Just a quick little post, and not to be morbid, but I came across this interesting proposition this morning, and I felt moved to share.
I'm a fan of talking about death, not hiding from it. Not seeking it!! But, not avoiding it. It's the deal for getting a Life, and it provides meaning. Life gets much more important when we witness and experience the death of a loved one. It's a tough lesson, but it's one that every human being should be learning.
Unfortunately in our culture, we've done everything possible to avoid death, to escape it, to sanitize it and to ignore it. The way we 'extend' the life (suffering) of those whose bodies have run their course, the way we selfishly hold onto those who should be allowed to transition, that is troublesome, and 'unnatural'.
So, here is the proposition:
If death is bad for me, when exactly is it bad for me? Not now, for right now as I propose and ponder, I'm not dead. What about when I'm dead? But then, I won't exist and I won't be able to have a 'feeling' or a 'position'.
As the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus wrote: "So death, the most terrifying of ills, is nothing to us, since so long as we exist, death is not with us; but when death comes, then we do not exist. It does not then concern either the living or the dead, since for the former it is not, and the latter are no more."
I take this to purport that if death has no time at which it's bad for me, then maybe it's not bad for me. And, if it isn't bad for me, maybe it's just a good thing.
Savasana, it's practice for death... how privileged we are to have a practice that addresses every part of our existence, even the cessation.
If you're reading this, it's not your time yet! So, give thanks and praise!!
I'm a fan of talking about death, not hiding from it. Not seeking it!! But, not avoiding it. It's the deal for getting a Life, and it provides meaning. Life gets much more important when we witness and experience the death of a loved one. It's a tough lesson, but it's one that every human being should be learning.
Unfortunately in our culture, we've done everything possible to avoid death, to escape it, to sanitize it and to ignore it. The way we 'extend' the life (suffering) of those whose bodies have run their course, the way we selfishly hold onto those who should be allowed to transition, that is troublesome, and 'unnatural'.
So, here is the proposition:
If death is bad for me, when exactly is it bad for me? Not now, for right now as I propose and ponder, I'm not dead. What about when I'm dead? But then, I won't exist and I won't be able to have a 'feeling' or a 'position'.
As the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus wrote: "So death, the most terrifying of ills, is nothing to us, since so long as we exist, death is not with us; but when death comes, then we do not exist. It does not then concern either the living or the dead, since for the former it is not, and the latter are no more."
I take this to purport that if death has no time at which it's bad for me, then maybe it's not bad for me. And, if it isn't bad for me, maybe it's just a good thing.
Savasana, it's practice for death... how privileged we are to have a practice that addresses every part of our existence, even the cessation.
If you're reading this, it's not your time yet! So, give thanks and praise!!
