When the beginning and the end are seemingly distant, yet close.

Posted on September 28, 2013 Updated on October 2, 2013

“Do not fear impermanence. As soon as life enters the womb, death starts stalking us. Night and day follow each other. Here, death follows life. “Death is an event whose proximity is unlimited and distance very limited,” my Master would say. Death has no great respect for excellent health et al. One can die in the pink of health. When it chooses to knock us down, nothing can save us, no deals can be struck and no bargains made. Thus, our life, whether we are just born or a century-old, is nothing more than a drop of dew, tantalisingly poised at the edge of a blade of grass

Our illustrious ancestors point to that very same tiny droplet to illustrate a great point. Granted, this drop of dew would disappear immediately after dawn but, not before swallowing the magnificent Sun and reflecting it gloriously. So, while life is nothing but proximity to death, living lies in putting it in its place and expressing the glory of creation. Therefore, whatever the span that destiny chooses to offer us, let us lead a lively existence. Understand the impermanence of everything, radiate inner cheer and keep walking.”

That was an article that I came across a few years back in one of the local dailies, with a really interesting take on life.. The analogy used to interpret life is just simple, elegant and impeccable. Although the quote about death received quite a bit of negative feedback when the article was initially published, from people who look at life in an optimistic and “gung ho” way, let’s face it.. we have always been in denial when it comes to sensitive subjects. A classic example of our breed living in denial..

“Help control global warming, prevent the polar ice caps from melting.. save the planet from extinction” – A common tagline we often see advocating the importance of saving the planet.

Really? Do we actually think we are trying to save the planet? The earth has seen the dinosaurs from the paleozoic period and whatever existed before that till the evolution of modern human race. What’s actually a cry for saving the planet is a veiled attempt at preserving our own race from extinction. Sure enough our environmentalists can prolong the life of the human race on earth by a few more centuries, but the mere fact that we try to put an expiry date on the earth is just typical of us living in denial. And what do we do when we are confronted with denial? Nothing! We just push it out of our mind and shift our focus to trivial issues of our daily life, like being on time for work, missing the bus etc.. True story! Think about it the next time you come face to face with denial.

Coming back to the article, those are some of the best ever lines to have characterised life and the impermanence factor(change) that shrouds it. After all, change is the only constant! Peace!