Death: The Final Revelation

3 minute read

Of all the experiences a human being encounters during life, death is the final and most important one. No one knows with certainty what happens afterwards, or whether the very idea of something "happening" still exists.

Death is divinity's most beautiful gift to us. Although it appears to be a terrible misfortune, death is actually a liberation, the escape hatch for our existence, which seems without meaning.

Consider this problem for a moment.

• Suppose we were immortal but continued living the same life, whether it contained both good and evil or nothing but happiness. In time, routine and boredom would appear, and sooner or later we would certainly wish to disappear from existence. Perhaps not immediately, but after several centuries, even the happiest person would surely desire death.
• Now consider our ordinary condition, in which we drag ourselves from one day to the next for decades, or sometimes only a few years. We live with joy and hardship. Some are rich and others poor. Some are ill, while others remain healthy throughout their lives. Yet we know that one day we must leave the body in which we live.

If religion did not forbid suicide and call it a mortal sin, many of us, perhaps even the majority, would renounce life.

Why postpone the inevitable? Why live a life you must eventually leave? Above all, why should so many people suffer, sometimes for decades and sometimes throughout their entire lives?

We are compelled to live and accept whatever life gives us: only happiness to some, only suffering to others, and sometimes a mixture of both. If we manage to transform suffering into happiness, many hardships may be eliminated.

I constantly hear that success belongs to those who struggle and possess a winner's mentality. But if everyone succeeded, how could success still be defined?

In reality, we live unconsciously and allow ourselves to be carried by the veil of existence until it pours into the Great Unknown.

Only one thing is certain within this life, and only one experience ends all our experiences: Death.

Yet not everyone dies easily. Some endure great torment, some encounter a cruel death, and most of us live in suffering until our hour arrives.

There are also those who appear weak but require a mad courage to end their lives: people who die by suicide because they cannot accept what destiny has offered or move beyond the suffering inflicted upon their souls.

These are not the people I admire. I admire those who managed to die within the body, who put an end to their ego and thought.

There have been very few, but most became saints, founders of religions or enlightened beings. They did not accept the life offered by destiny - at least in appearance, because whether predestination exists remains debatable - and began the path of liberation from existence.

Not all succeeded. Many died during the trials they imposed upon themselves or were given.

One thing is certain: eliminate thought and you liberate the soul. Thought keeps the soul enslaved, which is why humanity suffers so deeply.

I believe that, before living upon this earth, we should be asked at birth whether we wish to accept the life that will be given to us. That would be free choice, not the things that happen throughout our existence.

First published in Romanian on 11 July 2010. This English translation preserves the perspective of that period.

Original Romanian article: Moartea: ultima revelație.