Buddhist Chaplaincy Resources
Updated: Oct 15
About Buddhism
The 2021 Canadian census recorded 356,975 Buddhists, representing 1% of Canada's population. Buddhism has been practiced in Canada for more than a century. A substantial expansion of Buddhism in Canada began in the 1970s. Changes in Canadian immigration and refugee policies corresponded to increasing communities from South, Southeast, and East Asian nations with Buddhist traditions.
Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and philosophy based on teachings attributed to the Buddha, a religious teacher who lived in the 6th or 5th century BCE. It is the fourth-largest religion in the world, with about 320 million followers.
Attitudes to death
Buddhists wish to have full information about their death to enable them to
make their own preparations.
Believe in reincarnation and karma, and that death is the beginning of new life.
Rituals are done at the deathbed to promote a favourable rebirth.
If possible, a monk or nun should be present. Friends and family may repeat
chants to calm the patient’s mind.
Buddhists may refuse pain medicine to remain mindful. Dietary and modesty
rules vary among Buddhists.
The patient may request shrines, pictures, prayer beads, and other objects of
devotion be in their room.
The body must be kept cold and should be cleansed and dressed in their
everyday clothes.
Cremation is the preferred choice.
Once the person has died, their body should not be touched, moved, or
disturbed for at least four hours. They believe the soul doesn’t leave the body
right away.
Buddhist resources for hospice chaplains
End-of-Life-Care and Grief Counselling Education Resources - Applied Buddhism Canada
Buddhist Practice Resources - Applied Buddhism Canada
Buddhist Funerals - Funeral Partners
Buddhist End-of-Life-Care Practices - Crossroads Hospice
Spiritual and religious needs of people at the end of life - St Nicholas Hospice (PDF)
Buddhist Chaplaincy - Buddhist Religious Care (Edition 2, forthcoming), by Rahubadde Sarath-Chandra & Tanuja Yasanga Sarath-Chandra, Buddhist Chaplain and Buddha Dhamma Teachers. The first edition was published in 2015.
Top 7 Dhammapada Verses on Impermanence, seven short verses (e.g., Dhp 277, "All conditioned things are impermanent") with plain-English explanations and a simple reflection for each. Chaplains could use it at the bedside with Buddhist patients and families in palliative care, or carers could use it for their own reflection.
Sutta 423 shows one Dhammapada verse a day in plain English, free to read with no ads. (The article and daily verse are free; the iPhone app has an optional subscription for extra features.) The Dhammapada is a short collection of 423 verses attributed to the Buddha and one of the most widely read Buddhist texts. Many Buddhists, especially in the Theravada traditions of Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos, know its verses by heart, and verses on impermanence are often recited around illness and death.
