Post Mortem Care of Buddhism

People, in our society, look at dead bodies as useless, but a dead body can be a hero to others that now is a part of them. It’s a good thing that people do donate their bodies to science. Whether the cadaver is going to be examined to what happens after the corpse has been dead for a period of time or if the scientist are going to use the dead bodies for crucifixion experiments, it’s important these scientists and doctors are educated about death and what happens after death.

There were several events during the Vietnam War that can be considered “turning points”, which can be described as the occurrence of an event that changed the course of history. One such event was the Buddhist crisis in 1963. The Buddhists of South Vietnam had experienced decades of religious persecution during French colonialism that continued with the Catholic government, which was backed by the United States (Toong, 2008). The demonstrations, protests and self-immolations that followed as a result of this religious persecution and the media coverage it generated encouraged the Kennedy administration to back a coup d’état against Ngo

How can one possibly prepare for the inevitability of death an When it comes to the topic of death, most people avoid discussing it and pretend that life will continue forever. They refrain from They refrain from planning for it or realizing that it will happen at one point or another. Time is a constraint. People tell themselves that they will achieve something in a certain amount of time which isn’t true because time will truly limit them. Most people do not achieve their dreams because they do not account for death. Instead of living in the moment, they just carefully continue their plans. There is always tension between planning for the future and just living in the pure moment. No one can know when they will cease to exist and many

Are you familiar with the buddhist religion? The buddhist religion believes in many methods of ending suffering such as dharma, karma, and reincarnation. These are multiple ways to end suffering because Buddhists believe that if you are good in your first life, eventually, reincarnation will stop and you will live a peaceful

Buddhists do believe in rebirth implies that when they die, they will be reborn, back to life again. The purpose is to break out the phase of death and rebirth and achieve nirvana (heaven) or a state of ideal peace. There are many diverse types of Buddhism and many different ways of dealing with death. It is believed that a dying person may seek a monk or nuns in their scrupulous Buddhist tradition to assist them make the transition from life to death as peaceful as possible. Buddhists believe that a person’s state of mind as they die is very important as it can assist them to find a happy state of rebirth when they pass away. Before and at the moment of death and for duration of time after the death, the monk, nun or spiritual friends

Dismayed by how the world he was living in had took several turns for the worst, Buddha, once a prince named Siddhartha Gautama, decided to travel away from his home and become monk. Legends say that Gautama was praying under a sacred tree on a journey to find Enlightenment, he then quickly found this enlightenment away from the outwardly world and, additionally, away from the world of the monks. After this, he became Buddha. Moreover, Buddha then began to start teaching about his newfound path to Enlightenment, and that is where this primary source reading originated from (Andrea and Overfield). Even though it has been reconditioned, it is very clear in “The Buddha’s First Sermon” that Buddha's main idea about Buddhism is that, in order for someone to be a Buddhist and find enlightenment, they have to completely deny the world.

In the teaching of the Buddha, all of us will pass away eventually as a part in the natural process of birth, old-age and death and that we should always keep in mind the impermanence of life, the life that we all cherish and wish to hold on. During our lives as human beings, we experience transience as the four sufferings: the suffering of birth (and of day-to-day existence), that of illness, of aging, and finally, of

When it comes to grieving, it is very typical to for Buddhist to go through such times. Like mentioned earlier, grieving in the Buddhist religion is known to be a natural part of life, just like is known to be a natural time to come for everyone. It is said to be an “universal emotion,” so literally everyone at one or multiple points of their lives, will have to endure it. They all go by this one story in which a woman who lost her child and asked the Buddha to bring him back to life. To fulfill her wishes she was asked by the Buddha to search for a mustard seed from a household where no one has died. However, on her journey to find this seed, she had to come to the harsh conclusion that she couldn’t find the seed, and because of this, she

People spend their days finding what they want out of life, but they don’t put much thought into what they want when their life is over. Methods of disposal for bodies after death are not often discussed in everyday conversations. Due to the lack of communication about the topic, many people are unaware of the methods that are available. People tend to stick with what they know. If someone is considering their end of life options, it is likely that they will choose the same option that their family has chosen in the past. They would choose something that they are familiar with. There are many factors, other than tradition, that should play into a person's decision, such as which methods are environmentally friendly. Although cremation is a popular method of disposal, freeze drying a body allows the body’s nutrients to be given back to the Earth, making it more environmentally friendly; therefore, freeze drying should be encouraged as a better method of disposal.

What happens to our bodies when we die? There are many different options we have when it comes to the handling of our bodies; whether we choose a more traditional route, such as burial or cremation, or an alternative method such as the newer idea of being buried in a suit made of mushrooms rather than a coffin (Rogers). There’s even the third option donating your body in some way to science to aid in education and scientific advancement in the years after you are no longer alive. The concept that bothered me the most, however, between the readings and attending the field trip to the funeral home was not how to treat the body after death, but rather who decides the way in which it is treated.

Buddhism is a path of practice and spiritual development leading to Insight into the true nature of reality. Buddhist practices such as meditation are was of changing yourself in order to develop the qualities of awareness, kindness, and wisdom. A Buddhist sees the nature of reality absolutely clearly, just as it is, and lives fully and naturally in accordance with the vision of Buddhism. This is the goal of the Buddhist spiritual life, representing the end of suffering for anyone who attains it. Buddhism does not include the idea of worshipping a single God; some people do not see it as normal religion. The basic principle of Buddhist beliefs or teachings is straightforward, meaning nothing permanent; actions have consequences and change is

“Medical schools are always in need of cadavers that students can work on during their training period” (Most Notable Pros and Cons 2008). Also, if the body is afflicted with a rare disease and the body is being donated, the body can provide a source of research that may help find a cure or treatment for the next patient. Even after death, the body may be able to save many lives when a cure is discovered. It’s a gift to the medical community because once a cure or treatment has been found, their knowledge that’s gained will be carried on to their medical

Generally, Buddhism considers OD to be a positive act of human. Buddhists say that when a person dies, he should be treated with a care, but there is no essential focus on physical integrity, i.e. body is not necessary to be kept integral (Oliver et al, 2010, 4). From this one might come up with a thought that buddhists’ focus on spiritual development and individual consciousness is given much attention in the religion, while preservation of physical body might not be crucial. Consequently, giving an organ to another person would not be perceived as inappropriate act, but rather as an expression of generosity and altruism.

For those who do not believe in organ donation, it is mostly because they believe in the myths. They don't know any better because they have never been educated on the topic. A view seen by those who disagree with donating organs is that when someone dies, they are to be let alone to rest and go to eternal life, their next life, or whatever their religious view bring them to. The mind and body though are separate. The mind which carries everything the person was will leave the body and go to its eternal destination. The actually body will be buried or incarnated still looking the same so that the traditional funeral events can still take place. When doctors and medical staff remove organs, they are very cautious about not affecting the look of the person. They replace the bones with rods to maintain the rigidity. They will use sponges and bandages to hold the shape of the removed muscles and tendons. All to help the donor looking just like they did before the surgery. Unlike many believe, one can still have

Organ donation after death is a touchy subject to discuss with people; it is rumored that after organs have been taken from the body it would not have the same appearance and family and friends would be able to tell at the post mortem viewing. However, this claim is actually false. Doctors take the utmost care with the individuals who are donors and are very careful to leave no sign of organs being removed from anywhere that would be easily visible for a showing. Doctors also are quite compassionate and they take time to use filling material in the body afterward so as to leave no trace of the organ having been removed from the donor.