Easy Death > Lessons in Serving the Dying (or Very Ill) > The Living Divine Light

The Living Divine Light

Scott Belanger

Scott Belanger has been a devotee of Adi Da since 1995. He created One True Water, through which he offers many different modalities of therapeutic touch, including Deep Tissue, Trigger Point, Myofascial Release, Polarity-Energy Balancing, and Reflexology. Scott's posts tell of the last days in the lifetime of his father, Serge Belanger — from December, 2016 to March, 2017 — and how Scott helped enable Adi Da's Grace to enter into his father's life in those final moments.

December 20, 2016

I'm in the family waiting room at Cooley Dickinson Hospital, after Dad had surgery for removal of a tumor. I'm getting acquainted with the state of limbo, practicing in the midst of boredom, doubt and discomfort.

Serge (my Dad) went home this afternoon, feeling stronger. After a challenging few days, it is good news that he has recovered this much, feeling more optimistic for further improvement.

Serge Belanger at home
(click picture to enlarge)

[Scott is a member of the Adidam New England community. As time passed (it was now 2017), he wrote a letter to the devotees in his community, asking them to pray for his father. Adidam communities regularly engage together in what Adi Da calls The Devotional Prayer of Changes, to invoke His Divine Power in the midst of a particular (often challenging) circumstance.] I wanted to provide an update on my father's process with cancer and make a request for help wording a new Devotional Prayer of Changes for him. My father had surgery in December which removed a large tumor on the wall of his bladder. Not all of the tumor was removed, so he was receiving chemo and radiation to treat the remaining tissue. Recently, he had been experiencing fevers which were high enough to have him go to the emergency room. He was evaluated for what was thought to be a urinary tract infection. However, once this was ruled out, a CT scan revealed that he had nodules on his lungs which his doctors think are cancerous. To completely verify if the nodules are cancerous, and if the cancer is from the bladder, a biopsy was done on his lung tissue. The results will be available within the next day or two. After the results are received he will need to discuss a new plan of action. The concern is that the cancer has metastasized and is spreading. Serge has come to a level of acceptance of the situation, and is prepared for his death transition if the cancer is untreatable. With great sadness and concern for his wife of 56 years,and how she will respond to his passing when it occurs, he has communicated to me his final wishes and requested for me to do the eulogy at his wake. All of this may be premature, depending on the results of the biopsy and decided next steps for his treatment, and his body's response. Please hold Serge in your prayers, visualizing and affirming Beloved Adi Da's Blessing serving Serge through these days, helping Serge to feel loved and supported by his family, and relaxed of all concern for "self", while feeling a growing sensitivity to his connection to the Divine Person Who is Living all and All. Pray "for any opportunity to open for Scott to serve Serge and to share Beloved Adi Da's Teaching Word with him." In gratitude for our Master and His Way of Adidam, Scott Belanger

March 3, 2017

Serge wants to be home, he hates the hospital. But his fever is spiking, he is delirious, and not recognizing where he is or family members. So he reluctantly agreed to be admitted to the hospital once more — the last thing he wanted.

March 4

I told Lynn (my ex) and Aidan (my oldest son) how I felt that I couldn't bring spiritual energy into the hospital room with my father because of the conventional minds surrounding him there.

March 5

I did the morning Puja with Aidan before I left the house and prayed for an opening.

At the hospital, for the first hour or two, everyone was in the room, and there was too much talk, superficial chitchat, etc., going on to invoke Adi Da.

Finally Aidan had a book on "Biocentrism" that caught my sister in law's attention which sparked a conversation about Consciousness (not matter) as the Primary Context of existence. I advanced the conversation with my Avatar Adi Da's Revelation and Teaching of the non-difference of Consciousness and Energy, His Revelation of Conscious Light.

The energy of the room shifted.

My father was complaining of pain in his hip. I asked him if I could do energy healing/laying on of hands on his hip. I then instructed him to feel that, even though there is pain, there are other areas of his body that still feel pleasure. Then I stroked his arm and helped him to feel the pleasure of that. Then I instructed him to feel the pleasure of the breath entering and exiting his nose. He felt that.

Then I invoked my Spiritual Master's Presence silently and drew down Adi Da's Light through my father's body.

A profound descent of energy filled the room. Everyone became silent and rested.

I remained there by my father's side for an hour, holding and continuing this conductivity of Conscious Light. My father would fall into sleep and reawaken, then back into the Depth, as Beloved Adi Da moved through his body.

My Mom was holding his hand and feeling the process as well. Eventually my father awoke and asked her to lay down next to him.

Dad and Mom
(click picture to enlarge)

The Energy was Happy and I said, "See how even now you can still Be Happy?"

They both said, "Yes".

This is an example of the real relationship devotees of Adi Da have with their Master. The Living Divine Light is tangible! And Beloved Adi Da worked through me as I had asked. This event transformed the chaotic quality of the room and everyone in it into a Blessed Occasion.

March 10

Serge is now back home again.

After a long day and evening of deep sleep, no solids or fluids, and showing signs of an ascending process (typical of impending death), we felt Serge may have been leaving us last night. My brother Jeff and his wife drove up from Florida and arrived around 9:30pm.

I said, "Watch, he'll wake up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed", and — lo and behold — this morning, Serge was awake and interactive, joking and talking coherently. It seems he's not quite ready to leave us! We see this as a good thing, as everyone gets a chance to prepare to go through their grieving process.

We will have a capella singers and a harpist coming this weekend provided by hospice. The snow falling is a nice touch too. . .

It's very peaceful here.

[At this point, Scott writes a letter to Adi Da, which is offered to Adi Da's Eternal Presence in the "Brightness" Temple where Adi Da's body is buried, on the sacred island of Naitauba, Fiji.] Beloved Adi Da Samraj, I bow in gratitude and humility, for Your Compassionate and Graceful Instruction for serving the death transition of my father, Serge Belanger. I am writing to update You on the process here regarding Serge's transition. At this moment, it is the third day with Serge at home in hospice care, with his loving family serving him and surrounding him with love and support. As this process unfolds, I have been able to serve my family in understanding the death transition process as You have revealed it. With sensitivity to the circumstance of non-devotees and the need to be respectful of others' beliefs, I am able to bring Your Teaching in indirect ways, helping them to feel Serge as he demonstrates his withdrawal from the body. I have been able to guide them to be sensitive to giving him space to release, to not distract him from the process, and to practice releasing him to his greater destiny. The bedroom Serge is in has become a sacred space, and a vigil goes on there where people take shifts sitting with him. At times, I and my son Aidan (a nineteen year old soon to be in the Adidam Youth Fellowship) sit alone with Serge and we Invoke You Intensively. Aidan and I sit on either side of Serge's body in the gesture of Beholding, radiating Heart-Love to Serge, and feeling You Pervading the room. When we do this, all there is is Your Bright Love-Bliss Happiness. I feel like I am in Your Kiln of Brightness, like I am in Your Temple. My mother and sister have been the most emotional about the loss of Serge, grieving deeply. But as the process unfolds, their grief has changed to acceptance and readiness to release. Last night, it seemed Serge would go, but this morning he awoke and was interactive, with humor, and humility. Now as I write, he is returned to the Depth, focused inward and up. We do not know how long he has left, but Your Graceful Blessings are felt here, and it has become a Sacred Occasion as I had hoped. I want to thank You, Beloved, for Your Divine Wisdom-Teaching regarding the death process and serving the dying. We have transformed this otherwise casual and painful event into a circumstance of Love. By Your Divine Grace, may Serge pass gently and peacefully, and may his family embrace his death positively, blessing him to release his body and flow to his greater destiny in You. Always at Your Feet, Dear Master of my heart, Scott Belanger

 

March 11

We had Barbara the harpist today, playing beautiful songs for Serge.

click picture to enlarge

March 12

Today we invited the Journey Singers to sing for Serge.

click picture to enlarge

Hospice is such a blessing.

March 15

[From Serge's obituary:] "Serge B. Belanger, 76, of Mt. Tom Avenue passed away Wednesday, March 15, 2017, at his home surrounded by his loving family."

Postscript

Being instructed by Adi Da about the death process and how to serve others as they approach it has been such a powerful gift. Only by Adi Da's Grace and Wisdom Means, have I been able to be present, positively responsive, and capable of transcending what Adi Da calls the "ritual of sorrow". Certainly there was grief, but there was Happiness as well — we all experienced this transition as very graceful and full of Blessing. Serge was surrounded by Love and was enabled to have an easy death in the company of his loving family.

Beloved Adi Da also instructs His devotees to "handle business" with their parents, to resolve any oedipal conflicts with them if we intend to mature in the real Spiritual process with Him. A most important Gift I received from my father was that he asked me to do his eulogy. With tears of gratitude and indebtness to him for all he had given me, I gratefully accepted.

Our relationship is without regret and without any unresolved hurt. There is Only Love. By Beloved Adi Da's Divine Attractiveness and His Heart's Shout for Real Love, I have been enabled to grow beyond my past childish and adolescent reactions to my father.

I have so much gratitude for all the Gifts of my Master.

Forever at His Feet
Scott Belanger

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