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The Tibetan Book of the Dead is an ancient Buddhist text on the themes of death and the afterlife. Summary of the Book The Bardo Thodol is one of the oldest books on death and dying. It is alternately translated as The Liberation Through Hearing During the Intermediate State, and carries its current name due to its parallels with the Egyptian Book of the Dead. A funerary text, it describes the experiences of the consciousness after death. It guides readers through the interval between death and the next rebirth. It also includes chapters on the signs of death, the funeral rituals and the rituals for people who are near death. It places the state between reincarnations into three bardos: the bardo of the moment of death, the bardo of the experiencing of reality and the bardo of rebirth. It also presents three other bardos: of life, meditation and the dream. Together, these bardos classify the states of consciousness and explain how the cycle of life continues after death. This edition presents a foreword by His Holiness The Dalai Lama. About Robert A. F. Thurman Robert A. F. Thurman is an American Buddhist writer. He has written extensively on Tibetan Buddhism. Dr. Thurman completed his Ph.D. at Harvard University and is currently the Je Tsongkhapa Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies at Columbia University. He has also written: Essential Tibetan Buddhism, The Holy Teaching of Vimalakirti: A Mahayana Scripture and Why the Dalai Lama Matters: His Act of Truth as the Solution for China, Tibet and the World.