Readings for When You Couldn't Be There

Dry Your Tears

Dry your tears, my friends, and raise your heads as the flowers raise their crowns to greet the dawn.

Look at the bride of Death standing like a column of light between my bed and the infinite;

Hold your breath and listen with me to the beckoning rustle of her white wings.

From "The Beauty of Death" by Kahlil Gibran

From the Chaplet of Divine Mercy

Eternal God, in whom mercy is endless and the treasury
of compassion inexhaustible, look kindly upon us and
increase Your mercy in us, that in difficult moments we
might not despair nor become despondent, but with
great confidence submit ourselves to Your holy will,
which is Love and Mercy itself.

The End of the Journey

The traveler has reached the end of the journey. In the freedom of the Infinite, she is free from all sorrows, the fetters that found her are thrown away, and the burning fever of life is no more. She is calm like the earth that endures; she is stead like a column that is firm; she is pure like a lake that is clear. In the light of her vision, she has found her freedom; her thoughts are peace, her words are peace, and her work is peace. —From Infinite Freedom, Chapter Seven of The Dharmapada.

May the Arms of God

May the arms of God raise her from the darkness of this planets'

earth and surround her with light; If she is thirsty, give her water in the clearing.  

If she is hungry, give her food in the clearing. 

May her life on this Earth and the pain of her passing

become as a dream to her waking soul, and let her eyes fall upon every lovely sight;

let her find her family and friends that have been lost to her, and let everyone whose name she calls call her in return. 

Parting Words at Departure

May you be free of fear, and know you are cared for. May you be free of concern, and rest in peacefulness. May your body and mind be free of pain, and may your spirit find comfort. Know you are a precious child/son/da”

from Man’s Search for Meaning

Love goes very far beyond the physical person of the beloved. It finds its deepest meaning in the spiritual being, his inner self. Whether or not he is actually present, whether or not he is still alive at all, ceases to be of importance.

—Victor Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning