Thinking of Death Leads to Reform

Thinking of Death Leads to Reform A criminal was told that the court had passed a sentence against him and that the next day he was to be hanged. When he learned about what was going to happen to him the next day, it was as if he had already been hanged. Life, for him, suddenly became totally valueless. He stopped laughing and even speaking. He was drained of all his strength. He could not even move his hands or feet. Death informs us that this is what is going to happen to us all. Every person who appears to be alive today is going to be taken to the ‘gallows’ to be ‘hanged’ tomorrow. Yet, no one wants to think about this at all. Everyone is engrossed in his ‘today’. No one thinks of his ‘tomorrow’, when death will strike. Here, every person is a ‘criminal’, but very few know this. We move about, see, talk, hear, and so on. We spend our lives engrossed in material pursuits and in relationships with others. Then, suddenly, something utterly strange happens. Without our being asked, death overtakes us. Our feet stop walking. Our eyes lose their sight. We are separated from everything and enter into the solitude of the grave.