddha taught in the Sangha Sutta  . Birth, old age, sickness, suffering and death are an obvious rule. Therefore, we do not expect that we are not sick and not suffering. Understanding that, we do not expect to get rid of disease and die when death comes, we are not afraid, we do not exaggerate it.

Some people, due to excessive exaggeration of death, are so frightened, screaming, pulling out their hair, punching their breasts ... It is because of feelings of anxiety, fear of excessive death that their bodies and their relatives are affected. that process of creating emotions. Since then, when they die, their karma cannot be reborn in a good, peaceful realm. In life, our relatives are people who know how to do good, avoid being afraid when facing death, we should begin to rejoice and be confident that they will be born in the peaceful realms.

 To express your affection and respect for the dead, when you go out to meet the funeral, stop, take off your hat to say goodbye, or attend a funeral when dressed for funerals. , polite to show his respect to the deceased. 

 Upon hearing the news of Shakyamuni Buddha entering Nirvana, the reaction in the Sangha was very diverse. Ananda went to White World, please don't leave, you will have no place to rely on. And the Arahant Han is still with a calm attitude, because they know the reason why the Tathagata has to leave? What needs to be said for life, World Religion has said in forty-nine years of practice (according to Ton Tong), or forty-five years (according to Tong). If he remained in his life, Buddha wouldn't say anything other than what was said. Of course, the Buddha's departure creates psychological regret for the remaining people who have to try to practice and practice to benefit.

 Unable to control his emotions, A-nan cried deeply. Seeing that, Mr. A-brown-long-momentum came to Ananda, saying:

- Please don't cry. He cried, making Buddhists cry. He cried like that, people told him, How did the Blessed One teach that the disciples before death also suffer, weep like that.

 Mr. A-brown-long-momentum continued:

- When still in the world, World Religion has done so much merit for life, which everyone called the source of life, is the happiness of life, boundless, immeasurable merit. Therefore, we should not cry. Listen to A-brown-long-momentum remind, Mr. An-nan still cried meat, could not control the flow of emotions.

In the face of death, to what extent will we know our spiritual frequency? There are events that we know, but while being safe, happy, success will not be able to know it. Because the safety illusion controls our emotions. Buddha taught, sometimes we should go to the graves, burial sites to observe death, see if fear? Dare to sleep alone outside the mound or not? Sleeping outside the mound is one of the top ten acts.

In Indian culture, for some of the dead, they do not choose a burial, but a funeral (toss the dead in a forest or hang on a tree for raptors). When the birds of the forest ate the flesh of the dead, only the skeleton remained, and the ascetic came to sleep next to those bones. That is the way to practice so that the practitioner is not afraid of death.           

Before death, we should not cry but need to cultivate compassion. At that time, we need to visualize, so that the dead can soon be super peaceful in the realm of peace. However, this person who misunderstands, improper application will make the mind hardened before death, especially for the death of strangers.

For some people, compassion only arises when their loved ones die, and to strangers, no matter how tragic they may be, buried by earthquakes. , or the aftershocks also did not stir, or when listening to the aid campaign, sharing the suffering with the unfortunate people in distress, because of the material wealth, some people did not respond. If so, then the feelings that we have for our loved ones are only human emotions, not compassion. The expression of compassion is very different, when hearing the death and suffering of anyone, our compassion will arise and propagate to them in ways that we can do. For example, helping them with money, in kind, in heart or in prayer, mobilizing others to work together to help.

  When we understand death, we are not afraid to take it for granted. Like the conception of some confident people, dying is to take off your old shirt to replace a new one, to change an old car, to create a new car, or to give up a mundane world to return to the Pure Land world. of Amitabha Buddha, or to the Eastern bliss of Medicine Buddha, or wish to return to the human realm to become a monk to dedicate to serving the community and society, etc. redundant capacity can accommodate thousands, tens of thousands of people moving towards the life of happiness and peace.

If we have a firm belief in rebirth, and practice the good things in this life, we are sure that we will have peace and liberation before life and death. On the contrary, if born frightened before death, the realm is gone blind, indefinite, not knowing where that time.

  What the Buddha taught about death is very much, above is just a few experiences facing death, Practice the Buddha's teachings, prepare yourself with some skills, train your mind be stable before giving up life and after death, we will return to the realms of peace in the fastest, most sure way.END=NAM MO SHAKYAMUNI BUDDHA.( 3 TIMES ).GOLDEN AMITABHA MONASTERY=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THICH CHAN TANH.AUSTRALIA,SYDNEY.28/4/2020.VIETNAMESE TRANSLATE ENGLISH BY=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THICH CHAN TANH.