Preparation for Death

Author: Alphonsus Liguori
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 282

Book Description
This manual of devotion consists of a series of chapters or instructions upon important points of Christian teaching which Saint Alphonsus calls "Considerations". As the Saint describes, "These Considerations are written for the purpose of pricking or of wounding the conscience... that so it may be thoroughly aroused and awakened." The Considerations deal with such doctrines and facts as have a universal application, which admit of no dispute, and which are always confirmed by some passage from Holy Scripture. Preparation for Death is essentially a guide to prayer. It represents, from its beginning to its end, the continual outpouring of heart before God, an outpouring that is at times expressed in the very same words which imply a new phase of thought. Regarded as a Manual of Mental Prayer, each of these "Considerations" has a technical and special signification. They treat of life and death, the value of time, the mercy of God, the habit of sin, the general and particular judgments, the love of God, Holy Communion, and other subjects equally important.

Good to Go

Author: Jo Myers
Publisher: Union Square & Co.
ISBN: 1402783760
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 233

Book Description
One of the few things in life that’s certain is death—and here’s a realistic, practical, and even humorous book about preparing for it. From cremation ("Making an Ash of Yourself") to funeral plans (“Plan and Plot Your Own Demise”) to choosing executors and dealing with family relationships, media figure Jo Myers covers it all. It’s sure to appeal to boomers caring for aging parents and anyone else who needs help approaching this not-so-easy-to-talk-about subject.

Preparing to Die

Author: Andrew Holecek
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 1559394080
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 433

Book Description
We all face death, but how many of us are actually ready for it? Whether our own death or that of a loved one comes first, how prepared are we, spiritually or practically? In Preparing to Die, Andrew Holecek presents a wide array of resources to help the reader address this unfinished business. Part One shows how to prepare one's mind and how to help others, before, during, and after death. The author explains how spiritual preparation for death can completely transform our relationship to the end of life, dissolving our fear and helping us to feel open and receptive to letting go in the dying process. Daily meditation practices, the stages of dying and how to work with them, and after-death experiences are all detailed in ways that will be particularly helpful for those with an interest in Tibetan Buddhism and in Tibetan approaches to conscious dying. Part Two addresses the practical issues that surround death. Experts in grief, hospice, the funeral business, and the medical and legal issues of death contribute chapters to prepare the reader for every practical concern, including advance directives, green funerals, the signs of death, warnings about the funeral industry, the stages of grief, and practical care for the dying. Part Three contains heart-advice from twenty of the best-known Tibetan Buddhist masters now teaching in the West. These brief interviews provide words of solace and wisdom to guide the dying and their caregivers during this challenging time. Preparing to Die is for anyone interested in learning how to prepare for death from a Buddhist perspective, both spiritually and practically. It is also for those who want to learn how to help someone else who is dying, both during the time of illness and death as well as after death.

A Preparation for Death

Author: Greg Baxter
Publisher: Penguin UK
ISBN: 0141962585
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 180

Book Description
In his early thirties, Greg Baxter found himself in a strange place. He hated his job, he was drinking excessively, he was sabotaging his most important relationships, and he was no longer doing the thing he cared about most: writing. Strangest of all, at this time he started teaching evening classes in creative writing - and his life changed utterly. A Preparation for Death is a document of the chaos and discovery of that time and of the experiences that led Greg Baxter to that strange place - an extraordinarily intimate account of literary failure (and its consequences), personal decay, and redemption through reading, writing, and truth-telling. 'Brilliant and wonderfully original ... Yes, this is a book about drinking and shagging. But rarely have these things been written about so well' William Leith, Literary Review 'Baxter is a serious, thoughtful writer, bend on emotional truth and artistry. He has written an unusual, provocative book' Suzi Feay, Financial Times 'Brave, honest and propulsive' Metro 'The triumph is the steely courage it takes to put a life down with such uncompromising clarity' Hugo Hamilton, Irish Times 'This is an occasionally infuriating and completely wonderful book. I read it in one sitting, unsettled and delighted by its ferocity' Anne Enright

Preparing

Author: Arun Shourie
Publisher: Penguin Random House India Private Limited
ISBN: 935305978X
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 503

Book Description
The one certainty in life, the one appointment which each of us will just have to face, is the one for which we do the least to prepare-death. From the lives and last days of the Buddha, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Ramana Maharshi, Gandhiji, Vinoba; from our religious texts; from the teachings of great meditation masters; from santhara to sannyas to practices by which we may tame our mind-leavening all these by his personal experiences-Arun Shourie presents clues to ensure that we face our end with equanimity. In the process, he lays down what we must do if rituals, pilgrimages and mantras are to help us. He leads us to ask whether texts such as The Tibetan Book of the Dead are for the dead, or do they set out lessons for us, the living? He leads us to see through the sedatives that we are fed. Even as we are being frightened by accounts of 'hell', are we not actually being lulled to sleep? Does the fact that we will face extreme tortures in hell not mean that in some form we will survive death? To experience them, after all, we must be present. Religions entice us into the great questions. Is there a soul that is never born and never dies? Is there life after death? Is there rebirth? Is there God? What is real and what is just maya? The greatest teachers and mystics have come up with different answers. Each of them has had direct experience of what she or he has proclaimed to be the truth. How, then, are we to proceed?

The Great Concern

Author: Edward Pearse
Publisher: Reformation Heritage Books
ISBN: 1601787952
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 139

Book Description
Are you prepared to die? Sadly, too many people are not ready to face the inevitable. In this book, Edward Pearse delivers ancient wisdom and encourages us to make preparation for death our great concern. Admittedly, it is a hard task that may seem uncomfortable at first. Nevertheless, Pearse faithfully directs us to pursue Christ and all His benefits so that we will be prepared to say farewell to this poor, vain, perishing world and make provision for an eternal state. Table of Contents: A Proposition for the More Profitable Improvement of Burials by Giving of Books 1. Are You Prepared to Die? 2. An Important and Hard Task 3. Attaining Victory and Glory 4. The Finality of Death 5. The Foolishness of Being Unprepared 6. Prepare Yourself Now! 7. Consider Death, Life, Eternity, Delay, and Prayer 8. Pursue Christ, Assurance, Peace, a Good Conscience, and Purity 9. Pursue Greater Levels of Grace 10. Pursue Diligence, Communion, Christ’s Righteousness, and God’s Presence 11. Death for the Believer Appendix: A Proposition for the More Profitable Improvement of Burials by Giving of Books

Dying with Confidence

Author: Anyen
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 0861716566
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 194

Book Description
Spiritual preparations for the time of death : an evolving meditation on life and death -- Spiritual practices as the time of death nears -- Medical considerations for the Buddhist practitioner -- Buddhist practitioners as caregivers -- Appendices.

A Good Death

Author: Margaret Rice
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
ISBN: 1760871222
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 351

Book Description
The guide to facilitate much needed conversation and provide resources for grief management and palliative care. When her own mother died, Margaret Rice realised how completely unprepared she and her family had been for the experience of companioning a loved one who is dying. So she decided to go in search of the information she couldn't find when she most needed it and write the book herself - a novice's guide to death. We live in a period of intense death denial. But what if we were to smash that taboo and ask questions we want answered, like how do we know when someone is close to dying, and how do we best care for them? What actually happens to our body when we die? How do we work with medical experts? How do we deal with the non-medical issues that will come up, such as wills, finances and even social media passwords? Is morphine used to nudge death along or is this just a myth? Where do questions about euthanasia fit in with personal, lived experience? Margaret Rice lifts the lid on the taboos that surround death, sharing practical information and compassionate advice from multiple sources to break down boundaries and offer better choices of care to suit individual needs. This is a book to help the dying and their carers feel less isolated, and help us all face death better.

Mrs. Hunter's Happy Death

Author: John Fanestil
Publisher: Doubleday
ISBN: 0307423735
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 274

Book Description
What is the secret of people who die contented and fulfilled? What makes it possible for them to attain such spiritual heights as they approach their physical demise? What enables them to make death a completion of life, rather than a tragic end? And what can they teach us about life and death, love and loss, grief and spiritual growth? The way we die, like the way we live, makes a difference—in our lives and the lives of others. From time to time during his work as a pastor, John Fanestil has witnessed someone dying with remarkable and uplifting grace. Fanestil was moved yet puzzled by the spirit of happiness and holiness he observed. Contemporary literature on dying, filled with talk of anger, acceptance, and forgiveness, provided little to explain it. But the chance discovery of articles about the ritual of the “happy death” in religious magazines from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries brought Fanestil the answers he sought. Mrs. Hunter’s Happy Death blends the captivating historical accounts Fanestil uncovered with his own pastoral experiences to reveal the secrets that enable people to transcend pain and suffering and embrace death as a completion of life, not as a tragic end. A fascinating introduction to a historic approach to death and its contemporary incarnations, Mrs. Hunter’s Happy Death also offers specific lessons on living and dying, from the “exercise of prayer” to the “labor of love” to “bearing testimony.” With the spread of in-home medical and hospice care, death is once again being embraced as a natural part of life, infused with profound emotional and spiritual dimensions. The inspiring stories in Mrs. Hunter’s Happy Death beautifully demonstrate that the way we die, like the way we live, makes a supreme difference—in our lives and in the lives of others.

Living Is Dying

Author: Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 1611808073
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 257

Book Description
An insightful collection of teachings about death and dying to help face life's greatest mystery calmly and with equanimity. Lifetimes of effort go into organizing, designing, and structuring every aspect of our lives, but how many people are willing to contemplate the inevitability of death? Although dying is an essential part of life, it is an uncomfortable topic that most people avoid. With no idea what will happen when we die and a strong desire to sidestep the conversation, we make all kinds of assumptions. Living Is Dying collects teachings about death and the bardos that have been passed down through a long lineage of brilliant Buddhist masters, each of whom went to great lengths to examine the process in minute detail. Renowned author and teacher Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse responds to the most common questions he's been asked about death and dying--exploring how one prepares for death, what to say to a loved one who is dying, and prayers and practices to use as a handhold when approaching the unknown territory of death. Whether you are facing death today or decades from now, preparing for it can help to allay your worst fears and help you appreciate what it means to be truly alive.