英文原文
As a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, working as a Buddhist chaplain at several of Melbourne's hospitals and as well as Melbourne assessment prison, I have witnessed many personal tragedies faced by the living and of course the very process of dying and that of death and many of these poor people faced their death with fear, with misery and pain before departing this world. With the images of all these in my mind, on this occasion, I wish to share my view from the perspective of a Buddhist and we hope that people would feel far more relaxed in facing this inevitable end since it is really not the end of life, according to our belief. 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. To Buddhism, however, death is not the end of life, it is merely the end of the body we inhabit in this life, but our spirit will still remain and seek out through the need of attachment, attachment to a new body and new life. Where they will be born is a result of the past and the accumulation of positive and negative action, and the resultant karma (cause and effect) is a result of ones past actions. This would lead to the person to be reborn in one of 6 realms which are; heaven, human beings, Asura, hungry ghost, animal and hell. Realms, according to the severity of ones karmic actions, Buddhists believe however, none of these places are permanent and one does not remain in any place indefinitely. So we can say that in Buddhism, life does not end, merely goes on in other forms that are the result of accumulated karma. Buddhism is a belief that emphasizes the impermanence of lives, including all those beyond the present life. With this in mind we should not fear death as it will lead to rebirth. The fear of death stemmed from the fear of cease to be existent and losing ones identity and foothold in the world. We see our death coming long before its arrival, we notice impermanence in the changes we see around us and to us in the arrival of aging and the suffering due to losing our youth. Once we were strong and beautiful and as we age, as we approach our final moments of life we realize how fleeting such a comfortable place actually was. It is natural to grieve the loss of family members and others we knew, as we adjust to living without their presence and missing them as part of our lives. The death of a loved one, or even someone we were not close to, is terribly painful event, as time goes on and the people we know pass away along the journey of life, we are reminded of our own inevitable ends in waiting and everything is a blip of transience and impermanent. At a certain moment, the world seems suddenly so empty and the sense of desperation appears to be eternity. The greater the element of grief and personal loss one tends to feel sorry for oneself. Some of us may have heard the story of the women who came to the Buddha in great anguish, carrying her dead child pleading him to bring the child back to life. The Buddha said Bring to me a mustard seed from any household where no-one had ever died and I will fulfill your wish. The woman's attempt to search for such seed from houses were in vain and of course she could not find any household in which no-one had ever died and suddenly she realized the universality of death. According to Buddhism, our lives and all that occurs in our lives is a result of Karma. Every action creates a new karma, this karma or action is created with our body, our speech or our mind and this action leaves a subtle imprint on our mind which has the potential to ripen as future happiness or future suffering, depending on whether the action was positive or negative. If we bring happiness to people, we will be happy. If we create suffering, we will experience suffering either in this life or in a future one. This is called the Law of Karma, or the Law of Cause and Effect. Karmic law will lead the spirit of the dead to be reborn, in realms which are suitable appropriate to their karmic accumulations. According to His Holiness, the 14 th Dali Lama of Tibet, that to cultivate the good karma, our good actions are an excellent way prepare for our death. Not performing evil deeds, keeping our heart and mind pure, doing no harm, no killing, sexual misconduct or lying, not using drugs or alcohol has very positive merit which enable us to die as we have lived. The way we pass reflects the way we lived our lives, a good death putting a good stamp on a good life. As Leonardo Da Vinci once wrote in his notebook; Just as a well spent day brings happy sleep, so a life well spent brings a happy death. If we have lived a life of emotional turmoil, of conflict selfish desire unconcerned for others, our dying will be full of regrets, troubles and pain. It is far better to care for the lives for all around us rather than spending a fortune in prolonging life or seeking ways to extend it for those who can afford it, at the expense of relieving suffering in more practical ways. Improving the moral and spiritual quality of life improves its quality for us all rather than the selfish individualism that benefits the elite few who draw most resources. Buddhist clergy often remind their followers about closeness of death, emphasize the importance in getting to know death and take time to prepare for their own demise. How do we prepare for death?. It is really simple, just behave in a manner which you believe is responsible, good and positive for yourself and towards others. This leads to calmness, happiness and an outlook which contributes to a calm and controlled mind at the time of death. Through this positive and compassionate outlook of life, always being aware of the impermanence of life and having a loving attitude towards all living things in this transient existence we will be free of fear in opposite to grasping selfishly to life due to not having experienced happiness in life. Having lead a responsible and compassionate life and have no regrets when death approaches enables us to surrender without a struggle to the inevitable and in a state of grace which need not be as uncomfortable as we are led to believe. A dying Buddhist person is likely to request the service of a monk or nun in their particular tradition to assist in this process further, making the transitional experience of death as peaceful and free of fear as can be possibly achieved. Before and at the moment of death and for a period after death, the monk, nun or spiritual friends will read prayers and chants from the Buddhist Scriptures. In Buddhist traditions, this death bed chanting is regarded as very important and is ideally the last thing the Buddhist hears. Buddhists believe that we can actively assist and bring relief to the dying members through assisting the dying through the process of dying. Through Buddhist doctrine we are told by Buddhist masters that the final moment of our consciousness is paramount, the most important moment of all. If the ill person is in hospital and the diagnosis is grim that the person cannot possibly survived, the family should call in the Buddhist priest to pray for the loved one so that at the final moment, the right state of mind has been generated within the person and they can find their way into a higher state of rebirth as they leave the present lives. The nurses and family members are not supposed to touch the corpse, having to wait 3-8 hours after breathing ceases before touching the body for any preparation after the death. We Buddhists believe that the spirit of a person will linger on for sometime and can be affected by what happened to the corpse. It is important that the body is treated gently and with respect and that the priest can help the spirit continues its journey calmly to higher states, not causing the spirit to becoming angry and confused and may be more likely to be reborn into the lower realms. In the Mahayana Buddhism, especially, Vietnamese tradition we pray for the dead for 49 days after passing away, 49 being the estimated time it takes for the spirit to be reborn again into a new life. Some spirits are reborn 3 days, 21 days, 49 days or 100 days after death, and in some cases even 7 years. The concept of rebirth or reincarnation has become more popular in the west in recent years due to the influence of Tibetan Buddhism, especially, the Tibetan Book of Living and Dying (by Sogyal Rinpoche, 1992) became a best seller in the USA and has been widely read throughout the developed countries by new generations who are concerned with alternative thinking and eastern cultural perspectives. Naturally people concern with life beyond death was stimulated by the ideas contained in such philosophies and beliefs. The supreme aim of Buddhism is to obtain nirvana or enlightenment. This translated means a state of liberation or illumination from the limitations of existence. It is the liberation from the cycle of rebirth through countless lives up and down the 6 states of existence. It is obtained through the extinction of desire. Nirvana is a state that is obtainable in this life through the right aspiration, purity of life, and the elimination of egotism. This cessation of existence as we know it, the attainment of being, as distinct from becoming. [1] The Buddha speaks of it as unborn, un-originated, uncreated, unformed, contrasting it with the born, originated, created, and formed phenomenal world. Those who have obtained the state of Nirvana are called Buddhas. Gautama Siddhartha had obtained this state and had become a Buddha at 35. However it is now believed that it was only after he had passed away that he reached such a place of perfect tranquility, because some residue of human defilement would continue to exist as long as his physical body existed. According to Buddhism if a human does not obtain nirvana or enlightenment, as it is known, the person cannot escape the cycle of death and rebirth and are inevitably be reborn into the 6 possible states beyond this our present life, these being in order from the highest to lowest; Heaven. In Buddhism there are 37 different levels of heaven where beings experience peace and long lasting happiness without suffering in the heavenly environment. Human life. In Buddhism we can be reborn into human life over and over, either wealthy or poor, beautiful or not so, and every state between and both as it it is served up to us. Anything can happen, as is found in human life and society all around us as we are familiar with in the day to day human world in is myriad of possibilities. What we get is a result of our Karma of what we have dragged with us from previous existences and how it manifests in our temporary present lives. Asura. A spiritual state of Demi-Gods but not the happy state experienced by the gods in the heavens above this state. The Demi-Gods are consumed with jealousy, because unlike humans, they can clearly see the superior situation of the gods in the heavens above them. They constantly compete and struggle with the gods due to their dissatisfaction with their desires from the others. Hungry Ghost. This spiritual realm of those who committed excessive amounts of evil deeds and who are obsessed with finding food and drink which they cannot experience and thus remain unsatisfied and tortured by the experience. They exhaust themselves in the constant fruitless searching. Animals. This realm is visible to humans and it is where spirits of humans are reborn if they have killed animals or have committed a lot of other evil acts. Animals do not have the freedom that humans would experience due to being a subject constantly hunted by humans, farmed and used in farming, also as beasts for entertainment. Hell. This realm is not visible to humans. It is a place where beings born there experience a constant state of searing pain and the various types of hell realms reads like a variety of horrific torture chambers. Those with a great deal of negative Karma can remain in such places for eons of time. To conclude, as already mentioned, none of us can avoid death and if we are not free from the vicious cycle of death and rebirth, we are doomed to the endless cycles of life and death and its paradoxical nature of suffering, of happiness and sadness, youth and ageing, healthiness and sickness, pain and death, all because we are so attached to the existence in the first place. The Buddha urged us to prepare for death, to prepare for that journey by cleansing the mind and not being so attached to things, to be able to let go and release ourselves for needing to be, from needing to have. Through this we will not suffer so much as we pass through the final stage of the present life, we can let go, be grateful for what we had but not clutch to it, not try to ensure permanency and cause ourselves to suffer more than we need to. This way we can end the cycle and leave forever, obtaining nirvana and release from the cycle of death and rebirth.
中文翻译
作为一名越南佛教僧侣，在墨尔本多家医院和墨尔本评估监狱担任佛教牧师，我目睹了许多生者面临的个人悲剧，当然也包括死亡的过程，许多可怜的人在离开这个世界时带着恐惧、痛苦和悲伤。带着这些画面，我想从佛教的角度分享我的观点，希望人们能更轻松地面对这个不可避免的终点，因为根据我们的信仰，这并非生命的终结。在佛陀的教导中，我们所有人最终都会逝去，这是生、老、死的自然过程的一部分，我们应该时刻牢记生命的无常。我们珍视并希望抓住的生命。然而，对佛教来说，死亡不是生命的终结，只是我们此生所居身体的终结，但我们的精神仍会存在，并通过执着的需求寻求新的身体和生命。他们将在哪里出生是过去积极和消极行为积累的结果，而业力（因果）是过去行为的结果。这会导致人重生在六道之一：天道、人道、阿修罗道、饿鬼道、畜生道和地狱道。根据业力行为的严重程度，佛教徒相信这些地方都不是永久的，人不会无限期地停留在任何地方。所以我们可以说，在佛教中，生命不会结束，只是以其他形式继续，这是积累业力的结果。佛教强调生命的无常，包括超越现世的所有生命。有了这个认识，我们不应恐惧死亡，因为它会带来重生。对死亡的恐惧源于对不再存在、失去身份和世界立足点的恐惧。我们在死亡到来前很久就看到它的临近，我们注意到周围和我们自身的变化中的无常，如衰老的到来和失去青春带来的痛苦。我们曾经强壮美丽，但随着年龄增长，接近生命的最后时刻，我们意识到这样一个舒适的地方是多么短暂。哀悼失去家人和其他认识的人是自然的，因为我们适应没有他们的生活，想念他们作为我们生活的一部分。亲人的死亡，甚至不亲近的人的死亡，都是极其痛苦的事件，随着时间的推移，我们认识的人在生命旅程中逝去，我们被提醒自己不可避免的终点在等待，一切都是短暂和无常的瞬间。在某个时刻，世界似乎突然变得空虚，绝望感仿佛永恒。悲伤和个人损失的元素越大，人往往越为自己感到难过。我们中有些人可能听过那个故事，一个女人带着她死去的孩子，极度痛苦地来到佛陀面前，恳求他让孩子复活。佛陀说：“给我从任何家庭中拿一粒芥菜籽，那里没有人死过，我就实现你的愿望。”女人试图从房屋中寻找这样的种子是徒劳的，当然她找不到任何家庭中没有人死过，突然她意识到死亡的普遍性。根据佛教，我们的生命和生命中发生的一切都是业力的结果。每个行为都创造新的业力，这个业力或行为由我们的身体、言语或心创造，这个行为在我们的心上留下微妙的印记，有可能在未来成熟为幸福或痛苦，取决于行为是积极还是消极。如果我们给人们带来快乐，我们就会快乐。如果我们制造痛苦，我们就会经历痛苦，无论是此生还是未来。这被称为业力法则，或因果法则。业力法则会引导死者的精神重生，在适合他们业力积累的领域中。根据西藏第十四世达赖喇嘛尊者，培养善业，我们的善行是准备死亡的好方法。不做恶行，保持心纯净，不伤害、不杀生、不邪淫、不妄语、不使用毒品或酒精，有非常积极的功德，使我们能如生时一样死去。我们逝去的方式反映了我们生活的方式，善终为善生盖上好印章。正如列奥纳多·达·芬奇在他的笔记本中写道：“正如度过美好的一天带来安眠，度过美好的一生带来善终。”如果我们过着情感动荡、冲突自私欲望、不关心他人的生活，我们的死亡将充满遗憾、麻烦和痛苦。关心周围所有人的生命远比花费巨资延长生命或为那些负担得起的人寻求延长生命的方式要好，而不是以更实际的方式缓解痛苦为代价。提高道德和精神生活质量改善了我们所有人的生活质量，而不是自私的个人主义，只惠及少数精英，他们消耗大部分资源。佛教僧侣经常提醒信徒死亡的临近，强调了解死亡的重要性，并花时间准备自己的死亡。我们如何准备死亡？这很简单，只是以你认为对自己和他人负责、良好和积极的方式行事。这带来平静、快乐和一种有助于在死亡时保持平静和受控心态的观点。通过这种积极和慈悲的人生观，始终意识到生命的无常，并对这个短暂存在中的所有生物抱有爱心，我们将免于恐惧，而不是因为生活中没有体验到快乐而自私地抓住生命。过着负责任和慈悲的生活，在死亡来临时没有遗憾，使我们能无挣扎地屈服于不可避免，在恩典状态中，不必像我们被引导相信的那样不舒服。濒死的佛教徒可能会请求特定传统的僧侣或尼姑服务，以进一步协助这个过程，使死亡的过渡体验尽可能和平和无恐惧。在死亡前、死亡时刻和死亡后一段时间，僧侣、尼姑或精神朋友会诵读佛教经文中的祈祷和咒语。在佛教传统中，这种临终诵经被认为非常重要，理想上是佛教徒听到的最后声音。佛教徒相信我们可以通过协助濒死者度过死亡过程，积极帮助和缓解濒死成员的痛苦。通过佛教教义，佛教大师告诉我们，我们意识的最后时刻至关重要，是所有时刻中最重要的。如果病人在医院，诊断严峻，病人不可能存活，家人应该请佛教牧师为亲人祈祷，以便在最后时刻，正确的心理状态在病人心中产生，他们可以在离开现世时找到通往更高重生状态的道路。护士和家人不应触摸尸体，必须在呼吸停止后等待3-8小时才能触摸身体进行任何死亡后的准备。我们佛教徒相信人的精神会停留一段时间，并可能受到尸体发生的事情的影响。重要的是身体被温柔和尊重地对待，牧师可以帮助精神平静地继续旅程到更高状态，不使精神变得愤怒和困惑，可能更可能重生到较低领域。在大乘佛教中，特别是越南传统，我们在逝者去世后祈祷49天，49天是精神重生到新生命的估计时间。有些精神在死亡后3天、21天、49天或100天重生，有些情况下甚至7年。重生或转世的概念近年来在西方变得更受欢迎，由于藏传佛教的影响，特别是《西藏生死书》（索甲仁波切，1992年）在美国成为畅销书，并在发达国家被关心替代思维和东方文化视角的新一代广泛阅读。自然，人们对死后生命的关注被这些哲学和信仰中包含的思想所激发。佛教的最高目标是获得涅槃或觉悟。这翻译为从存在的限制中解放或开悟的状态。它是从无数生命在六道存在中上下轮回中解放出来。它通过欲望的熄灭获得。涅槃是一种在此生可获得的状态，通过正确的愿望、生活的纯净和自私的消除。这种存在的停止，如我们所知，是存在的获得，区别于成为。[1]佛陀称其为不生、不灭、不造、不形，与生、灭、造、形的现象世界形成对比。那些获得涅槃状态的人被称为佛陀。乔达摩·悉达多获得了这个状态，并在35岁时成为佛陀。然而，现在认为只有在他去世后，他才达到如此完美的宁静之地，因为一些人类污染的残余会继续存在，只要他的肉体存在。根据佛教，如果一个人没有获得涅槃或觉悟，如所知，这个人无法逃脱死亡和重生的循环，不可避免地重生到超越我们现世的六种可能状态，这些状态从最高到最低依次为：天道。在佛教中有37个不同层次的天道，生物在天界环境中体验和平和持久的快乐，没有痛苦。人道。在佛教中，我们可以一遍又一遍地重生为人，无论是富有还是贫穷，美丽与否，以及介于两者之间的各种状态，正如它呈现给我们一样。任何事情都可能发生，正如我们在日常生活中熟悉的人类生活和社会中发现的无数可能性。我们得到的是我们业力的结果，是我们从先前存在中拖来的，以及它如何在我们暂时的现世生活中显现。阿修罗道。半神的精神状态，但不是此状态之上天道中神祇体验的快乐状态。半神被嫉妒吞噬，因为与人类不同，他们能清楚地看到他们之上天道中神祇的优越情况。由于对他人欲望的不满，他们不断与神祇竞争和斗争。饿鬼道。那些犯下过多恶行的人的精神领域，他们痴迷于寻找食物和饮料，但无法体验，因此保持不满足和被体验折磨。他们在不断无果的搜索中耗尽自己。畜生道。这个领域对人类可见，如果人类杀死动物或犯下许多其他恶行，人类的精神会重生于此。动物没有人类会体验的自由，因为它们不断被人类猎杀、养殖和用于农业，也作为娱乐的野兽。地狱道。这个领域对人类不可见。它是一个生物在那里体验持续灼痛状态的地方，各种地狱领域读起来像各种恐怖的刑讯室。那些有大量负面业力的人可以在这样的地方停留无数劫。总之，如前所述，我们没有人能避免死亡，如果我们没有从死亡和重生的恶性循环中解脱，我们注定要陷入无尽的生死循环及其矛盾的本质：痛苦、快乐和悲伤、年轻和衰老、健康和疾病、痛苦和死亡，都是因为我们首先如此执着于存在。佛陀敦促我们准备死亡，通过净化心灵来准备那个旅程，不要如此执着于事物，能够放手，释放自己需要存在、需要拥有的需求。通过这样，我们在度过现世最后阶段时不会那么痛苦，我们可以放手，感激我们拥有的，但不紧抓它，不试图确保永久性，导致自己比需要时更痛苦。这样我们可以结束循环，永远离开，获得涅槃，从死亡和重生的循环中解脱。
文章概要
本文从佛教视角探讨死亡与重生，强调死亡并非终结而是生命形式的转变。文章基于一位越南僧侣的亲身经历，阐述了无常、业力、六道轮回等核心概念，并提供了面对死亡的心理准备和佛教仪式指导。结合关键词“Buddhist perspectives on death and dying in middle age”，文章特别关注中年阶段对死亡的认知，鼓励通过善行和慈悲生活来减轻恐惧，实现平静离世，并最终追求涅槃以超越轮回。
高德明老师的评价
用12岁初中生可以听懂的语音来重复翻译的内容：想象一下，死亡就像我们换一件旧衣服，身体老了坏了，但我们的精神还在，会去一个新地方开始新生活。佛教说，如果我们做好事，比如帮助别人、不说谎，我们就会去好地方，比如天堂或再当人；如果做坏事，可能会去不好的地方，比如饿鬼或地狱。所以，不要怕死，它只是生命的一部分，我们可以通过善良和快乐的生活来准备它，这样死亡时就不会太痛苦。
佛学的各个宗派视角评价，突出《显密圆通成佛心要集》的视角：从显宗和大乘佛教的视角看，本文强调了无常和业力的重要性，这与《显密圆通成佛心要集》中融合显密、追求圆通成佛的理念相契合。该经典提倡通过准提法等密宗修持来快速积累功德、净化业障，从而在面对死亡时能保持正念，顺利过渡到更高重生状态或直接证悟涅槃。本文虽未直接提及准提法，但其对善行和心灵净化的强调，为显密圆通提供了基础，准提法的优点在于它简便易行，能帮助修行者在中年等关键阶段有效应对死亡恐惧，加速解脱进程。
在修行实践上可以应用的和可以解决人们的十个问题：1. 减少对死亡的恐惧，通过理解无常和重生概念。2. 提升日常善行，如布施、持戒，以积累正面业力。3. 培养慈悲心，关爱所有生命，增强内心平静。4. 学习佛教临终关怀方法，如诵经祈祷，帮助自己和他人平静离世。5. 实践准提法等密宗修持，快速净化业障，为死亡做准备。6. 增强对六道轮回的认识，激励道德行为。7. 通过冥想和正念练习，减少对物质和身份的执着。8. 在中年阶段反思生命意义，调整生活方式，追求精神成长。9. 建立支持网络，如与僧侣或同修交流，共同面对死亡议题。10. 最终目标指向涅槃，鼓励修行者超越轮回，实现终极解脱。