# How to Provide Proper End-of-Life Care

---A teaching at the End-of-Life Chanting Assistance Training, 2016

Master Jiqun

- I. End-of-Life Chanting Assistance and the Three-Stage Practice
- II. Understanding the Truth of Death
- III. Psychological Guidance
- IV. Matters Related to Chanting Assistance
- V. Supportive Conditions for Rebirth
- VI. Conclusion

End-of-life chanting assistance is one of the Academy's charitable projects, currently offered primarily to its members and their immediate family. Every training session on this topic draws enthusiastic participation, which reflects a need felt by many families and indeed by society at large. Birth, aging, illness, and death are the four great events of human life. Chinese society in particular has now crossed the threshold into population aging, and the trend is still deepening. The World Health Organization projects that by 2050, 35% of China's population will be over sixty, making it the world's most severely aged nation.\
From another angle, most modern people are preoccupied with material pursuits. They lack a life of faith and care for where the heart finds its true home. When they are young, busy with work and family, they may not feel this acutely; but in old age, with nothing to do, the impoverishment of their inner life becomes starkly apparent. That is why society at large is calling for care of "empty-nest elders." This is certainly worth advocating, but I believe that what is more terrifying than one's children being far away is the emptiness within --- having nothing to lean on. In truth, this void cannot be filled by any amount of companionship. Companionship can only offer temporary consolation --- using familial affection to shift or dilute the fear of approaching death.\
Compared with aging, the simultaneous approach of death is an even more bewildering, disorienting subject that people avoid at all costs. In our default assumptions, death is simply the end and disappearance of this phase of life. But does death really mean extinction, like a lamp going out? Is there an unknown realm after all? How does one walk the final stage of life with dignity? How does one prepare for this? And how should one accept aging and face illness --- with what state of mind? All of these are topics we need to study together.\
The Academy is a study and practice community that provides its members with effective guidance and a supportive environment. The role of its charitable work is, above all, to strengthen the community's cohesion and shared purpose, while offering everyone a platform for putting bodhicitta into practice --- benefiting others to deepen one's study, and deepening one's study to better benefit others. This is the cultivation of wisdom and compassion, each supporting and elevating the other. As for this training, I have looked over the PPT prepared by the Charity Committee. On the whole it is quite comprehensive and represents our volunteers' long-term exploration --- truly worthy of rejoicing. I will now speak on this basis and share some thoughts with you all.

## I. End-of-Life Chanting Assistance and the Three-Stage Practice

We usually regard end-of-life chanting assistance as an altruistic act of charity. In fact, it also has a close connection with the Three-Stage Practice, for it can help us arouse and strengthen our mindfulness of death. In the *Lamrim*, mindfulness of death is both an important preliminary practice and an indispensable main practice. From the Path for Persons of Small Capacity --- giving rise to a mind that seeks refuge in the Three Jewels --- through the Path for Persons of Medium Capacity --- giving rise to a mind of renunciation from cyclic existence --- to the Path for Persons of Great Capacity --- severing self-grasping and vowing to benefit others, one can say that mindfulness of death runs through the entire bodhisattva path.\
Yet our usual mindfulness of death tends to stay at the theoretical level: death is certain; the time of death is uncertain; at death, nothing helps except the Dharma... We seem to know these truths, but can we really bring our mindfulness of death to the fore? It is not easy. We clearly know that death is inevitable, yet beyond mentioning it in passing, we may not feel much about it, and find it even harder to give rise to a sense of urgency. Participating in end-of-life care and chanting assistance, however, requires facing death at close range. This impact is tangible; it interprets the Dharma for us in a living way, reminding us that this very moment will also come to us.\
The Tibetan master Pabongkhapa composed a long poem called *Heart Spoon*, which is about how to be mindful of death. It is also a detailed guide for analytical meditation from multiple angles and in all dimensions. I have cited it in my teachings on the *Lamrim* and hope everyone will recite it often --- it can serve as a sharp blow to the head. We are always accustomed to believing there is still tomorrow, tomorrow after tomorrow, and so while studying the Dharma, we spend even more time recalling the five desires and six dusts, chasing after flowers in the mirror and the moon on the water. But one day, death arrives faster than tomorrow --- suddenly, you must leave at once. What then? Are we prepared? Of everything we have striven for in this life, what can we take with us? If we can truly bring forth our mindfulness of death, we will naturally practice with diligence and naturally take the Three Jewels as our sole refuge --- because at that moment, family, career, and wealth are things we cannot hold onto and cannot help us.\
For the practice of mindfulness of death, end-of-life chanting assistance is a real-world exercise that brings learning and contemplation down to earth. It is an effective and powerful supportive condition. At the same time, it helps us cultivate the altruistic mind. At that critical moment when a life faces the question of where to go next, we participate in chanting assistance with a mind of compassion. We are not only offering the dying person (or the deceased) the last help they can receive in this life, but this help will also directly affect the future direction of that life. Think about it and you will see how profoundly meaningful this is. On the journey of life, many choices affect one's destiny for a lifetime. But the choice with the greatest impact is none other than the choice made at the juncture of life and death. It is an ending, but even more so a new beginning, and it bears directly on the future direction of that life.\
In terms of practical results, leaving aside the benefit received by the deceased and their family (see the end-of-life care section of the Academy's website for relevant cases), the chanting assistants themselves often become more diligent in their study and practice, and more gentle in their mental states as a result of participating in this charitable activity. At the same time, it strengthens the cohesion of the entire class. Clearly, benefiting others and benefiting oneself are indeed united: when we resolve to benefit others with a sincere heart, we ourselves become the first beneficiaries. The more genuine and thorough this resolve, the greater the benefit we receive accordingly.

## II. Understanding the Truth of Death

How do we provide proper end-of-life chanting assistance? This requires some understanding of death --- knowing what issues arise at each stage, how to respond, and how to guide the dying person (or the deceased). In traditional Chinese culture, death is a subject to be avoided, so we rarely receive education on how to view death, much less on how to help those struggling at the threshold of life and death. The problem is that this is an outcome everyone must face --- avoidance can only set it aside, not resolve it. Buddhism, by contrast, places its emphasis on understanding life and death, transcending cyclic existence, and moving toward liberation. In this respect it fills a significant gap in Chinese culture.\
Buddhism holds that one phase of life consists of four stages. The first is birth existence --- the moment of taking rebirth. The second is life existence --- the entire course of this life excluding the moments of birth and death. The third is death existence --- the instant of dying. The fourth is intermediate existence --- the bardo state between the death of this life and the birth of the next. This is the part that many people find most mysterious and most difficult to understand. To put it simply, the intermediate existence is a transitional period, like the idle interval after resigning from a job --- the old position is already lost and a new one has not yet been found. As for what kind of work one can begin next, this certainly relates to one's abilities and other factors, but to a great extent it also depends on whether one can seize the opportunity during this transitional phase and turn one's destiny around.\
The intermediate existence, also called bardo, is extensively documented in the Buddhist scriptures. The *Yogacarabhumi-Sastra* states: "Further, this intermediate existence, if it has not yet obtained the conditions for rebirth, lasts for a maximum of seven days. If it obtains the conditions for rebirth, the duration is not fixed. If after a maximum of seven days it has not obtained the conditions for rebirth, it dies and is reborn again, lasting for a maximum of seven days. In this way, revolving again and again, if it has not obtained the conditions for rebirth, it will continue for up to seven times seven days. After this, it will definitely obtain the conditions for rebirth." The lifespan of the bardo being is measured in seven-day cycles. If the causes and conditions for rebirth appear during this period, it will enter birth existence from intermediate existence and begin the next phase of life. But rebirth is not a matter of wishful thinking. Whether one can be reborn, and where, depends on whether these causes and conditions have matured. Some people have especially strong good karma or especially strong bad karma and may be reborn very quickly. If the conditions for rebirth are absent, after seven days the bardo being will die and be reborn once, continuing to seek an opportunity. But within a maximum of seven cycles --- that is, forty-nine days --- it will certainly find a place of rebirth.\
What end-of-life chanting assistance does is to help the person bring forth and sustain right mindfulness before death and then, during the bardo stage, to make an accurate choice, transforming the course of drifting with karma and even gaining the opportunity to be reborn in the Pure Land. So, what are the main forces that determine where one takes rebirth?\
The first is going with weight --- it depends on the relative weight of one's karma. At the time of rebirth, whichever karmic force is heaviest will determine one's direction. It is like a tree falling: it leans toward whichever branch is the thickest. Across life after life in cyclic existence, every being has committed unwholesome deeds and also cultivated wholesome ones. At this moment, these karmic forces determine the future direction of that life. When the retribution of the heavy karma is exhausted, the lighter karma is then experienced in turn.\
The second is going with habit --- it depends on one's habitual tendencies built up over time. These are habits cultivated over long periods: whatever one likes, one will choose, thereby evoking the corresponding life trajectory. Especially for those who have done no particularly great good or great evil, the power of habitual tendencies will manifest even more prominently.\
The third is going with thought --- it depends on the mental state at the time of death. This is similar to what we would call on-the-spot performance. For instance, someone may have conducted themselves well in daily life, but at the moment of death they encounter adverse conditions and give rise to intense anger, potentially falling into the animal realm or hell realm. Conversely, through the wholesome condition of chanting assistance, if the person gives rise to a wholesome mind at the time of death, they may be guided toward a good realm or even be reborn in the Pure Land. This is why the final thought is so critically important. It is like having many boats before us --- this boat leads to the heavenly realms, this boat leads to the human realm, this boat leads to the hells... whichever boat you step onto will carry you in that direction. Very likely, a single thought at this juncture can send a life in an entirely different direction. Because this thought arises at the most pivotal moment, its effect is especially powerful. These days, many people's final moments are truly tragic: either children quarrel over inheritance and turn against one another; or family members wail and weep, only adding to attachment; or they lie in a hospital with tubes everywhere, tormented until death... Under such circumstances, what kind of "final thought" would arise, and where would it lead?\
This is why psychological guidance is especially important in end-of-life care. In recent years, places such as Taiwan have begun to promote palliative care --- providing psychological support to patients with terminal illnesses and no prospect of cure, so that in the final stage of life their hearts have a place to rest and they may attain a good death. This is not only a benefit for the dying but also comfort and guidance for their families. In this respect, Buddhism indeed has a unique and profound advantage.\
This is because all three major traditions of Buddhism, down to each of its schools and lineages, possess complete theoretical systems and practical experience concerning the matter of life and death. These views and practices are not products of abstract speculation but were personally verified by Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and great masters through their practice, and have been emulated and confirmed by generations of Buddhist disciples --- they are genuinely practicable. Furthermore, Mahayana practitioners take compassion and benefiting the world as their own responsibility. Extending a helping hand to the deceased, enabling them to leave suffering and attain happiness, is an inescapable mission. In addition, Buddhism's Pure Land path takes Buddha-name recitation and rebirth as its central practice. Over more than a thousand years of transmission, generations of eminent masters have emerged, leaving behind extensive teachings on both the theoretical framework and practical guidance, and it commands broad influence and a vast base of followers.

## III. Psychological Guidance

Death is terrifying mainly for two reasons. One is clinging to life --- a reluctance to let go of everything one currently possesses. The other is fear of death --- not knowing where one will go in the future. One is unwilling to part, yet part one must; one does not wish to die, yet die one must. For those without religious faith, when they are young they may brush it off with "death is like a lamp going out," but when death truly looms near, are they really without fear? In reality, we see all kinds of manifestations: terror, anxiety, despondency... Those who are not afraid are either fearless out of ignorance or simply numb. So from what angles should we guide the dying person so that their mind is no longer bewildered and can find its true home?\
First, we must help the dying person recognize that birth, aging, illness, and death are natural laws. Just as spring goes and autumn comes, just as the four seasons cycle, human life too unfolds in this recurring rhythm of cyclic existence. Before us, countless people have died; after us, countless more will die. One could say that birth already determines the outcome of death. This is a reality occurring around us at every moment, and no one can escape it. Therefore, what we should focus on is not "I am going to die," but rather how to die and how to begin a new journey of life.\
Second, we must help the dying person resolve the panic over where they are heading. Before we prepare to step in and provide end-of-life care, we need to know something about the recipient --- especially what good deeds and charitable acts they have done, and what admirable qualities they possess. In this way, we can guide them to give rise to a wholesome mind by recalling these good deeds, and then to rest in wholesome thoughts. Even if these good deeds are very small, we must find ways to evoke them and channel them in a positive direction, allowing the person to build confidence about the future and to find joy and inspiration in a good rebirth. The precepts also say that when a practitioner is facing death, one should offer praise and commendation tailored to their daily conduct. For example, if the person practiced asceticism, or recited sutras, observed precepts, taught the Dharma, meditated, or managed monastic affairs, one should praise them according to the merit of their practice so that they "recollect the merit they have cultivated and contemplate their pure livelihood, giving rise to no sorrow or distress." The Vinaya also records that according to Indian custom, whether monastic or lay, when someone was approaching death, the relatives and friends keeping vigil would, before the person's sense faculties failed, recount for them the good deeds they had performed in this life, so that the sick person's mind would be gladdened, their right mindfulness undisturbed, and they would be reborn in a good realm.\
Third, we must help the dying person establish an ultimate spiritual home. If the dying person already has faith in Buddhism, or at least a favorable disposition toward it even without faith, we can guide them to learn about the magnificence of the Western Pure Land, about the merits of Amitabha Buddha and his forty-eight great vows. Help the dying person believe that as long as they wholeheartedly recollect Amitabha Buddha, their minds in mutual resonance, they will receive the Buddha's protection and blessing. When a person is at the threshold of death, it is like struggling in water until body and mind are utterly exhausted, longing only to grasp hold of something as a support --- this makes it easier to give rise to a mind of reliance. Even if they had little faith before, at this moment, because they are full of fear about the future, as long as we guide them properly and skillfully, they may still give rise to genuine faith and earnest aspiration toward Amitabha Buddha, holding tightly to the Buddha's name, resonating with the Buddha's great compassion, and being embraced by the power of his great vows.\
Once these psychological foundations are in place, we must beseech Amitabha Buddha, Guanyin Bodhisattva, Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva, and all the Buddhas and bodhisattvas of the ten directions for their compassionate embrace, so that the dying person may be freed from fear. We then remind them: your life will soon come to an end; Amitabha Buddha is your sole reliance. You must recollect him with utmost sincerity and devotedly take refuge in him. Next, we tell the dying person that during the process of taking rebirth in the bardo state, all kinds of images and appearances will manifest. Whatever you are drawn to, that is what will appear. But these states often arise from the habitual tendencies of greed, anger, and ignorance. They may be connected with the hell realms, with the hungry ghost realm, or with the animal realm. Therefore, you must never be swayed by these appearances. You must rest firmly in the Buddha's name and recollect Amitabha single-mindedly.\
At present, the Academy's end-of-life chanting assistance is mainly directed at the family members of our members. Since these people have not yet entered the Three-Stage Practice, the emphasis is on recollecting Amitabha's sacred name and vowing to be reborn in the Western Pure Land. When it comes to Academy members themselves, we can guide them by chanting the "Three Refuges" so they may rest in the merit of the Three Jewels. In addition, we must remind the dying person not to forget the bodhicitta vows they once made --- to rest in the powerful force of that bodhicitta resolve, awaken oneself and others, never retreating.

## IV. Matters Related to Chanting Assistance

There are generally two scenarios for chanting assistance: one is stepping in before the person is dying, and the other is participating after they have passed away. In the former case, various issues such as changes in the patient's condition may arise. This calls for proper arrangements based on the patient's state, together with an assessment of the chanting assistants' own circumstances, so that the effort does not lose momentum or become unsustainable. Since this is a regular charitable activity, it must be undertaken according to everyone's available time and energy; otherwise it will be difficult to sustain in the long term.\
For the dying person, physical suffering and mental suffering are often intertwined. And in many cases, mental suffering can far outweigh physical suffering. This is especially true for those with terminal illnesses: after learning of their condition, most are burdened with a heavy psychological load that aggravates the illness and plunges them into a vicious cycle in which physical and mental suffering continually reinforce each other. Under such circumstances, we need to guide the person from their own perspective. All beings cling to life and fear death. Except for practitioners who wholeheartedly aspire to be reborn in the Pure Land, we need not start directly with the topic of rebirth for others. Instead, we can share the benefits of Buddha-name recitation from the angle of eliminating karmic obstacles and alleviating the suffering of illness.\
For instance, if someone is especially terrified of death and you tell them, "Hurry up and recite the Buddha's name to be reborn in the Pure Land," they will naturally resist it. It would be better to first tell them that reciting the Buddha's name can invoke the Buddha's protection, dispel calamities, and prolong life. Once they accept this, you can then tell them, as appropriate, that if your time to die has not yet come, reciting the Buddha's name can bring you longevity; if your time has come, reciting the Buddha's name can lead you to be reborn in the Land of Ultimate Bliss. In short, whether you live or die, reciting the Buddha's name brings extraordinary benefit.\
At the same time, we must find ways to encourage family members to join the dying person in reciting the Buddha's name. For the dying person, this is not only the comfort of sharing hardship together, but also the strength of fighting side by side. These arrangements can, on the one hand, reduce the burden on the chanting assistants so that volunteers are not overstretched; on the other hand, they can edify the family members and become an occasion for them to encounter the Buddhadharma. Because of their usual indifference to aging, illness, and death, many family members are psychologically unprepared. Once a family member is seriously ill or dying, they are thrown into confusion, not knowing what to do. At such a time, if we guide them properly --- appealing to both heart and reason --- it is still relatively easy for them to accept.\
When we go to the actual location to offer chanting assistance, we must also pay attention to our outward appearance and manner of communication. First, we should assess the venue and consider what identity to present, what clothing to wear, and what approach the recipients will find more acceptable --- we need not always wear the uniform attire or the Academy jacket. In verbal communication as well, we should adjust according to the actual situation. For example, in forms of address, should we use Buddhist terms of address or those common in everyday society? For Buddhists, we can communicate freely using Dharma language; but for those who have not studied the Dharma, we should minimize the religious coloring as much as possible and care for them on the psychological level. Furthermore, we should communicate according to whether the person is prepared for death, and while trying as much as possible not to touch upon sensitive topics, gradually bring them into the context that needs to be addressed.\
In addition, the environment for chanting assistance is very important. The space should be swept clean. A dignified Buddha image should be enshrined, with its size chosen according to the setting, so that the dying person has a tangible sense of the Buddha and bodhisattvas and thereby gives rise to a mind of reverence, respect, and reliance. Offerings such as incense, flowers, lamps, water, and fruit may be arranged as appropriate. If the venue is a public space, try to keep things low-key to avoid creating adverse conditions.\
In chanting, aspects such as the tone, volume, and tempo should all respect the recipient's habits --- do not proceed in a self-centered way. Especially for those at the final moment, one must observe carefully and make proper arrangements according to the person's physical strength and degree of receptivity, never allowing the dying person or their family to give rise to affliction. If you are participating after the recipient has passed away, first decide on the duration of chanting assistance based on factors such as the number and stamina of the volunteers involved --- for example, whether to continue for eight hours or longer, whether to proceed continuously day and night, and so on --- and then arrange a rotation schedule. Usually, groups of four are suitable; otherwise, the chanting power may be insufficient. In assigning personnel, pay attention to pairing experienced chanting assistants with newcomers. At the same time, guide and encourage family members to participate, for this is the final help they can offer their loved one. Do not let them miss this opportunity and later be filled with regret. When manpower is insufficient, a Buddha-name recitation device can be used to chant together.\
The effectiveness of chanting assistance depends to a great extent on the faith that the dying person and the participants have in Amitabha Buddha. Among faith, vow, and practice, faith comes first. Therefore, before the chanting begins, we should first proclaim the power of Amitabha Buddha's vows and merits, enabling everyone to give rise to a mind of sincere refuge in Amitabha Buddha and a mind of boundless yearning for the Western Pure Land. When one chants with such faith, the chanting will be genuine, thorough, and powerful. Otherwise, if one's faith in Amitabha Buddha is half-hearted and one's attitude toward the Western Pure Land is "go or not, either way," then even if one chants along with the group, what power does it carry? Likewise, if reciting the Three Refuges, we should first proclaim the merits of the Three Jewels. Only when the mind is properly attuned can each utterance of the Buddha's name become the provisions for liberation.

## V. Supportive Conditions for Rebirth

Beyond chanting assistance, there are certain matters requiring special attention after the deceased has passed away. For instance, many families, when arranging funeral rites, lay on lavish meat banquets, taking life and causing death, thinking this shows proper grandeur. They are unaware that this karma of killing brings tremendous harm to both themselves and the deceased. We must communicate with the family skillfully, helping them understand the dangers of killing and what is truly beneficial to the deceased. Guide them to take the money that would have been squandered on extravagance and use it instead to perform extensive good deeds, dedicating the merit to the deceased. The forty-nine days after death are especially crucial, for the bardo being may not yet have taken rebirth or determined its destination. The merit created during this period may take immediate effect and become the direct force that determines where the being will go.\
The Ullambana ceremony we are all familiar with originated from Venerable Maudgalyayana's deliverance of his deceased mother. Because his mother had created extremely heavy karma during her life, she fell into the hungry ghost realm after death. Although the Venerable was foremost among the Buddha's disciples in spiritual powers, he was powerless to save his mother and could only beseech the Buddha for help. The Buddha instructed him to make offerings of food and drink of a hundred flavors to the Sangha on the fifteenth day of the seventh month --- the day of Pavarana, when the monastic community completes its three-month rains retreat. Through the merit of this offering, his mother was able to leave suffering and attain happiness. The day of Pavarana is when the Sangha, having begun their rains retreat on the fifteenth day of the fourth month and practiced diligently for three months, reaches completion. On this day, humans and devas offer praise and all Buddhas rejoice, so the merit of making offerings to the Sangha on this day is especially great. The *Ullambana Sutra* states: "Those disciples of the Buddha who cultivate filial conduct should, thought after thought, recollect their parents, extending to parents of seven lives past. Each year on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, they should always, with filial love and compassion, remember the parents who gave them birth and make an Ullambana offering to the Buddha and Sangha, thereby repaying the kindness of their parents who raised them with loving care." This is true filial piety, and true benefit to the deceased.\
The *Sutra of the Fundamental Vows of the Bodhisattva Kṣitigarbha* tells us: "If, furthermore, within forty-nine days after death, one can extensively create abundant good deeds on their behalf, this can enable those beings to forever leave the evil realms and be reborn among humans and devas, receiving supreme and wondrous happiness." "Extensively creating abundant good deeds" may mean releasing living beings, sponsoring the printing of sutras, making offerings to the Three Jewels; or going to a monastery to sponsor a *pǔfó* (Buddha-name ceremony), so that monastics dedicate the merit to the deceased during morning and evening services; or giving to the poor and participating in charitable works in the name of the deceased. The key is to act swiftly, with a pure altruistic mind, and then dedicate the merit to the deceased. The sutra also records that Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva, while still on the path to enlightenment, learned that his mother was suffering in the hells and other evil realms. He gave rise to great compassion and, before the Buddhas of the ten directions, made this sincere vow: "From now until the end of hundreds of thousands of myriads of koṭis of eons, for all worlds that exist, I vow to deliver all beings suffering for their offenses in the hells and the three evil realms, causing them to leave the hells, the evil realms, the animal realm, the hungry ghost realm, and so forth. Only after all such beings undergoing karmic retribution have attained Buddhahood will I myself attain perfect awakening." This is the renowned vow, "Until the hells are empty, I shall not become a Buddha." As soon as he made this great vow, his mother was immediately liberated from suffering.\
Thus we must not only value chanting assistance but also understand what is truly beneficial to the deceased. Only then can we bring together all favorable conditions and help them walk well the final stretch of this life.

## VI. Conclusion

Participating in chanting assistance is a practice of bodhicitta. It is also a way for us to preview in advance the important life lesson of death, guiding us to use this occasion to give rise to a genuine mindfulness of death, to a sense of urgency --- "practice diligence as though putting out a fire on your head" --- and to a mind of taking refuge and reliance in the Three Jewels. It is a precious opportunity to benefit both ourselves and others! If we regard chanting assistance merely as charity and do not connect it with our own study and practice, we will easily become weary or retreat in the face of setbacks. If, however, we can combine the two, then chanting assistance is not only an altruistic act of goodness but also an opportunity for our own mental growth. In this way, we will cherish every opportunity to offer chanting assistance rather than grow tired of it; we will feel gratitude for the life-demonstration of the deceased rather than treating it as a task to complete.\
Once our mental attitude is properly attuned, we can go further in learning the various matters related to chanting assistance, including how to offer psychological guidance and how to chant properly. More importantly, after each session of chanting assistance, we should continuously reflect on our experience and learn the lessons. Let chanting assistance become a collective practice of bodhicitta. May all beings, sheltered by the compassionate light of the Three Jewels, receive the Buddha's blessing and protection, leave suffering, and attain happiness.
