I am very intrigued to read Hari-dhama Dasa's article on the spiritual need and care of terminally ill patients in relation to ISKCON's social development programme.

Such a reflection is most welcome since ISKCON has to face frequent situations in which terminally ill members are looking for medical and spiritual care within the confines of our society.

The author's personal experience in this special field is felt throughout the article and gives added weight to his analysis. The practical applications he proposes: that there is an urgent need for the understanding and respect of the patient's unique level of hopes and realisations; the recognition of the pre-eminence of the patient's (and his/her relatives') expressed spiritual needs over and above religious dogma; and the capacity of the carer to enter into the world of others, thereby responding with feelings which are based on a sense of self-spiritual examination.

Exploring this subject and the subsequent projects that should support it can help members of ISKCON unify in the face of the ultimate problems associated with dying and death.

Hari-dhama Dasa treats the subject with such an open-minded approach that it could well attract other professional carers to work with our society in a spirit of medical and spiritual co-operation. ISKCON's hospice teams operate in a non-sectarian manner within a non-sectarian organisation, thereby adding professionalism to the spontaneous well-wishing care that they mindfully offer to their peers and others.

This essay stimulates the reader to think deeply about the spiritual care of dying patients and bereaved friends and relatives - a level of care with which most of us in the field of palliative care are inexperienced and uncomfortable.

Hari-dhama Dasa deserves our deep appreciation for his willingness to assist ISKCON members with his experience in palliative and spiritual care, as so eloquently expressed in his article.