Spiritual Death According to Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism: What Can Modern Medicine and Western Culture Learn?
M. David Eckel, MA, PhD, Boston University
Vikram Sheel Kumar, MD, Boston University School of Medicine
Moderator: Manoj Jain, MD, MPH, Emory University
Dying is a process, which begins at birth. Yet, it is at the last few moments, hours, days, or months of life which accent death and revere life. Eastern religions, Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism, have developed a process for these last moments of life, which is called, sallekhana, santhar or spiritual death.
The speakers from Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain traditions will present varying perspectives of spiritual death and discuss how this practice can be incorporated in the Western world with modern medicine.
The ultimate hope of any person is to die in dignity. One can bring dignity by providing control to the person. Control comes by relinquishing passions and practicing equanimity, forgiveness towards all and meditation. By dying in meditation, samadhi-marana, the aspirant is able to choose the circumstances of his death with the body’s faculties functioning, and the mind being in complete awareness. All of which provides dignity.
The process or the preparation for the death begins when the person is still conscious, and realizes that that his/ her body is no longer functioning and purpose of life and living is just about over. Contrary to many Western perception, Sallekhana is not suicide.
In order to die in a spiritual manner the Eastern traditions have prescribed rules and rituals that assist in the act and lead to the spiritual death or sallekhana. The word sallekhana means, “properly thinning out” referring to both the passions and physical thinning out of the body.
Some of the steps include:
1. The person gives up all material aspirations. The person obtains forgiveness and forgives others
2. The person meets with a spiritual guru or a guide to discuss his/her state of being.
3. The person meditates on the innermost self, the soul, and the true “I” becomes the point of focus.
The panel with discuss what is this process of sallekhana, how is it performed and what are ways it can be modified for present day dying process for people of all faiths. They will provide the perspectives of death from a physician, a religions professor, and bio-medical researcher view by individuals who practice the Eastern religions of Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism.
Vikram Sheel Kumar, MD, Boston University School of Medicine
Moderator: Manoj Jain, MD, MPH, Emory University
Dying is a process, which begins at birth. Yet, it is at the last few moments, hours, days, or months of life which accent death and revere life. Eastern religions, Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism, have developed a process for these last moments of life, which is called, sallekhana, santhar or spiritual death.
The speakers from Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain traditions will present varying perspectives of spiritual death and discuss how this practice can be incorporated in the Western world with modern medicine.
The ultimate hope of any person is to die in dignity. One can bring dignity by providing control to the person. Control comes by relinquishing passions and practicing equanimity, forgiveness towards all and meditation. By dying in meditation, samadhi-marana, the aspirant is able to choose the circumstances of his death with the body’s faculties functioning, and the mind being in complete awareness. All of which provides dignity.
The process or the preparation for the death begins when the person is still conscious, and realizes that that his/ her body is no longer functioning and purpose of life and living is just about over. Contrary to many Western perception, Sallekhana is not suicide.
In order to die in a spiritual manner the Eastern traditions have prescribed rules and rituals that assist in the act and lead to the spiritual death or sallekhana. The word sallekhana means, “properly thinning out” referring to both the passions and physical thinning out of the body.
Some of the steps include:
1. The person gives up all material aspirations. The person obtains forgiveness and forgives others
2. The person meets with a spiritual guru or a guide to discuss his/her state of being.
3. The person meditates on the innermost self, the soul, and the true “I” becomes the point of focus.
The panel with discuss what is this process of sallekhana, how is it performed and what are ways it can be modified for present day dying process for people of all faiths. They will provide the perspectives of death from a physician, a religions professor, and bio-medical researcher view by individuals who practice the Eastern religions of Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism.