I looked up, struck by a sign on a wall, proclaiming words from the Forty-Sixth Psalm:
"Be still and know that I am God.""
I WAS MANY YEARS ago. My high school girlfriend and I were using I Lour Sundays to explore different churches, and this was the first Quaker Meeting I ever attended. Later on, I was drawn to many more. I had been raised in a traditional Christian church, which had more ceremony and structure, but the unaccustomed silence at the Quaker gathering felt alive and refreshing. It seemed to speak to me, and I felt right at home. The silence allowed my concept of spirituality to leap beyond whatever sectarian boundaries I possessed at the time. In the stillness I found it easier to cultivate my own relationship with Spirit, as opposed to merely following or imitating someone else. In retrospect, sitting in the silence gave me my first taste of meditation.
It was several years more before I discovered the path of Self-realization" the way of yoga and meditation described by Paramhansa Yogananda in his classic Autobiography of a Yogi. In meditation one strives to still the mind and commune with the Spirit within. But what does that mean?
EVERY STORY IN THIS collection of real-life experiences has the same, what some might call "tragic," ending: the hero or heroine dies. These are not tales of miraculous recovery. These are not near-death experiences. This is death itself.
You might expect, then, that this book is going to be a real downer!
Quite the contrary. It is a glorious, stay-up-late, can't-stop-thinking-about-it kind of book. When I got the manuscript, I read it every free minute I had, then went back to read again some of my favorite parts.
In the last few decades, much progress has been made in "end-of-life care." Still, individually, and as a society, we have much yet to learn. This book is a quantum leap forward into that deeper understanding.
It can and I pray that it will completely change the way you think about death-your own, and that of those close to you. When the inevitable day comes, this book will help you and your loved ones make a transition with grace, as each person described here has done.
The power of this book is that it is not about saints, masters, or uniquely gifted individuals. Everyone in it is just like you and me. The unifying factor among them is that either the dying person, or someone close to him or her, practiced meditation.
Much has been written these days about the benefits of meditation for health, harmony, creativity, and overall improved well-being. But very little has been recorded so far about how meditation transforms the dying process.
SOME SAY WE DON'T really learn how to live until we have looked death in the face. Those who've had near-death experiences have a different perspective from the rest of us.
"In my case, "Brindey went on,"death is not yet in my face, but it is in the room. It is hovering nearby; I can feel it. The reality of death at this time in my journey is helping me see what is import-ant and what isn't.
"Whereas in the past I might have been tempted to quibble or argue with those who see the world differently than I do, I now have no energy for it; there's no part of me that wants to go there. It just doesn't matter."
I was listening to my friend Nayaswami Brindey, whose story appears later in this book. Her words made me ponder an essential question: As I draw closer to the end of my life, what are my priorities?
Dr. Atul Gawande, the famous physician-author, looks at this question in his book Being Mortal. According to one study, those who are conscious of having a limited amount of time remaining are more likely to value relationships with close friends and family. Their focus is on everyday pleasures, on the here and now, rather than on career goals; those who see a long life stretching out in front of them usually hold opposite values. They seek to gain skills and resources that will enable them to create a brighter future and to expand their network of friends and connections. Spending time with family is, to them, a lower priority. It's a matter of perspective and how much time we perceive ourselves to have. Have you given thought to where and how you will want to spend your time ?
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