The Final Moments: Caring for Patients' Mindfulness : หน้า 91/207

(Derajchanpome: Earth) a hungry ghost, a demon, or a Hell creature (Pretatume, Asurakayapome, or Narokkapume: Hell). Sugati and Duggati are the destinations of those who pass away where they must face the consequences of their actions on Earth. The final destination depends on the state of mind at the last moment, which could be one that is clouded or clear. Monks refer to this as “the War of Existence,” the precarious battle of going to sugati or duggati. Regardless of the treatment results, “The caregiver must care for the patient’s mind so that his or her mind is clear at all times. This will give the patient hope and the courage to fight the disease.” There are various ways in which the caregiver can give a patient courage: 1) Keep them away from worries. Do not let them hear about the damage of property, their children’s problems, or anything that might disturb them. 2) Bring their mind to a state of happiness by reminding them of the merits they made. Talk about the meritorious deeds that the patient performed, such as ordaining as a monk, offering the Kathina robes or other robes, providing support to social institutions, or giving aid to other people. 3) Encourage them to perform new merits depending on their capability. Invite them to be generous by offering alms to monks every day. If they cannot get up, invite the monks to receive alms inside the house. If this is not convenient, allow the patient to make a resolution with the alms, and offer the alms in the patient’s place. When the alms have been offered, tell the patient about it so that they will be delighted. 4) Persuade them to strictly observe the 5 Precepts. They should not kill even an ant or a mosquito. 5) Invite them to meditate. This is very important. You could have the patient listen to a chanting tape or a Dhamma tape by a monk that the patient respects. You can read Dhamma books to the patient. If you can do this every day, the patient might have enough merit to be cured, because the power of the old merit augments the new merit s/he performs. If the patient has no more merits and it is time for him/her to depart, the patient will go to a fortunate realm because s/he maintained a clear mind before passing away. Bringing a patient to this state requires the caregiver to be immersed in merit and to make resolutions (with the power of the past merit the patient made) for the patient’s protection against his/her disease. This will help improve the results of the patient’s treatment. In conclusion, the final second in a patient’s life is very significant because that is when we can help them win the