| The problem. The purpose of this study was to discover what a zen approach to the psychological and pastoral care of dying persons is by comparing similarities and differences among the descriptions given by six zen teachers. The research explored four categories: (1) Personal approach of each teacher; (2) Specific examples (anecdotes); (3) Application to pain, fear and anxiety; and (4) Relevance to those who do not meditate.;Method. The research was phenomenological and used an in-depth interviewing method. Tapes were transcribed and content analysis was used to organize the data. The researcher and two colleagues independently analyzed each transcript by identifying Natural Meaning Units, listing them under each of the categories of investigation, and then identifying common themes. The themes of all of the respondent teachers were compared by means of a frequency table to determine to what extent they were similar or different.;Results. The content analysis yielded 42 themes. Of these, six themes were articulated by 100 percent of the respondents, for example, "Dying people teach us" and "Anyone can be helped, regardless of whether they meditate." Eighty-three percent, or five of six, agreed upon 10 more themes, and 50 percent agreed on an additional 12 themes. Thus half or more of all respondents agreed on 66 percent of the themes. It was concluded that a zen approach to the care of dying persons required responding to the circumstances and the individual without any preconceived ideas or formula. The approach was affected by the specific type of zen meditation that the practitioner used or taught. This might be implicit when the practitioner practiced during his or her interactions or explicit when she or he was requested to teach this practice, either to assist with the dying process or to help ease pain, fear and anxiety. Respondents shared their feelings about their own death or near-death experiences, and their experiences with people who were dying. |
