[12Dvop4I]

Me,

My mother already a raven wheeling above the Grand Canyon,

I'm a steelhead in the North Pacific, coming home

To the Hoh River,

When I do die do die do......

Life as we know it is precious

But not that precious.

What do I mean?

Life is not limited to life.

"What fools these mortals be"

- Puck -


hoka hey

john

[payloansday]

Music to listen to before you die ...

Ram Dass on how to gracefully complete the death passage, translated into a YouTube vid.

"Dying is the most important moment that exists in any incarnation. It is important that you are not overwhelmed by the processes of dying."

Please see

[medprof]

Ishtar -

I've been dying since I was born.

On the other hand, I am guilty, so far, of living 58 years previous to my death.





Damned if I know, but I love it.


hoka hey

john

[genna]

Ram Dass "Graceful Passages" Such Wisdom...brings tears to my eyes..

I've had my brush with death, I would like this played when I die.

A Reiki friend sent this to play not long ago, thanks for reminding me Ish.

Cass x

[emexiagog]

Coming across this account of the ancient Korean death rite by Lisa Slayford, I'm struck by how similar it is to the Egyptian one, not least in where the spirit of the dead person has to pass through the 12 gates of the Otherworld.

The whole article is here

Here is an extract.

Once the individual has died, all ornaments from the body are removed, the hair is loosened and the family weeps for the death of their loved one. One of the family members will then take the white upper garment that the deceased was wearing and then, facing north, climb onto the roof of the house. They will call out the name of the deceased in a loud voice, followed by the word 'pok' (which literally means 'return'). After calling out in this way, they will pull the white cloth up onto the roof. This ritual is known as the "ko bok", the calling back the spirit of the dead.

After this rite has been completed, the family will then prepare a feast for the messengers (saja) who will escort the deceased to the other side. Traditionally, this meal consists of three bowls of rice, vegetables, soy sauce, money and three pairs of straw shoes. It is positioned either in the middle area of the inside garden or outside the main gate of the house of the deceased.

The body of the deceased is then moved from his deathbed and onto a board known as the chilsong-p'an. The board "is the board of the deity of the seven stars, who controls the life of men". The head is turned to the north and the thumbs are tied together with string, as are the two big toes. One of the children will then put on one sleeve of the upper garment - the right side if the deceased was his father, the left side if his mother. "A person experienced in these matters will make a spirit, called the honbaek with string or paper. If string is used three strings of different colours will be knotted together in a fixed form, and if the material is paper it will be a white paper folded in a fixed form. This knot, or folded paper as the case may be, is placed in a small box called the honbaek box, or "spirit box." The word "hon" refers to the spirit or soul, and "baek" has the same meaning. Sometimes one of these words will be dropped, with either "hon" or "baek" appearing alone, and sometimes both words are used".

The most important ritual is that of washing the body, known as "sup". One of the mourners will bring a bowl of warm water mixed with mugwort or juniper and while either two or four people hold the corners of a blanket covering the deceased, the body is washed thoroughly with a piece of cotton or cloth soaked in the warm water. After this, the hair and fingernails will be cut and placed into four small bags known as choballang that are later placed into the coffin.

The deceased is then dressed in his funeral clothes. The person who is performing this rite will put "wet rice to the mouth of the deceased with a willow spoon, saying loudly, "a hundred sacks of rice" at the first spoonful to be held up, "a thousand sacks of rice" with the second spoon and "ten thousand sacks of rice" with the third". After this a coin will be placed into their mouth. The body is then bound in a a long cloth known as yom. Relatives and friends of the deceased will place money into the twisted sections of the yom as it is believed that the paper money will be used when the deceased passes through the twelve gates of the otherworld.

The body is finally placed into his coffin and is covered with coverlets. "The corpse is laid on top of one of these, called the "coverlet of earth," and is covered with another, called the " coverlet of heaven." The deceased's old clothes will be put into the coffin next to the head and legs to fill the empty spaces. When the cover of the coffin is nailed down with wooden nails the offspring will weep loudly. The coffin itself is now bound with a straw rope around its upper, middle and lower parts".

The last rite that is practiced is done when the coffin is taken out of the room. Four men will take the coffin and shake it slowly up and down toward the four corners of the room. When it is taken from the room a gourd will be destroyed in front of it, in the attempt to drive away evil spirits.

There are a number of different rites and rituals that are practiced in Korea when someone has died. The ritual of washing the body is the most important, as it is a rite of purification, cleaning the polluted body whereas the act of binding is one that symbolises separation. These rites have been practiced for generations and continue to be practiced, for it is believed that they will aid the spirit of the deceased to pass through the twelve gates of the otherworld and arrive in heaven.

Bibliography:

Lee, Kwang Kyu (1984) The Concept of Ancestors and Ancestor Worship in Korea, Asian Folklore Studies, Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture.