The Five Strengths are instructions for dying.

Photo by Zen Sutherland

The truth is that we are all singing and dancing on the Titanic, but we behave as if it’s a cruise to Bermuda. ~ Larry Rosenberg

          Everything in this world, no matter how strong or sturdy, is subject to the reality of impermanence. If the dharma has become an integral part of our life, it will be a trustworthy guide as we experience the greatest change of all. Familiarization reminds us that death is not some form of punishment but a natural part of life. We can relax and move with rather than against its flow. The cultivated seed of goodness allows us to freely let go of remorse or resentment. We then experience tenderness toward others and ourselves without clinging. Reproach points out that fear of uncertainty is produced by an ego that doesn’t really exist. The openness of strong determination brings clarity rather than confusion. Instead of being anxious, we have the option of being curious about this new adventure. And aspiration helps us remember and connect to other people who are facing death; we can use tonglen to send out the comfort we wish for ourselves.

Seeing there’s no time to stay long, I put aside the words and practiced the meaning.
~ Godrakpa Sonam Gyaltsen

For more information on the eighteenth slogan, go here.

Slogan Eighteen

The Five Strengths are instructions for dying.

From the Lojong for the Layperson booklet:

            The Five Strengths of the seventeenth slogan not only assist us as we live, they also prepare us for death.  The seed of virtue can counteract denial; nurturing the seed of our Buddha nature will awaken us rather than keep us asleep. Our aspirations can deflect anger as we remember to direct personal benefits toward others instead of self. Reproach neutralizes bargaining; when we stop cherishing our ego, we can release our attachments. Strong determination defuses our despair; consistent practice has given us a new view of reality and developed an open heart and mind. Familiarization aids us in seeing all situations as opportunities for practice, even death; thus we generate acceptance instead of fear.

Photo: Dying gardenia flower.

            Ronna Kabatznick, a psychologist who worked in Thailand during the aftermath of the Indian Ocean tsunami, wrote: “Our minds are habituated to relate to suffering by resisting it through blame, bitterness, anger, resentment. That resistance is what the Buddha called ‘the second arrow,’ which follows the first arrow, the direct experience of pain. So much additional suffering comes from believing that ‘things shouldn't be this way’ – when in fact they are that way.” Elisabeth Kubler-Ross noticed a similar response in working with terminally ill patients. In her book On Death and Dying, she describes “The Five Stages of Receiving Catastrophic News.*” Denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance were the coping mechanisms she noticed when patients learned they were dying. The dedicated study and application of the lojong slogans can help us repel that second arrow - the suffering added to our pain. As B.A. Wallace states: “Unborn awareness continues beyond the death of the physical body and the dissolution of the personal ego… Therefore, the dying process is very important because death is not an end; it is a transition.”

*Others in the health field would later change the name to “The Five Stages of Grief.”