The-Tibetan-Book-of-Living-and-Dying

REFLECTION AND CHANGE 29
"To ask you to teach me the truth," she replied, "of what
death is, what might He behind and beyond death, and what
in me, if anything, will not die."
The Buddha began to teach her: "If you want to know the
truth of life and death, you must reflect continually on this:
There is only one law in the universe that never changes—
that all things change, and that all things are impermanent.
The death of your child has helped you to see now that the
realm we are in—samsara—is an ocean of unbearable suffering.
There is one way, and one way only, out of samsara's
ceaseless round of birth and death, which is the path to liberation.
Because pain has now made you ready to learn and your
heart is opening to the truth, I will show it to you."
Krisha Gotami knelt at his feet, and followed the Buddha
for the rest of her life. Near the end of it, it is said, she
attained enlightenment.
ACCEPTING DEATH
Krisha Gotami's story shows us something we can observe
again and again: A close encounter with death can bring a real
awakening, a transformation in our whole approach to life.
Take, for example the near-death experience. Perhaps one
of its most important revelations is how it transforms the lives
of those who have been through it. Researchers have noted a
startling range of aftereffects and changes: a reduced fear and
deeper acceptance of death; an increased concern for helping
others; an enhanced vision of the importance of love; less
interest in materialistic pursuits; a growing belief in a spiritual
dimension and the spiritual meaning of life; and, of course, a
greater openness to belief in the afterlife. One man said to
Kenneth Ring:
/ was transformed from a man who was lost and wandering aimlessly,
with no goal in life other than a desire for material wealth,
to someone who had a deep motivation, a purpose in life, a definite
direction, and an overpowering conviction that there would be
a reward at the end of life. My interest in material wealth and
greed for possessions were replaced by a thirst for spiritual understanding
and a passionate desire to see world conditions improve. 1
A woman told Margot Grey, a British researcher into the
near-death experience: