regarding death

shyam sundar t_shyam_sundar at HOTMAIL.COM
Thu Aug 14 06:23:49 CDT 1997


Srinivas Prasad asked

>>Why do people find it so difficult to accept that once you are dead
>>then that is it. Instead of accepting that, we devise elaborated
>>theories of reincarnation and a heaven or hell (apparently sinners
>>need to go some where too). It seems that humans have still not
>>accepted their mortality, and stubbornly refuse to do so.

 First of all, it is difficult to prove reincarnation, heaven and
hell.One has to accept the Shruthi's words. It is something adrishtam
and hence cannot be proved using pratyaksha or anumana.When we say
mortality, we refer only to the gross body, but the Shruthi says that
the subtle body travels after death. The very word sukshma Sharira puts
off any question regarding perceiving it.I feel that the concept of
rebirth justifies the apparent diversities in this world.I reap the
fruits of actions done in an earlier birth in this birth.So, nothing is
really unfair in the world.

 Another way of looking at it: the 'I' remains even when the awareness
of the body is absent (in deep sleep). This is evident because on
waking, we say " I slept like a log, I was aware of nothing...". so it
can be inferred that the I exists independent of the body.So mortality
cannot be for the real 'I'. It is only for the body.So if humans can't
accept mortality, it is because they are really immortal. The mortality
of the self is just a notion born out of ignorance.It is just like the
desire for all beings to be happy. Ananda is their nature.

regards
Shyam

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