Remembering Death

Realizing that we all must die can be a ‘masterstroke’. In the game of caroms, a ‘masterstroke’ is a stroke that causes all the coins on the board to shift from their present position. In the same way, if we develop an awareness of our eventual death, our whole life will be completely transformed. Ignoring the reality of our death makes us unaware of our reality. In contrast, remembrance of our death makes us fully aware and alert. Awareness of death makes a person very serious about life. The most significant concern for such a person is to realize who he is and what his future is. “What is my life?” he asks. “What is my death? What do I need to do in the phase of life before death? What is going to happen to me in the phase after death?” Remembrance of death makes a person serious about the affairs of life. He begins to take stock of his life at every moment. If a person seriously thinks about death, it would change the entire focus of his life. His life would become Hereafter-oriented from being solely presentworld-oriented. Someone who has adopted the path of worldliness, of worship of the world, is busy, at every moment, trying to earn worldly wealth. This is made possible for him because he derives pleasure through his busyness. He thinks he will construct a magnificent worldly future for himself. But if he knew that one day he would have to leave all his material acquisitions behind and depart from this world, he would no longer have any interest left in his occupation.