Fourteen Important Points to Observe When Assisting the Deceased
(I) This practice is commonly used in Tibetan funeral rites to assist the deceased. According to Tibetan accounts, the intermediate-state periods described in the text and the liberation attained by the deceased after the practice has been performed have been confirmed through the actual postmortem experience of lamas who attained the highest realization, in which birth and death are one.
Therefore, both readers and those performing the practice should have ample faith and utmost sincerity; then both the living and the deceased will receive great benefit. The deceased may thereby attain liberation, while the living, simply by devoutly reading it seven times and thereby deeply imprinting it upon the field of the eight consciousnesses, may liberate themselves at the time of death even if no one else performs the practice for them.
(II) The principles of the Buddhist sūtras are profound. Those who have never studied them cannot help but feel overwhelmed by them, much less this scripture, which is a great teaching of the esoteric section. Its principles and specialized terminology are rarely found in Exoteric Buddhist sūtras. Those performing the practice to assist the deceased may therefore wonder whether the deceased will understand it.
Here I plainly advise readers: if you are studying it for yourselves, it is best to attain a thorough understanding of the principles of the text. If you are performing the practice for another, you need only read according to this scripture, reciting aloud with every word and phrase clearly articulated and with one-pointed attention; the deceased will certainly be liberated. Why? First, this practice carries the blessing of great power, and its efficacy is equivalent to reciting true words and esoteric mantras. Second, during the intermediate state, the deceased's six sense faculties are keen and clear. Even someone who was dull in life and could not recognize a single character may attain liberation upon hearing it enter the ear.
(III) In Chinese regions, it is customary to invite monastics to perform the Flaming Mouth ritual for the deceased.
The Yogācāra Flaming Mouth food-offering is originally one practice of the esoteric section and is indeed beneficial to the deceased. Yet the Flaming Mouth is the Buddha who presides over the realm of hungry ghosts, which is one of the six realms. A deceased person in the intermediate state will not necessarily fall into the realm of hungry ghosts. It is therefore better to replace the Flaming Mouth ritual with this practice, whose merit in benefiting the deceased is greater.
In inland China, lamas, acharyas, and vajra masters are all difficult to encounter. Ordinary working people likewise have no leisure to engage in recitation. It is best for learned monastics who have studied Esoteric Buddhism or who possess moral discipline, or for lay practitioners well versed in the practice of phowa and this teaching, to specialize in teaching recitation for others and make it their vocation. In this way, they can aid the deceased while also accumulating provisions for their own rebirth; one undertaking brings two benefits.
(IV) When the complete esoteric practice is performed, it may be divided into four stages:
A. A dying person should exhibit signs of death. First, the five faculties deteriorate: when the eye faculty fails, vision becomes unclear and the eyeballs cease to move; when the ear faculty fails, one cannot hear sounds; when the nose faculty fails, the bridge of the nose becomes crooked; when the tongue faculty fails, speech becomes labored; and when the body faculty fails, the body becomes difficult to move.
Second, the four elements dissolve: the skeletal frame belongs to the earth element, and when it fails, the body becomes rigid; blood belongs to the water element, and when it fails, it congeals and stops flowing; body heat belongs to the fire element, and when it fails, the body becomes cold; breath belongs to the wind element, and when it fails, exhalation exceeds inhalation, the throat makes sounds, and finally the breath ceases altogether.
When such signs of death appear and the deceased is critically ill, the practitioner and family members should pay close attention. When one or two initial signs appear, the practice of phowa should be performed for the person. If the dying person was already able to practice it personally during life and had received verification, there is no need for another person to perform it again; instead, recite more mantras for assisting the deceased or perform Buddhist rites.
For those who have never studied Esoteric Buddhism, the recitations to be performed at this time are as follows: (1) Instructions on Seeking the Great Way Through the Clear Light; (2) Instructions on the Dissolution of the Four Elements; (3) Verses for Arousing the Resolve to Recognize the Clear Light at the Time of Death; and (4) Direct Instructions on the Clear Light.
These should be recited in repeated cycles, without counting the number of recitations. This is the first stage: performing the practice before death.
B. When all the signs of death have appeared and the breath has ceased, wait about twenty minutes, then additionally recite the following scriptural verses: (5) Visualization of the Yidam and Maṇḍala; (6) Instructions on the Intermediate State of Dharmatā and the Six Essential Verses; and (7) Instructions for Recognizing One's Original Nature. These, together with the preceding four texts, should be recited repeatedly without counting the number of recitations. The recitation period is three and a half to four days. At this time, the deceased is in the Intermediate State at the Time of Death; this is therefore the second stage of the practice.
C. By the fifth day, the period of the Intermediate State at the Time of Death has passed and the deceased has entered the Intermediate State of Dharmatā. At that point, follow the provisions of this practice by reciting one kind of scriptural verse each day, in sequence and without disorder. Recite in this manner for fourteen days, making eighteen days in all when counted together with the second stage. This is the third stage of the practice.
D. After the Intermediate State of Dharmatā has ended, the deceased enters the Intermediate State of Becoming. Continue to follow the provisions of this practice by reciting the complete second volume of this scripture each day for thirty-five consecutive days, making fifty-three days in all when counted together with the preceding stages, until the completion of the forty-nine-day period. Proceed in sequence and without disorder. This is the fourth stage of the practice.
If this stage seems too long, it may be divided so that one volume is recited over three days: on the first day, recite through Instruction 12; on the second day, recite from Instruction 12 through Instruction 19; and on the third day, recite from Instruction 19 to the end of the volume. Beginning on the fourth day, start again from the beginning and recite one complete volume every three days in sequence, until the completion of the forty-nine-day period. Although recitation of the entire second volume formally begins on the nineteenth day after death, for the deceased's safety it may be added to the recitations of the preceding stages from the time of death; this is even more complete.
(V) During the period of practice, there is no way to know on which day the deceased attains liberation; one can only continue the recitations in sequence until they are completed. In cases of special difficulty, however, it may be possible to reduce them in light of the deceased's circumstances during life. The scripture does not specify how this should be done. Based on the meaning contained in this practice, the translator proposes the following method of reduction:
A. For one who practiced Esoteric Buddhism or read this teaching during life and possessed moral discipline, recitation may stop after the second stage, lasting three and a half or four days.
B. For one who practiced Exoteric Buddhism during life and possessed moral discipline, recitation may stop after the third stage, lasting eighteen days.
C. For one who had no practice whatsoever during life and did not possess wholesome conduct, the entire text should be recited, lasting fifty-three days. It is also essential to add recitation of the complete second volume immediately after death.
The above gives only a general outline. Whether to increase or reduce the recitations depends entirely upon the circumstances, as weighed by the deceased's family and the practitioner. Moreover, Buddhist power bestows blessings during the practice. After the completion of each intermediate-state period, it is also quite suitable to pray silently and earnestly before the Buddhas and bodhisattvas for an indication of whether the deceased has attained liberation, and then cast lots to determine whether to continue or stop.
In former times, Master Yanshou sought an indication before the Buddha as to whether he should cultivate dhyāna or Pure Land practice. Seven times he drew the lot for the Pure Land, and so he resolved to cultivate the Pure Land. So long as one has utmost sincerity and deep faith, there will invariably be a response, like an echo.
(VI) If someone dies in a distant place and the family receives the news only afterward, they should calculate from the date of death which intermediate state the deceased is in according to the schedule prescribed in the scripture, and perform the practice by reciting the scriptural verses for that day. There is no need to make up the recitation of the scriptural verses for intermediate states that have already passed.
(VII) During the performance of the practice, apart from arrangements prescribed in the scripture, the place before the patient or where the body is laid out must be kept quiet and peaceful. There must not be crowds of people or a confusion of voices that might disturb the consciousness of the dying or deceased person. Above all, family members must not wail, and the killing of living beings must be avoided.
(VIII) The scripture instructs that, before the deceased person's outer breath has ceased, family members should first move the body into the lion's reclining posture, the so-called auspicious posture. According to the various Exoteric Buddhist books on attending the dying, when a person is near death and the four elements are separating, the body should not be touched, lest this increase the person's suffering and give rise to anger, thus preventing rebirth. Even clothing should be put on only after at least eight hours have passed following death. Thus, whether to move the body should be decided in light of the circumstances.
(IX) The term yidam refers to a particular Buddha or bodhisattva in whom one ordinarily places faith and whom one practices, taking that figure as one's object of reliance. Tibetan custom commonly employs the six-syllable great bright mantra, just as people in Chinese regions, regardless of age or sex, can all recite “Namo Amitābha Buddha.”
In this practice, the deceased is repeatedly instructed: “If you have no fixed yidam, take the Great Compassionate Protector as your yidam.” This is because Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva is taken as the yidam in order that it may be more easily impressed upon the deceased's consciousness. In Chinese regions, since everyone knows of Amitābha Buddha, when performing the practice one may add after the words “the Great Compassionate Protector as yidam” the phrase “or take Amitābha Buddha of the Western Land of Ultimate Bliss as the yidam and protector,” so that the deceased may more readily understand and attain liberation. This may be applied flexibly by the practitioner, provided it does not depart from the intent of the scripture.
(X) If the deceased has passed beyond the forty-nine-day period without attaining liberation and has not yet been reborn in another realm, the section entitled “Dharma Gate for Protection Against the Ghostly Messengers Who Pursue Life” in the second volume of this scripture states: “The mind-born body of the intermediate state, through changing thoughts, may manifest as a hungry ghost.
All the bodies of rākṣasas and malevolent spirits dwelling in the spaces above and below, capable of displaying every kind of supernatural transformation, are mind-born bodies of the intermediate state. Through changing thoughts, they acquire such bodies,” and so forth. Once the newly deceased has passed through the period of practice, whether they have attained liberation or taken rebirth cannot be known.
If the deceased has manifested as a ghost or spirit in empty space—what is commonly called a wandering soul or wild ghost—without anyone to rescue and liberate them, their suffering is most grievous. Therefore, in Tibetan custom, it is necessary to perform meritorious Buddhist rites within the first hundred days after a death, on the anniversaries of a person's birth and death, and at annual festivals. Ancient Chinese custom is the same. The appended section at the end of the second volume of this scripture contains sūtras and mantras for recitation on behalf of deceased parents, relatives, and dependentless wandering spirits, as well as when one sees beings killed and is unable to rescue them. These may be consulted and adopted as appropriate.
(XI) The various true words and esoteric mantras listed in the appendix possess extremely great power and are simple to recite.
Among them is the “Mantra of Liberation Through Hearing,” which, as this scripture says, brings liberation as soon as it is recited aloud and heard by the ear. This mantra has only five characters, yet its merit equals that of reciting the entire scripture. Then there is the “Great Secret Mantra of Original Awakening,” namely the “Heart Mantra of Samantabhadra, King Tathāgata,” which has only seven characters. The “Mantra of the Assembly of the Hundred Peaceful and Wrathful Deities” is the dhāraṇī encompassing the peaceful and wrathful maṇḍalas of this scripture; reciting it once likewise equals reading and reciting the entire text. Reciting the “Dhāraṇī of the Diamond-Cutter Sūtra” once equals reciting ninety million copies of the Diamond Sūtra.
The “Six-Realm Vajra Mantra” has only six characters. Its merits are all described in the appendix, and each of these mantras is indispensable for assisting the deceased. The merits and power of the “Rebirth Mantra of Akṣobhya Buddha of the East,” the “Rebirth Mantra of Amitābha Buddha of the West,” and the “King Mantra of Śākyamuni Buddha for Extinguishing All Evil Destinies” are likewise described in the appendix. One need only have unwavering faith; then spiritual response and communion will naturally occur.
(12) Although this Dharma is unsurpassed Esoteric Buddhism, it may be expounded publicly. As the scripture says: “For a person who is near death, anyone who understands clearly the words, phrases, and meanings of this text and can articulate them fluently may recite it according to the text.” Thus, one who performs this practice need not be restricted to someone who has previously received Esoteric Dharma. It further says: “Recite it widely before the assembly, and explain it widely and in detail.” Thus, it is evidently unlike other esoteric teachings, which are kept secret and transmitted only to suitable recipients. Readers who may doubt whether this Esoteric Dharma should be publicly circulated may set their minds at ease.
(13) Esoteric Buddhism places foremost importance on transmission from teacher to disciple. Therefore, when assisting the deceased, one should respectfully invite a Vajra Acharya master who has received this Dharma to transmit it; only then is it in accordance with the proper procedure.
If circumstances do not at once come together, then whenever one reads or recites it, one may with utmost sincerity and reverence visualize Guru Padmasambhava, who transmitted this Dharma, or visualize the Great Compassionate Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva as one’s own guru, present above one’s head or in the space before one, expounding this Dharma. One then follows and recites it, and may likewise receive blessings. In this way, both the living and the dead benefit. For this Dharma flows entirely from great compassion; the great master is the principal transmitter of this Dharma, and the vast spiritual responsiveness of the Great Compassionate Sage is such that he manifests himself at every time and in every realm, ever responding to sounds and thoughts as they arise. Nevertheless, when conditions later permit, one should still request transmission from a teacher, as this is more in accordance with the Dharma.
(14) According to the customs of our country, the body is provisionally encoffined three days after death and finally encoffined seven days after death; on the day of final encoffining, the coffin is covered, sealed, and nailed shut. This presumably reflects the belief that, during the first three or four days after death, the consciousness of the deceased has not yet completely left the body, and also guards against the possibility of revival. Under Buddhist monastic regulations, monks seated in urns are cremated only after three seven-day periods have passed.
According to the instructions of this scripture, although the outer breath has ceased after death, the inner breath has not yet ended; this is the stage in which consciousness is stunned and unconscious. For ordinary people, this stage usually lasts three and a half days. For those with meditative stability, however, it may last four days or even one seven-day period before consciousness can completely leave the body.
Today cremation is widely practiced in many places. It conserves financial and material resources as well as time; it is a good method, well intended, with many advantages, and it also accords with Buddhist regulations. Yet, for the safety of the deceased, one must never cremate someone in the evening who has died that morning. It would seem preferable to retain the old custom: in cities, the body should be transported after death to a refrigerated room at a funeral home and encoffined only after three days. In rural areas, where refrigeration is unavailable, a simple coffin may be used provisionally.
After one seven-day period has passed, the body may then be cremated. Or one may follow the method of Muslims: wrap the body in cloth and place it in a box; at burial, remove the bottom of the box so that the body enters the earth. In this way, the safety of the deceased can be protected, material and financial resources can be conserved, and the work of the family members need not be hindered. This special word is added for the attention of those arranging funerals.
