Essential Phowa for others
You can do the Essential Phowa for someone who
is ill or dying, in exactly the same way as for yourself, except
that you visualize a buddha or Divine Presence above the head of
the other person. Call out on behalf of your friend, and
visualize the Presence pouring down rays of light onto him
or her, purifying and transforming their whole being. Then
visualize that the other person, now fully purified,
dissolves into light and merges indistinguishably with the
enlightened Presence.
Essential Phowa in a sudden death
When someone has just died suddenly and you do
not have much time, such as at the scene of an accident,
then you can do an abbreviated form of the Essential
Phowa. As you stay by his or her side, invoke strongly the
radiant presence of a buddha or Divine Being. Visualize
the compassionate radiance emanating from this Presence
filling the space surrounding both of you with protection
and blessings.
Consider that the consciousness of the newly
deceased person takes the form of a small sphere of light,
and visualize it quickly flying out from his or her body,
like a shooting star, and dissolving into the heart of the
Divine Presence. In dedicating the practice, pray that the
person may be free from any of the sufferings or turmoil of
their death, and released into the luminosity and all-pervading
space of the true nature of their mind, in order to
benefit all beings, especially those he or she is leaving
behind. Afterward, you can do the complete Essential
Phowa practice again for the person over the following
days and weeks.
