Graceful Exits: How Great Beings Die: Death Stories Of Tibetan, Hindu And Zen Masters

In a society in which the fact of death is obscured by fear and denial, we are in dire need of teachers who can show us how to leave this world with grace and dignity, and to place death in its true perspective. Graceful Exits offers such guidance in the form of 108 stories recounting the ways in which Hindu, Tibetan, and Zen Buddhist masters, both ancient and modern, have confronted their own deaths. By directly presenting the grace, clarity, and even humor with which great spiritual teachers have met the end of their days, it provides inspiration and nourishment to anyone truly concerned with the fundamental issues of life and death. Death is a subject obscured by fear and denial. When we do think of dying, we are more often concerned with how to avoid the pain and suffering that may accompany our death than we are with really confronting the meaning of death and how to approach it. Sushila Blackman places death—and life—in a truer perspective, by telling us of others who have left this world with dignity. Graceful Exits offers valuable guidance in the form of 108 stories recounting the ways in which Hindu, Tibetan Buddhist, and Zen masters, both ancient and modern, have confronted their own deaths. By directly presenting the grace, clarity, and even humor with which great spiritual teachers have met the end of their days, Blackman provides inspiration and nourishment to anyone truly concerned with the fundamental issues of life and death. This collection of 108 stories recounts the ways in which Hindu, Tibetan and Zen Buddhist masters, both ancient and modern, have confronted their own deaths. It is intended to show people how to leave the world gracefully and place death in its proper perspective