Graceful Exits: How Great Beings Die [NOOK Book]

After
taking leave of his teacher Huang-po, Lin-chi—often called the Chinese
Socrates—went on a long pilgrimage before settling in a small temple around
850. He taught there about ten years and then retired. In 866, when he was
about to die, he seated himself and said, "After I am extinguished, do not
let my True Dharma Eye be extinguished." A monk came forward and said,
"How could I let your True Dharma Eye be extinguished?" Lin-chi
asked, "When somebody asks you about it, what will you say to him?"
The monk gave a shout. "Who would have thought my True Dharma Eye would be
extinguished upon reaching this blind ass!" said Lin-chi. Then the master,
although not ill, adjusted his robes, sat erect, and died.

*

Kalu
Rinpoche tried to sit up by himself but had difficulty doing so. Lama Gyaltsen,
feeling that this was perhaps the time, supported Rinpoche's back as he sat up,
and Bokar Tulku Rinpoche took his extended hand. Kalu Rinpoche wanted to sit
absolutely straight, but the attending doctor and nurse were upset by this, so
relaxed his posture slightly. Nevertheless, he assumed the meditation
posture—his eyes gazed outward in meditation gaze, and his lips moved softly.
A profound feeling of peace and happiness settled on the room and spread
through the minds of those present. Slowly Kalu Rinpoche's gaze and his eyelids
lowered, and the breath stopped.

*

As
Chuang-tzu approached death, his disciples wanted to give him a large and
expensive funeral. But Chuang-tzu said, "The heavens and the earth will
serve me as a coffin and a coffin shell. The sun and moon and stars will
decorate my bier. All creation will be at hand to witness the event. What more
need I than these?"

His
disciples gasped, "We're afraid that carrion kites and crows will eat the
body of our master!"

Chuang-tzu
replied, "Above the ground my flesh will feed the crows and kites; below
the ground, the ants and cricket-moles. Why rob one to feed the other?"
And then he smiled. I shall have Heaven and Earth for my coffin," he said.
"The sun and moon will be the jade symbols hanging by my side. All the
planets and constellations will shine as jewels around me. All beings will be
present as mourners at the wake. What more could I need? Everything has been
taken care of."

*

Sensing
that death was near, Master Razan called everyone into the Buddha Hall and
ascended the lecture seat. First he held his left hand open for several
minutes. No one understood, so he told the monks from the eastern side of the
monastery to leave. Then he held his right hand open. Still no one understood,
so he told the monks from the western side of the monastery to leave. Only the
laymen remained. He said to them: "If any of you really want to show
gratitude to Buddha for his compassion to you, spare no efforts in spreading
the Dharma. Now, get out! Get out of here!" Then, laughing loudly, the
master fell over dead.

*

In
1885, Ramakrishna developed cancer of the throat, and steadily grew worse. On
August 15 of the following year, realizing that his end was near, Ramakrishna
assured his wife, Sarada Devi, that she would be all right and that his young
disciples would take care of her as they had of him. He died the next day. In
his last days, he addressed himself saying, "O mind, do not worry about
the body. Let the body and its pain take care of each other. Think about the
Holy Mother [Sarada Devi] and be happy."

After
the cremation of his body, Sarada was removing her jewelry, as Hindu widows do,
when Ramakrishna appeared to her. In the vision, he told her not to remove her
jewelry, assuring her that he had not gone away but has only passed from one
room to another. Confident of his continual presence with her, the Holy Mother,
as she was known to her devotees, committed herself to teaching and guiding the
young disciples who had been left in her care.