PACKED AND READY FOR WHATEVER'S NEXT In the Summer 2019 Edition of Buddhadharma an interview on Phowa with Geshe Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche was published. We reprint the article. Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche offers a fresh teaching on phowa practice and how navigating the various transitions in our lives, including the very small ones, lays a foundation for navigating the much bigger ones when they come.
Illustration by Danai Tsouloufa.
In the most basic sense, phowa, as practiced in Tibetan Bön Buddhism, centers on the transference of consciousness at the moment of death. These teachings can prepare us to project our consciousness directly into a pure realm at the time of death, increasing our chance for liberation in a single lifetime. The time of our death may feel remote and unconnected from our day-to-day reality, but phowa begins now, in this realm of existence. Every day, we undergo a seemingly endless parade of transitions, from the mundane – one day, one week, or one year into the next – to major life transitions that can be much more difficult to adjust to. By recognizing each transition – recognizing that we have a choice, becoming aware, and then letting go of our attachment – we also prepare ourselves for the great transition at the time of death. My teacher Yongdzin Rinpoche once said to me that the purpose of practicing phowa is to “be packed and ready” when the great moment of our passing approaches. Being packed and ready means just as we are, not bringing anything with us. Whether we are crossing to the other side of this life or simply passing from one phase of life to
another, we endeavor to enter empty-handed. Tibetan Bön Buddhist teachings tell us that transitions themselves – even the great transition at the end of this life – are not the cause of suffering; it is our insistence on trying to take things with us that's the problem. We can't take anything, and in trying to do so we disturb our minds. So, our practice is to work with ourselves and that sense of attachment, because we all find something – usually many things – to become attached to. We must pay attention and be willing to change. When you walked into the room where you are now sitting, at the very moment of entering, how fully did you walk in? How conscious were you as you crossed the threshold? How much of your “stuff” – your stories, plans, replayed conversations, the lingering discomfort in your mind and emotions – did you bring in with you? Every moment of transition is an opportunity to practice awareness and clarity, to learn about ourselves, to see the ways we become stuck, and to let go. Each time we practice this, we can reflect a little more and be open to seeing our habitual patterns. We
Preparing to Die
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