Notes: Kyle's "explanations" come from http://www.buddhanet.net
Chapter Six: Life After Death
Valenti guided the four to the backyard and into his tool shed. "I didn't know what to do with the body," he explained, gesturing towards Larek/Brody's sheet-covered form. "He doesn't seem to be decaying," he went on, "as far as I can tell. It's like he died just yesterday." Liz stepped forward and put on a pair of latex gloves. "It's good that you didn't bury him," she said stoically, "we can use him." She pulled back the sheet. Kyle blanched and had to turn away. Liz reached out and stroked the face. "Are you sure you should be doing that?" Max worried. She nodded. "Yeah, it's fine. Could you hand me a syringe from my bag? I want to get some samples."
"What
normally happens when a body dies?" Tess wondered innocently, "I mean to
humans? When Nasedo died, his body just
disappeared. Where do they go?" She watched as Liz gingerly tried to extract
blood from the corpse. Kyle, his eyes
still averted, attempted to answer her. "Well, the normal response would be heaven or hell. Brody was a good man, so chances are his
soul is in heaven." She nodded, her
eyes still on Liz. "Likewise," Kyle
continued, "according to Buddha, a person like Brody would be reborn in a heaven realm or as a
human being who has a predominance of pleasant experiences." Now, she looked at him with a raised
eyebrow. "Reborn?" Kyle nodded. "Yeah, Buddha believes that karma – meaning our intentional
mental actions – determines who and what we will become in our next life. Whatever mental habits are formed in this
life will be continued in the next. When we die, our souls – or mental energy – travels through space and is
attracted by a fertilised egg. There,
while the embryo grows, we are re-born with a personality that is conditioned
by what we have brought with us from our past life. Of course, the personality will change with the environment,
education, and other influences. This cycle of death and rebirth will continue
until the conditions that cause it cease. Then, instead of being reborn, we obtain a state of Nirvana, which is
the ultimate goal of Buddhism and the purpose of life." He stopped and noticed not only Tess, but
also his father and Max, staring at him with incredulous looks on their
faces. "What?" he said, with a shrug of
his shoulders.
"I'm done," Liz interrupted,
covering the body again. She looked to
the Sheriff. "Is it okay to leave him
here for a while?" she asked, "in case I need him again?" Valenti shrugged. "I suppose for a few more days. Remember, that Brody's family doesn't know of his death yet. We can't keep it secret for too long." "Of course," Liz answered, stepping away and
heading towards the car.
Tess scrunched up her nose. "That seemed … cold." Max sighed, his hands in his pockets. "She's closing herself off," he explained,
"going into full scientist mode." "Guys?" Liz called from the car, "I want to get this home, so I can
start analysing it!"
**
"What do you want for supper?" Max
asked, poking his head into the dining room where Liz had set up her
equipment. "I don't care," Liz answered
swiftly, "order pizza or something." Max pursed his lips and watched her place a slide under the microscope. She looked for a minute, adjusting the
height and zoom, then recorded what she saw in her notebook. "Okay," Max said absently, knowing that she
wasn't paying attention, and went to order the pizza.