After a friend of mine who's had huge obstacles to overcome and a challenging life began meditating he saw some amazingly positive changes in his life, specifically in his health. His presence is calming and balanced, and his years of practice definitely show. Today he told me about the time a friend of his was dying and he asked his girlfriend (a therapist) if she had any resources he could use to give comfort to his friend. She produced a copy of Sogyal Rinpoche's Tibetan Book of Living and Dying. He read it and it sent his practice to a new level.
I went home and found a .pdf version online. After I downloaded it I saw it's 451 pages long! I'm not a big fan of reading online files, but it's free, so I'm not complaining. I've long wished I had more understanding of the connections between life and death and sought the sadly missing pieces of these truths in western society. My only recourse was fear, the funeral industry, and religious mind control. No wonder death is shoved behind the curtain and reviled and separated from the living. I mean, what can be more important than preparing for the inevitable? So...this book opens a door that has been long closed for me. I'm grateful.
