Skillful Reflections – Monk Nalaka

At the moment before death, everyone will encounter rapid, spontaneous reflections consisting of mostly memories of various experiences, based on your collective past actions (karma). Memories become more and more dominant and poignant as we age because life becomes more about reflections and less about a conscious imagination of one’s future. This is not to say that people aren’t concerned about their destination, at the moment of death—especially if one believes that the end of this human existence is not the ultimate end of Being or total cessation of consciousness?!  

For most people, death will be approached as a series of unpleasant, deeply unsettling,  shameful memories and, a sense of regret for not having had enough stainless experiences. But what is a stainless experience?

A stainless experience is a segment of consciousness not associated with shame (wishing an action wouldn’t have occurred) or longings ( a wish to do what was left undone). For example,  a stainless experience is a moment of genuine, unconditional love for family, friends and other living beings, expressed via speech, a deed or a mental action such as a kind thought or wholesome imagination. 

You can’t take anything with you beyond death but you will definitely die encountering the content of your own mind—with no ability to turn off your mind’s streaming network. So let the wise among you cultivate a life that culminates in a stainless, lucid, and beautiful stream of consciousness.

Live well, with no regrets!