|
|
Article: American style dying: hey, Immortal one, your time has come! There is nothing to fear. Cling only to the freedom of peace and compassion. So says the Bardo Thodol (the Tibetan Book of the Dead).(Editorials)(Book Review)
- Article from:
- Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients
- Article date:
- June 1, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 The Townsend Letter Group. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
As I listened to the news of one woman's dying and the growing circus-like atmosphere around her, I looked through a new book, The American Book of Dying. The contrast between the history and wisdom of our ancestors as they approached death and the unknown, and the legal strategies and militant "Right to Lifers" in the mix around Terri Schiavo, could not have been greater.
First one side then the other, was interviewed on TV News, and finally, it was media saturation, feeding the fires of hysteria. Most Americans, if asked, would wish for a quick death over a lingering one, and there are many feeding tubes removed in many hospitals every day in the US. Why then, ...