Death or Life Transition
An age-old question for human beings is why do we die – sometimes in a senseless, violent manner? Why do good people die young? This is what self-conscious beings ask. After reflecting more on this from a perspective of the teaching of the Buddha and Quantum Information Panpsychism, I thought to put in words some of thoughts on death.
A year ago, I read a short but interesting blog by Joe Goldfarb on his ethical dilemma of killing plants. He wrote, “For one organism to live another must die. There is no escaping this. Having a tiered value status of life, i.e. a mammal has a higher status than a plant, based on assigned arbitrary values is a false perception of reality. I believe in a reality of equality, not inequality, regardless of the form and capabilities of the organism. A bear does not have more value than a flower, for both their names, and bodies are not real. The only thing that is real is their life, of which they both have of equal value. With that said, it is the gift of life, which I acknowledge and respect… Even killing less life, one is still taking life. This is why Veganism has good intentions but is inherently flawed. Because of this moral problem, I have been studying Native American belief systems in hopes of finding a resolution.”
Now, I don’t know if he has resolved this moral problem for himself, but his thoughts point out an important fact: in life, there is death. After hearing the News, there were more seemingly endless situations where the lives of people being at the wrong place, at the wrong time, are ended. It could be a natural disaster or a killing or some other calamity, but the result is the same: death. Their lives are quickly ended. If one removes the usual eulogy of Cataphatic priests, rabbis, ministers, or Imams that God has a purpose that we don’t understand and the person who has died will be in the hands of God (perhaps) – we must admit, we just don’t know exactly why. Death happens.
Thus, death is as natural as living. Under various conditions, life flourishes or perishes. We have seen that stars and planets extinguish only to be reborn, and our own sun and solar system will share a similar fate. Maybe even the universe endures cycles of death and renewal. All materialistic entities are transient and impermanent. As far as we know, there exists only energy/Consciousness.
Is this perspective depressing? Not at all. Embracing the fragility and brevity of life fosters a profound sensitivity and reverence for life, transforming our existence into a precious opportunity. Each fleeting moment propels us forward, creating ripples of effect that extend into the future making us more cautious about our actions being wholesome. When we comprehend that a permanent separate ‘self’ is illusory; an illusion, the prospect of losing it through death is alleviated.
Grief will express itself when one ponders they no longer experiencing life in the human materialistic existence. Yet, if one understands there is no substantial separate I or me, then the idea of losing it through death is not a problem. It is by not comprehending the ground of the fundamental Universal Consciousness, through the mistaken psychological separation caused by the ignorance of the identification in a dualism and a Self, that the fear and angst of death appears. Instead, when one realizes that we are an integral part of Panpsychism, the ALL of Consciousness, the grief of loss disappears.
As Mary Elizabeth Frye expressed it poetically:
Do not stand at my grave and weepI am not there. I do not sleep.I am a thousand winds that blow.I am the diamond glints on snow.I am the sunlight on ripened grain. I am the gentle autumn rain. When you awaken in the morning’s hush I am the swift uplifting rush Of quiet birds in circled flight. I am the soft stars that shine at night. Do not stand at my grave and cry;I am not there. I did not die.
And my sentiments now about death…
When I die, bury me deep in a place where where my physical elements will support trees growing tall and flowers blossoming. My smile beneath will follow the colors spreading for joy. Mark not my place with statues or stones, find me where life can be found. My body will join the elements and energy of the universe and my consciousness will completely rejoin the Universal Consciousness from which I have always existed and continue on again for eternity in the cycle of life.
We are all Interconnected even with the Universe 