Jewels From Upanishads: 1.9 O Mind, Remember All Deeds Poem by Aniruddha Pathak

Now as this body's burnt to ash,
Let my life force merge with immortal air,
O mind, remember,
Remember the deeds done,
O mind remember,
Remember the deeds done.

(This body as I'm preparing to cast,
As I'm breathing my very last,
For this journey as I prepare,
Let my life force dwell in nature divine—
This all-pervading air,
The immortal air benign;
From this mundane world as I retire,
I offer my body in oblation to fire;
O mind's will, remember,
Remember all, whatso done here-to fore,
Remember all, whatso done here-to fore.)
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Transliteration of the verse from Isha Upanishad, sandhi separated:

vāyur anilam amŗtam atha idam bhasmānţam sharīram |
aum kratah smara kŗtam smarakratah smara kŗtam smara || Isha17 ||

(prāņa)vāyuh: (my vital)life breath; anilam: to (immortal)air (merge or enter)
amŗtam: immortal; atha: now (as I am preparing to die): idam: this; bhasmāntam: (bhasma=ashes, antam= end)get reduced to ashes; sharīram: (this gross)body (being offered as an oblation to fire): aum: O Brahman, AUM is the monosyllable representing Brahman; krato: O mind; O will, (the Vedic term kratu often means action itself, or the will behind the action; smara: remember thou (The time has come now to remember all that has been done since childhood, all the good and bad deeds.): kŗtam (agre)smara: remember (whatever)has been done before; krato smara:O mind, remember; kŗtam smara: remember all that has been done (repetition implies earnestness) .

The soul as prepares to leave the body at the time of death, a lifetime of happenings flash before mind's space. The Tibetan Book of the Dead, called Bardo includes a closely similar verse that the chief Lama chants near the body of the dead:

May this life enter into immortal breath,
This body will become ashes,
You are not the body.
The body is ending in ashes,
But you are going to the other sphere—
Mingling with the vital breath;
Remember, remember, remember what we are doing here;
Remember what we are telling you,
Remember O Intelligence; remember that you are the Supreme Spirit,
That you are free;
Mingling with the immortal breath, go!

Topic: death, body, soul