Life Beyond Death
An ongoing inquiry into purpose of death,
the nature of life after death,
how we can prepare for death,
and how we can assist the dying.
The Impermanence of Life
I know I am deathless,
I know this orbit of mine cannot be swept by a carpenter's compass,
I know I shall not pass like a child's carlacue cut with a burnt stick at night.
If you're a spiritual aspirant, the contemplation of death can be a valuable ally. For centuries, contemplation of the impermanence of life has played an important role in every spiritual tradition. The great sage Ramana Maharshi underwent a radical and permanent spiritual transformation, triggered by a sudden and almost involuntary contemplation of death. Plato maintained that all true spiritual aspirants practice dying continuously. To this day, Christian mystics and monks contemplate death as part of their formal spiritual practice. Books are filled with accounts of spiritual transformations following near death experiences. Just being in the presence of someone dying can trigger a profound spiritual experience. What is it about the contemplation of death that has this effect?
When we contemplate death or impermanence, the question naturally arises: Who or what dies? We know that the body dies. But am I the body? Do I die? If we continue along this line of inquiry, we find that on some level, we know we are eternal. We don't know how we know, yet we know with certainty that, as Walt Whitman says, we're not "a child's carlacue cut with a burnt stick at night". This is the paradox of life and death. We experience ourselves as bodies and yet we know intuitively that we must be something more. When we contemplate death, or even witness it, the dynamic tension of this paradox can eject us out of our thinking mind and put us face to face with the reality of our eternal nature.
If you have a spiritual practice or are interested in starting one, I recommend spending a few minutes every day pondering the true nature of impermanence. The whole basis of Self-realization is the intuitive knowing that we are something more than what appears. And this knowing can be awakened through the contemplation of the true nature of impermanence.
