Tibetan Buddhism and the Resolution of Grief: The Bardo-Thodol for the Dying and the Grieving

Abstract

This article is a contribution to the cross-cultural study of grief. The Bardo-thodol (sometimes translated the Tibetan Book of the Dead) and the ritual associated with it provides a way to understand how Buddhism in Tibetan culture manages the issues associated with what is called grief in Western psychology. The resolution of grief in the survivors is intertwined with the journey to rebirth of the deceased. The present article describes (a) the progression of the deceased, (b) the rituals by which survivors separate from the physical incarnation of the deceased, (c) how, by channeling the feelings of grief to support the progress of the deceased, grief is brought to a positive resolution, and (d) the continuing bond survivors maintain with the dead even though the dead has moved on to the next life.

Destruction, Catharsis, and Emotional Release in Human-Robot Interaction

“…In this tradition, the human corpse is dismembered and placed on a mountaintop to decompose and be eaten by vultures. Although this practice may initially seem grotesque to some people, the intention of the ritual is to illustrate the impermanence of life, and encourage one last act of generosity from which nature can grow [42]. In both cases, among others, destruction is a necessary and inevitable step toward creation and revival.…”

Facilitating Transitions: Postmortem Processing of the Dead at the Carrowkeel Passage Tomb Complex, Ireland (3500–3000 cal. B.C.)

“…In addition, the practice may also have helped the survivors to come to terms with their loss. Goss and Klass (1997) have discussed four methods of contemporary Tibetan death ritualssky rituals (exposure), cremation, ground burial (inhumation) and water burial as different means for the dead to transition to other states. These post-mortem journeys involve a transference of consciousness which is aided and facilitated by the surviving relatives and the living community who perform these rites.…”

Meditation trips: A thematic analysis of the combined naturalistic use of psychedelics with meditation practices.

“…Other parallels include psychedelic-induced ego-dissolution on the one hand, and similar (though usually milder) "hypo-egoic" states experienced during meditative practices (Leary et al, 2006). Either by design (Buddhist rituals, teachings, and meditative practices; Goss & Klass, 1997) or coincidence (psychedelics; Moreton et al, 2020) both can involve confrontation with mortality and may in fact help to ease existential anxieties. Importantly, both meditative practices and psychedelic use have extended beyond traditional spiritual or ritualistic settings, into Western medical and psychotherapeutic settings.…”