One may think there is a typo in the headline. Life – a beautiful journey must be the correct phrase. But to our surprise, it’s not! “How can Death be a journey?”, we inquire. “How can Death be beautiful!”, we ask. Everyone must have seen the death of a loved one at least once in their life. And, to be honest, it is not beautiful.
Here, Death, a beautiful journey doesn’t signify the actual death but the thought of it. The contemplation over death as the most universal truth a man has ever come across with. Any being who is alive right now will face death one day. Every second we are moving towards our death, and this is the most accurate thing we can ever say. But the question remains – When. Neither science nor any other body who define things the way they are ,have still not reached a conclusion to know the death beforehand. But then one may say – Why to know about it? Exactly!. The answer lies, not in the knowing of ‘when’ but in the realization that ‘it will’. Being aware of this reality can be so trans-formative for a human mind and the body, one can only imagine.
How can thinking about Death transforms the body & mind From Mind to No-Mind
The trick is to create a mindless state. Although the mind is quite mischievous, there is a pattern. This mind only works in the past & the future. Either it throws us into some past miseries or memories, or it moves into the oblivion of the future. The mind hates the present moment, in fact it is absent in the present moment. Now when we think about the times we are dead, we are throwing the mind into the unknown. We dig deep in the thought of our demise, how we are useless now, how we are soundless, a dead body is a closed chapter. Now no future plans, no past memories can come to haunt you. The mind gets a shock of his life! We go a step further and lay down in a soundless space in our room with eyes closed and improvise more on death. Let the mind pours everything in the form of numerous thoughts, but we must remember we are dead, unaffected. Gradually, our mind will start accompanying what the body is conveying. The heart will smile in some corners because it knows what’s going on. But we must never forget that they both ally to each other. The more we practice, we will come across a day when the gap between our thoughts increases. And eventually, the thoughts end. The heart will blossom to its fullest on that day. Our body will gleam as we have learned how to control our minds for that immense peace within.
From Fear to Fearlessness
Fear is a by-product of exaggerated thinking. Every type of fear comes down to the fear of death. Death is the root cause of every fear, directly or indirectly. For instance, someone unable to leave a job in which they are unhappy, a fear that they won’t get a new job, eventually a loss of money, could create a debt further, pressure building & eventually loss of self. Another example, unable to marry due to compromises, burdens, and bounds it brings. This can create a lot of new problems, unhappy living. If you see, there is a hint of losing the self at the end, losing a self means losing to death. Somehow the root of all fears is death itself. Now when we are practicing death contemplation, we are eradicating the fear upside down. We will realize the fragility and uncertainty of life. We will try to live the present with the utmost attention now. Our priorities and preferences will be different now. We will not delay any work which can be done now. We will start living more conscious and in the present. We will laugh wholeheartedly, we will cry fully, we will do everything in the most complete manner. And we will enjoy this beautiful life in a way that we have never imagined, just like babies. They live the best of lives we all know.
Bhutanese people touted as the happiest people across the globe usually thinks about the death five times a day as a practice. Buddhist call it death meditation, or Maranasati. ‘Die before you die’ is called in Islam. I call it A Beautiful Journey. So get set, and take this miraculous journey to get transformed from day one.
Few pointers to consider before trying:
The word ‘death’ is the biggest inhibitor ingrained in many minds, still. Go very slow and let the supreme helps. You can start with the thinking part first for a few days.
Not for kids as their mentality regarding death could be confusing in the early stages of life.
Make sure you choose a secured place with loved ones in a nearby room.
Write down on a paper by asking yourself:
1. If I die in a month, I would like to…
2. If I die in a week, I would like to…
3. If I die in a day, I would like to…
Observe and see what is common in all three answers. And think over it.
Life and death are two sides of one coin. They cannot be seen together but if you choose one, you are choosing incomplete. Be complete.
Do you have any questions? Please write in the comments section below and I would love to answer.
Nice Article.
Beautifully expressed.