Death and Dying
On Death and Dying
by: +Yusa
In Real terms, a human death of the body is no more or less traumatic for the soul than a human birth. The soul has more than likely been through those events before, and will probably be doing it again sometime soon. Souls are accustomed to the processes of birth and death. Souls going through a body-death process are familiar with their destination, which is soul heaven. The smallest percentage of souls (less than 1%) experience strong desires to remain on earth rather than to go with the beautiful flow back home. This is not to say that the soul does not miss loved ones, and does not worry about loved ones, but the soul is overwhelmed with the immense insight and wisdom of Reality and the peaceful beauty of it all, and the knowledge that The Way is benevolent and everything will work out for everyone along the Way. It is not incorrect to think of the soul leaving the body as someone at peace in the knowledge that loved ones on earth are perfectly taken care of in terms of Reality. Community In Wayist culture, death and dying of the body of a loved one is an important life event for family and friends. It requires the community to be involved. We have to huddle around to be a resource for our friends working through their shock and sadness. We want to join others is remembering the personality that left us. We want to recall the character in the play of life, the role s/he fulfilled, and the lessons learned. Knowing that there is a good probability that we will meet up again with our departed friend, whether in soul-heaven or in another life, we want to say some farewells and cherish some memories. The most troubling feature of death and dying is how it impacts the lives and minds of loved ones who stay behind. Common sense tells us that we are betting against high odds when depend on some people to be with us for a long time, to walk with us into old age. Nevertheless, when those plans are disrupted we usually face cruel new realizations and have to deal with uncomfortable and unsettling realities. It may take several years for a family or individual to come to terms with the changes after the death of a friend and partner. Some people may never stop missing a dear friend or soul mate. Lessons from culturally conditioned thinking
• The phrases, “s/he died” or s/he is dead” and “she passed away,” reflect language from a culture that believes the body is the true and final reality, and after death of the body there it has come to an end. Wayists speak of the death of the body, not the death of the person. A person is a soul being and death of a soul is not common. Only souls that are absolutely devoid of goodness can die. Good souls eventually transform into spiritual beings.
• The cultural phrase, “an untimely death” may suggest that there are proper times to die, and that someone died at an improper time. Such an observation does not take into consideration the frail nature of organic life. Organic, mammalian bodies die at any age, all the time. Death of the body is an everyday possibility. As we speak, hundreds of thousands of souls reincarnate, and an almost equal number have to leave their dead bodies. Humans are dying beings because organic life is finite and fragile. • Eulogy. Most societies eulogize the deceased. The word eulogy comes from the ancient Greek language, ‘golden speak’. It refers to an ancient Athenian custom that became popular in Hellenistic and later Roman societies and is still in practice today. It refers to the practice of having someone (often a professional eulogist) walk along with the funeral procession to proclaim ‘golden words’ about the deceased. Along with the eulogist’s performance, a wealthy estate would have professional mourners hired for their skill at vocal and dramatic public displays of sorrow and grief. Behind the funeral procession, followed the antitheses of the eulogist. He would not slander the deceased but strike a blow at the cynics in the assembly by admitting to mistakes. The aim of this was no doubt damage control and an attempt to reconcile. He could say, “While it be true that John kept several concubines which he could not afford, upsetting his wife tremendously, but it must be recalled that it stress of the matter is probably what killed him in the end—it must be acknowledged that he was a kind and generous man to all, whose generosity is among the things that will be missed by many. While some cultures still value a display of graveside mourners, today only the eulogist remains in the mainstream. Critics of the prevailing system say that eulogies don’t help the majority of mourners because it leaves them conflicted. ?? Some of the golden speak may create an impression that we mourn the loss of a dear friend, parent of child more especially because, “he was a good provider”, “a wonderful dad,” and However, this often and implies that w with phrases that seem to imply a person’s death may be sadder because the person was attractive, a hard worker, an honest person, or a good parent or good scholar. To say that a person will be deeply missed, “s/he was a hard worker and a good provider,” may make others feel less worthy if, for some reason, the same cannot be said of them.
Cult of Ancestors
Do Wayists believe in a “cult of the ancestors” or that we will see the deceased again in heaven? If the definition of a cult of ancestors is a state of being where un-incarnated souls exist, and that those souls may be aware of what we do here on earth, and that we may meet up with them when our bodies die; then yes, we do believe in a cult of the ancestors. Wayist refrain from talking more about this concept because we don’t know much more than that. It is however sufficient knowledge to serve the purpose of life on earth.