[ad_1]
Parinirvana Buddha. {Photograph} by Ankur Panchbuddhe.
Immediately, February 15, is called Parinirnava Day in a lot of the Buddhist world. It commemorates the anniversary of the Buddha’s demise, or Parinirvana. It’s a time for making an allowance for the important fact of change, instability, and impermanence (anicca).
It’s conventional on Parinirvana Day to learn the scriptures in regards to the Buddha’s demise: particularly the Mahaparinibbana Sutta. It’s additionally conventional to go to temples to meditate, and to keep in mind that our personal lives right here on earth are restricted. Parinirvana Day can also be a time for remembering family and friends who’ve handed, and sometimes we’ll place their photos on the foot of an altar.
For me, this weblog usually acts as a sort of memento mori, or reminder of demise. To the perfect of my data 5 individuals who have shared articles right here have handed away: two of them I knew personally, whereas others I’d solely exchanged emails with. I wished to take the chance of Parinirvana Day to convey them to thoughts, to say just a little about them, and to encourage you to learn their articles.
Suvarnaprabha
The primary is Suvarnaprabha, whose title means “Golden Radiance.” That was an ideal title for her, since she had a vibrant character, filled with humor, though she most popular to go by “Suvanna,” discovering her Sanskrit title a bit combersome. She may very well be deeply critical, however she usually laughed and impressed laughter in others. I vividly bear in mind going together with her to see Robin Williams carry out in San Francisco, the place she lived, and us spending the night with tears operating down our faces.
On Wildmind’s weblog she wrote an recommendation column referred to as “Ask Auntie Suvanna.” The unique intent was for this to be a humour endeavor, however as time glided by the requests for assist turned sadder and sadder. Suvanna’s responses have been all the time form and clever, although, and have been usually hilarious. I’d recommend beginning together with her items on the Buddhist approach to excess body hair, and On eating vegetarian monkey brains.
She additionally wrote a bit about teaching meditation in prison, which was very near my coronary heart as I used to be doing the identical factor on the identical time.
Suvanna documented her expertise with most cancers in two blogs, the first of which detailed her preliminary analysis and therapy, and the second of which, Crap, I’ve Got Cancer, took up the story of the most cancers’s return.
Saddhamala
Saddhamala (“She who’s garlanded with religion”) was another person I knew personally. We first emailed one another round 1998, once I was on the Rocky Mountain Buddhist Middle in Missoula, Montana, and he or she was at Aryaloka Buddhist Middle in Newmarket, though at the moment she wasn’t but ordained and glided by her delivery title, Nancy Nicolazzo. A number of years later I moved to Newmarket myself, and I noticed her a good quantity.
She was generally known as Nancy in her work as a chaplain and volunteer coordinator at a hospice, and it was in a hospice that she handed away. She’d had most cancers that had metastasized. Realizing that demise was inevitable she’d determined to not search therapy. She was a proficient girl who’d additionally labored as a advisor. The truth is I as soon as employed her to assist me make my workplace area extra pleasing and environment friendly, and the outcomes have been fantastic.
Saddhamala wrote many articles for Wildmind. She had carried out numerous instructing and tended to distill her recommendations into lists of suggestions for observe. Generally, although, she wrote extra personally, for instance when she discussed her family background.
Marcus Hartsfield
Marcus wasn’t somebody I knew personally, and I will need to have met Marcus on social media. He was a therapist in California, and practiced on the San Francisco Zen Middle. One of many hanging issues about Marcus was the variety of tattoos he had — lots of them Buddhist themed. I requested him to jot down an account of his journey on Wildmind’s weblog, and so he wrote, Bodhi art: reclaiming the body with Buddhist tattoos, illustrated with quite a few images.
Marcus handed away in 2013, I believe. Not being a pal of his, I by no means did find out how Marcus died. Somebody who knew him stated he’d been unwell, however she didn’t know something past that.
Hazel Colditz
Hazel Colditz was one other Wildmind contributor I by no means had the great fortune to fulfill in individual. I’m positive I might have preferred her. Hazel was a talented photographer, documentary maker, and sculptor of rock and steel. She lived within the Arizona desert. We met on social media when she provided to overview a ebook for me. She ended up writing three evaluations in whole, for “Taneesha Never Disparaging” by M. LaVora Perry, “Sitting Practice” by Caroline Adderson, and “Jake Fades” by David Man. I all the time loved her views, and he or she was a pleasure to work with. She handed away in January, 2012, having battled an aggressive type of most cancers for a number of months, and having endured a number of main surgical procedures.
Navachitta
Navachitta was a part of the Auckland, New Zealand sangha of the Triratna Buddhist Group. She was ordained into the Order in the summertime of 1990 in Taraloka, in Shropshire, England. I by no means new her personally, though we corresponded periodically by e mail for a few years, and I all the time appreciated her assist and encouragement.
Navachitta was a therapist who labored in non-public observe and was very energetic within the restoration neighborhood. You possibly can learn extra about this side of her work in an interview she did with a consultant of North West Buddhist Recovery.
One fantastic anecdote: Whereas dwelling in Britain, Navachitta as soon as went to a builder’s service provider, saying she was on the lookout for sacks. However listening to her New Zealand accent, the boys she was speaking to sadly thought she was on the lookout for “intercourse.” Hilarity (though to the perfect of my data no sexual activity) ensued.
Earlier than her premature demise she solely had time to jot down three articles and evaluations for Wildmind’s weblog. One, entitled From drama to Dharma, was on habit to drama. Her second piece, Looking for the silver lining of our dysfunction, is concerning the connection between habit and the doubtless helpful trait of novelty-seeking. Her remaining piece was a review of a book of poems by a fellow Order member, Satyadevi. The poems have been impressed by pure and industrial disasters that had taken place in New Zealand.
Navachitta handed away in London on the age of 62 from a extreme bacterial and viral an infection.
***
I hope these tales have inspired you to discover the work of the 5 people I’ve drawn consideration to.
However on a deeper degree, all 5 of their deaths have been surprising. I do know I make assumptions about how lengthy I’ll dwell (late eighties to early nineties?) and the way I’ll die (both in my sleep or in a hospital mattress?), however none of us ever is aware of when our time will come. It may very well be at the moment.
And so the Buddha inspired us to be aware that demise can come at any time, not in order that we turn out to be afraid or depressed, however in order that we be impressed to benefit from this valuable alternative to observe.
Life is swept alongside,
next-to-nothing its span.
For one swept to previous age
no shelters exist.
Perceiving this hazard in demise,
one in search of peace
ought to drop the world’s bait.
We’re additionally requested to keep in mind, much more pithily, the remembrance, anicca vata sankhara : “Impermanent, certainly, are all created issues.” Let’s mourn our losses, whereas tempering them with an consciousness of their inevitability. And above all, let’s take them as an inspiration to dwell the perfect lives we will create.
[ad_2]
