AGING & DEATH
By.Rev.Shokai Kanai

Discussion on aspects of preparing for a dignified death is very important although ordinary people do not like to talk about death. In Buddhism, the relationship of the body and spirit is often compared with the relationship of a car and its owner. We have acquired a new car when our cars begin to cause us problems and become useless for us.

I wonder how many cars you have owned before your present car. My first car was International pick-up truck. I used the truck for my side job of gardening and to raise my family in Salt Lake City, Utah. My second car was a 1974 Chevy Nova. Then, my family still owned a1982 Honda Civic and a 1992 Subaru GL10 station wagon. My children are driving them in Seattle, WA. My family is talking about buying a new car after the old one stops functioning. The spirit must discard the human body due to age and illness. The spirit-essence then will seek and find another body to dwell in. Here, rebirth will probably take place. But in the case of human beings, it is more complicated than in the case of a car and its owner.

Life after death is stated in Buddhist scriptures and in books concerning the psychic and hidden side of things.
These books state that there is nothing to be afraid of. "At the point of death, the 'soul' rises into a wonderful, almost indescribably beautiful state of bliss. The first awareness is of a brilliant light and heavenly music. Then, the person seems to be enveloped in love. The sense of love and loving presence is beyond anything you could imagine here on the earth. The Late ...(name withheld)... might have had the same experience while I was visiting her and chanting our Buddhist scripture a few hours before her death.

On my visits to the nursing homes, I often discuss subjects from Buddhist scriptures to psychic books. I tell the aging men and women that one should not be afraid of dying, but also that it is not a place that one should hurry to. I try to tell them that suicide is a worse way to die because it may affect his or her life after death.
Many people feel quite hopeless when they grow older. Bringing forth the Buddhist view, I tell them to learn anything that interests them. Whatever one learns today, they will take with them to the next life. Genius' do not pop up out of the clear blue sky. Somewhere in their previous lives they obtained the knowledge to have an exceptional high I.Q. Therefore, in the Future life, one has the potential to be a genius using karma to one's advantage. Having this hope of improvement, we are able to live meaningful lives even in our advanced ages.
Although I could not discuss much about these subjects with ...(name withheld)... while she was in the Keiro Nursing Home, I believe that she had already understood them. Because it me that she was not afraid of death. She had just waited for the time to say good-bye to ...(name withheld)....
Let us say "Good bye, grandma. Rest in peace."