Mark Twain said, "the fear of death follows from the fear of life". Warm greetings to one and all...I am trying to write about a thought that keeps recurring in my mind that is,"how can the thought of death transform us?". When I tried to discuss this topic with my room-mate her initial reaction was 'why death? Why talk about such a negative topic?'. I think this is how we all react to the very thought of death. Death is often considered as a taboo or as a negative topic not worth discussion in the public. It might be because of the fear that death creates in us or it might be because of the painful memories that the term 'death' brings along with it...But I tend to look at death in a positive way.I believe that the very thought of death can transform us.
There has always been elaborate discussions about the life after death in literature and even in religious texts where it is euphemistically described as 'eternal sleep' or as 'one's reunion with one's creator'. But I am not trying to speak about the life after death but a life with death. And through a life with death I mean a life that is aware of the fact that we are on earth for a short span of time.
I believe that the very thought of death would make us superior beings just like the Shavian concept of 'superman'. I believe that if we accept death as our only constant companion we would become more responsible and sensitive in our life to the extend that we would stop procrastinating the things we should do, we would become more empathetic towards others and would be open minded. I believe that the very thought of death would make us grounded. This idea of the transformation that the thought of death can bring about in us struck me when I witnessed a transformation right in front of me. My father...
My father is a terminal cancer patient. When the disease was diagnosed there were the initial stages of depression and 'why me?' questions. But later I could see that my father was transforming. I saw that my father came to terms with the fact that his days on earth are counted. So he decided to utilise the rest of his life. I could see a lot of transformations in my father. For instance, he used to be adamant in the things he believed to be true and would go on fighting to prove himself correct.But later he started analysing things from different perspectives. He became more empathetic towards others so much so that he would literally stand in their shoes and analyse things whenever possible. I don't mean to say he is always serene and saintly but he tries to be so whenever it is possible. He even started training me to look at things in a detached manner of which I am not sure as to how much he has succeeded!
I believe that this transformation of my father was brought about by the positive effects of the thought of death. So I believe that death in fact is positive and enlightening. I believe that the very thought of death would make us humble and detached so much so that we would be able to understand and appreciate new and diverse ideas and perspectives. I believe that the thought of death would inspire and motivate us to see each day as an opportunity and to live life to its fullest expressing our highest selves. And I believe in what Socrates said, "death may be the greatest of all human blessings".
There has always been elaborate discussions about the life after death in literature and even in religious texts where it is euphemistically described as 'eternal sleep' or as 'one's reunion with one's creator'. But I am not trying to speak about the life after death but a life with death. And through a life with death I mean a life that is aware of the fact that we are on earth for a short span of time.
I believe that the very thought of death would make us superior beings just like the Shavian concept of 'superman'. I believe that if we accept death as our only constant companion we would become more responsible and sensitive in our life to the extend that we would stop procrastinating the things we should do, we would become more empathetic towards others and would be open minded. I believe that the very thought of death would make us grounded. This idea of the transformation that the thought of death can bring about in us struck me when I witnessed a transformation right in front of me. My father...
My father is a terminal cancer patient. When the disease was diagnosed there were the initial stages of depression and 'why me?' questions. But later I could see that my father was transforming. I saw that my father came to terms with the fact that his days on earth are counted. So he decided to utilise the rest of his life. I could see a lot of transformations in my father. For instance, he used to be adamant in the things he believed to be true and would go on fighting to prove himself correct.But later he started analysing things from different perspectives. He became more empathetic towards others so much so that he would literally stand in their shoes and analyse things whenever possible. I don't mean to say he is always serene and saintly but he tries to be so whenever it is possible. He even started training me to look at things in a detached manner of which I am not sure as to how much he has succeeded!
I believe that this transformation of my father was brought about by the positive effects of the thought of death. So I believe that death in fact is positive and enlightening. I believe that the very thought of death would make us humble and detached so much so that we would be able to understand and appreciate new and diverse ideas and perspectives. I believe that the thought of death would inspire and motivate us to see each day as an opportunity and to live life to its fullest expressing our highest selves. And I believe in what Socrates said, "death may be the greatest of all human blessings".
No comments:
Post a Comment