Death: A Reminder

We often see or read or hear about people dying. We should take this as a very valuable learning experience. Someone else’s death should lead us to be mindful of our own impending death. It should provoke us to remember that we, too, will have to meet the same fate, some day or the other. It should remind us to suitably prepare for our own death, which is on its way.

Death is the end of the pre-death period of life for the deceased, while for those who are still alive in this world it is a reminder of their own impending death. When a person dies, it appears that someone who could speak has now fallen silent. But his silence is in itself a loud announcement to those who remain in this world. It calls out to us: “What had to happen with me has now taken place! It will happen with you, too! And so, prepare yourself for it!”

These days, it has become a fashion to celebrate birthdays. In some families, celebrating birthdays starts as soon as a child turns a year old. Better than that, however, would be to consider a birthday as a day that reminds us about our death, instead of our birth. The fact is that our lives are continuously moving towards our ‘countdown’, our day of meeting with death. Our every birthday tells us that we have one year less left of the time allotted to us on earth!

Many people celebrate birthdays with much gusto. “Happy Birthday To You!” they excitedly sing. But if you reflect on the matter realistically, the reality is just the opposite. Every birth anniversary of ours tells us that our death, the day when we will have to account for our lives on earth, has drawn one year closer, and that for preparing for the eternal Hereafter we now have one year less.