The Great Liberation upon Hearing: The
Signs and Omens of Death Tibetan: Zab
chos zhi khro dgongs pa rang grol las
thos grol chen moâi skor: ÎChi ltas
mtshan ma rang grol Paro, Bhutan,
1976. I(Bhu)-Tib-82; 76-905033. [folios
131-155]
According to the literature associated
with Karma Lingpa's Great Liberation
upon Hearing, death occurs as a result
of one of three causes: reaching the end
of one's lifespan, exhausting one's
meritorious energy, or meeting with an
untimely event, such as a sudden
accident. Each of these three causes has
its own specific antidote, which means
that in many cases death can be avoided
by applying the appropriate method.
Before applying such an antidote,
however, it is necessary to know
precisely when the death will occur.
Knowledge of this sort requires skill in
reading the signs indicating that death
is near. The small work entitled The
Signs and Omens of Death is used for
this very purpose. The text describes
the variety of death omens in extensive
detail, organizing them into three
categories: external, internal, and
secret signs. The external omens are
read by observing the condition of the
body; the internal signs, by observing
the breath and the individual's dreams;
and the secret signs, by examining his
or her bodily (and especially sexual)
fluids. To gain some idea of the nature
of these often peculiar signs, we should
mention just a few examples. According
to Karma Lingpa, if the discharge from a
person's genitals is blackish or
reversed, that is if blood comes from a
man and semen from a woman, death will
occur in one month. If a person presses
a finger against his or her eye and does
not see light, cups his or her hand over
the ears and does not hear a 'whirring'
sound, or holds his or her arms out in
front and they seem to disappear, these
are all signs that the individual will
die in less than four weeks. Other such
signs include suddenly encountering
creatures with terrifying forms,
experiencing bodily shivers, seeing
stars during the day and sunlight at
night, or seeing red flowers while
riding backwards on a donkey in one's
dreams.
