Stories about last words
2 Buddhist wisdom stories about last words from Buddhist teachers, each linked to the original talk.
- Fifteen minutes of goodbyes from a brain-tumour comaStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: As reported (Ajahn Brahm recalls) in a Time magazine issue on the mind, a US patient with an aggressive brain tumour lies in a coma for days; against the prognosis he opens his…
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there was an even better example which was in uh a Time Magazine of all things article on the mind this was the most amazing uh time when the Mind separated from the brain I think it was so we did have a copy of this in our Monastery I think 2009 or 10 or something January Edition Time Magazine the mind but anyway there was a doctor over in the United States was treating a person with brain tumor and it was a very aggressive tumor and he was uh in hospital just waiting for the end in a coma for many days because apparently the brain tumor just grows and takes over the other part of the brain until there's nothing left know for a person to be able to speak all higher brain functions disappear and eventually the last part of the brain is just used for keeping the body alive for doing the the basic functions of breathing and keeping the heart going and the other organs going but as soon there's no capacity left in the brain to do anything and that's when the person dies so the fellow would being UNC ious for a long time and the doctor told him what the prognosis was you go into this coma and never come out again but this person did come out he just again opened his eyes he bent up but this fellow talked to his family for 15 minutes saying their last goodbyes for 15 minutes he was totally clear before he died and the doctor was totally amazed it couldn't have happened but it did because by that time there's nothing left in the brain to perform such functions
- “We love you, Dad”Story · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Two daughters sit holding their comatose father's hands in a Perth hospital. After his last breath he opens his eyes, sits up and looks at them; in unplanned unison they say “We…
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there's a person who comes here regular I'm not sure if they're here tonight they told me the story of they were with their father here in Perth he was dying and she was with her sister that was sitting on either side of the bed holding their father's hand he was in a coma hadn't sort of spoken for many many hours or a day or two I'm not sure and they were just waiting for him to die just waiting for that last breath to go out and not come in again holding his hand and of course you never know when that moment's going to happen I've been there with people and sometimes you're waiting there for hours and they seem as if their last breath and you think that's it and then suddenly they breathe in again and at this particular case it was his last breath he stopped breathing but then he opened his eyes and he leaned up from his bed and looked around at his two sisters on either two daughters on either side and they said that without any plan they said in perfect synchronicity we love you Dad and then he closed his eyes and passed away but what really would took their uh took them by surprise was that even though he was been in a coma for such a long time even though he was not supposed to be able to see or feel the last minute he did he looked them in the eye and they could speak to him the last words