Recently I lost a loved one. His death left me empty and wordless. I was deeply upset when everyone started making references to his passing or his transition. I was angry when at his funeral as people passed his lifeless body and threw flowers at his feet as if those acts had meaning. My love was no longer here. He was not with me or with anyone. He was dead, gone, vanished. How could anyone pay homage to the shell that used to hold his life and his spirit?
But then I realized that he is with us. He is present in memory and in the effect of his words, deeds, smiles, and love. Even if to me, his physical absence means death, his soul has indeed moved to another plane. Thus, it is fair to say that his being transitioned or passed to a place unknown where it will endure.
At first, I thought it was ridiculous to pray for a soul to rest in peace. I believed and still think that souls are beyond our prayers. I think our prayers cannot change a soul’s destiny once it has left the body. But, I also understand that we don’t know what a soul’s or spirit’s journey entails or in what time frame it travels, or how our thoughts and wishes may reach or affect it. Since we know nothing, it is possible that our prayers do have meaning. In any case, they may serve to calm us and they certainly show the living that we loved and honored the person who died.
