The beginning is always today.
Mary Wollstonecraft~
Last Friday was our dog Kasha's Nine-Night, a day recognized among the blacks here on this Caribbean coastline. The tradition originated in Jamaica and is still practiced today when someone dies. Three days after the death and again nine nights after the death, friends and family stay up through the night to help the dead pass along on their journey into the next world.
For Kasha's Nine-Night I placed money, a little rice, and some dog food in small dishes on my Buddhist shrine. The dishes were surrounded with figures representing the Chinese birth year of her entire family. Our hired man, José, cut fresh flowers each day, replenishing the old ones on the shrine, and incense floated across my living room throughout the week.
Saturday, around three in the morning, I awoke feeling her presence, as though she were moving off and on her way. She is missed in this world.
We now have puppies to blunt the heavy and hollow feeling of loss. Partly we need a replacement watchdog in this very dangerous countryside. Kashita was our primary warning shot. Partly we need companionship, and she was certainly that. We are adjusting...slowly to the new members of the family.
I will blog about puppies and house training and all of that soon.
6 comments:
I found it interesting about the third night being the beginning of showing the spirit the direction of their journey to the light. From my past experience with pets passing away, particularly dogs, their spirit tends to stick around for up to a week or longer if you allow it. By wishing them love and urging them to go with their guardian angel, they will leave to go to the light. Otherwise, they tend to hang around, and at odd moments of the day or night you will hear dog toenails on the hardwood floor, drinking sloppily at the water bowl (when there is no bowl in the kitchen and no dog in the home), dog snoring, dog feet pressing down the edge of the bed mattress as they did when needing to go outside. My last dog, Chia, comes and goes in the spirit world. I know she's around when I feel a feathery weight on my feet while I'm at the computer, a frequent spot from the past to be close whenever I worked on my stories. She comes less often, or maybe she's quieter about it.
Barbara: I love this discussion of yours. the hearing and feeling the spirit of lost animals, and particularly loved the story of your last dog, Chia, visiting you while you write. I was touched. I love seeing you at your writing desk with animal spirits surrounding you, like muses. Very nice image.
Nine-Night is an interesting ceremony and I can pretty much guarantee you that no one here would ever do that for their dog. But, it is the accepted time schedule they use for people. I quite like the ritual and have been to many Nine-Nights. The other thing I forgot to say was that during the celebration on the ninth night, food is laid out on the table, but no one eats until after midnight, when the dead are thought to pass by for a bite before going on to "the other side," as the people here call it. We did not sit up on the third night, although both Alan and I jolted awake many times during that night.
Kashita's visits to me are soft and unobtrusive, very much like her personality.
Sarah,
I'm so sorry that Kasha is no longer with you physically. I know firsthand what a void a pet's death can create. Your words are comforting to me, too, as I anticipate the death of a (human) loved one. I hope to keep them in mind when the time comes. Thanks for another important lesson in the Buddhist outlook.
I raise my cup of tea to Kasha.
Safe journey Kasha. We have always had Buddhist passing ceromonies for our pets. To me, it is acknowledges respect for a life well-lived. Even our hens. The woman next door to where I lived also kept chickens and could not understand acknowledging something so disposable. Animals deserve so much more for their service and I think it is touching that Kasha had the opportunity of a Nine-Night ceremony from you. How thoughtful.How wonderful.
Ah, Pam. I love that you bid farewell to your hens. That's so great. They do lay a lot of eggs for us, which we enjoy every morning. They should have their place of honor as well. I like that.
We are currently battling a neighbor's roosters who come onto our property before dawn every morning. He has five, which is five too many as far as I'm concerned. I wouldn't mind saying a Nine-Night prayer for THEM, but I will try to think kind thoughts about them. Ommmmm.....
Either that or buy the .22 rifle my husband keeps threatening to get. ;-)
I've thought about Kasha--and you--many times since your first post . . . I feel your loss across the mils. I guess miles are nothing when it comes to this. It's from another ream entirely.
Just talked to a friend who had to put her dog to sleep. She was telling me about the signs from beyond she's seen.
Looking forward to hearing more about the pups.
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