DP, Kristy, again, offers a possible solution: helping others to combat fear of death. Try it, and consider consulting a physician on a possible medicine. On the other hand, don't even think about her words 'fear of death is so and so'. Anthony
--- On Mon, 30/8/10, Kristy McClain <healthypl...@yahoo.com> wrote: From: Kristy McClain <healthypl...@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: [Zen] Death To: Zen_Forum@yahoogroups.com Date: Monday, 30 August, 2010, 11:23 PM *smiles* Your comment reminds me of the koan about what your face looked like before you were born. Perhaps that IS a meditation koan DP could ponder;) As to the post suggesting that everyone is , or must be afraid of death beit consciously or not-- I must respectfully disagree. Such an awareness is unique to each of us. Not to mention that to make such generalizations is merely a projection on their part. I met a man last spring who kept popping up in my life like an old penny. We had little in common and with vastly different life tracts. Over time, I have truly been touched and enriched by this man, even though many things about him bug the hell out of me. He knows more about death than I'll ever know or want to.... At 19, in Vietnam, he was captured and tortured for months. Beaten routinely, he still has residual injuries today. I just got off the phone with him, as he is awaiting final audiology checks to complete his paperwork for his military pension. He will be 60 in October. After his tour in Nam, he went back to school, married and had a son. As part of a humanitarian corp, he and his family moved to the Middle East. His wife and son were killed by a car bomb in Beirut. He has travelled the world, helping out in the most difficult and dangerous places on the globe. When he returned to the USA, he worked in law inforcement in NYC, NY. One day he was struck by a drunk driver, and was nearly killed. He was in a coma and spent months in the hospital. He was left with many physical disabilities and memory problems. He needed a new career, and went back to school to study the ministry. He was a minister when the terrorist attack came on 9/11. He spent 48-hour days in the heart of the crisis as a minister also trained in law enforcement. Due to the severe environmental toxins at Ground Zero, he now has severe liver damage , and is on a transplant list. He is diabetic.. has no teeth.. and can barely walk. Yet this man perseveres. I have no idea what this man sees in me, but he cares so much about me--without really knowing very much about me. He has an endless array of annoying habits. And he humbles me to the core. Who do I think I am to moan about my life disappointments? He has lived a dozen lives already in his 60 years. I've learned from him that fear of death is an egoistic mindset. It truly doesn't matter when I die. What matters is what I do right now and today to help others, and offer whatever I have to them. What gifts we each have within ourselves do not exist for our own comfort and pleasures. They exist to be used to help and connect with others. Be well.. Kristy --- On Mon, 8/30/10, Edgar Owen <edgaro...@att.net> wrote: From: Edgar Owen <edgaro...@att.net> Subject: Re: [Zen] Death To: Zen_Forum@yahoogroups.com Date: Monday, August 30, 2010, 4:55 AM DP, Why on earth would anyone be worried about death? After all you won't be around or conscious to experience it! Remember you were dead before you were born. Do you worry about not being alive before you were born? Of course not. Then why worry about being dead after you're dead? Same thing exactly. You'll be in exactly the same state, or rather no state at all. Death is entirely an illusion and an illusory fear. And even if you are still worried about death the best answer to that is simply to immerse yourself completely in the present moment and enjoy it and forget death. After all death doesn't exist. That is your death will never exist for you. All that will ever exist for you is life! Edgar On Aug 29, 2010, at 9:11 PM, DP wrote: I will check them out. I appreciate your words. I guess I was frustrated with other zen groups, where I only received vague platitudes and rhetorical questions along the lines of "why be afraid of death?" Which I understand but have a problem implementing. --- In Zen_Forum@yahoogroups.com, Rose P <things_r...@...> wrote: > > Hi DP >  > I've read your posts and the replies you've gotten with interest. I don't > have much information, zen wise, to offer with regards death and the fear of > it, although I do *get* where you're coming from. Some of the others will > hopefully post on this subject perhaps. What I have found extremely useful > is the site www.dharmaseed.org. I try to listen to at least one talk a day. > In terms of repetitive, troublesome thoughts, there are some fairly good > talks given by a teacher called Gloria Ambrosia. I've only been using the > site for a month or so, so I'm sure there's a wealth of other stuff on there > that could be checked out, and might be of some use. >  > Take care, >  > Rose >  > > > --- On Sun, 8/29/10, DP <dave.dplat...@...> wrote: > > > From: DP <dave.dplat...@...> > Subject: [Zen] Death > To: Zen_Forum@yahoogroups.com > Date: Sunday, August 29, 2010, 2:59 PM > > >  > > > > ARe there any good meditations I can do which helps me deal with my fear of > death? I just finished Thich Nhat Hanh's No Death No Fear, and I liked it, > but I feel such a hard time getting around the idea of continuance - it's too > much for my materialist mind. So maybe I need a different tack... > > How do I confront the reality of death with the aim towards lessening my fear > of this? >