The Grandest Of All Truths-Part II

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All this sounds most interesting. The prime condition Swamiji puts is that 'the grandest of all truths' the truth of our eventual death must be kept in mind always. A small part of the mind must always remain soaked in the thought of death. What shall we gain from this ceaseless contemplation on death? Awakening of the spirit, disappearance of all meanness, practicality in work, new vigour in body and mind, and power to uplift others. But all these will come to us only if we face the thought of death courageously. This is important.

A coward may brood over the thought of death always. But unlike the seeker of Truth, the coward doesn't choose to do it, he is forced to do it. His inner weakness and fear compel him to terrorize himself with the thought of death. Swamiji could tolerate and forgive everything but cowardice. When a disciple timidly suggested that serving others in this 'evanescent world' is of no use because death is always 'stalking behind' every one of us, Swamiji flared up:

"Fie upon you! If you die, you will die but once. Why will you die every minute of your life by constantly harping on death like a coward?"

It is clear that Swamiji wanted contemplation on death to be a healthy exercise of the brave and the earnest, not a death-phobia of the wimp. It is true, however, that even in the case of the brave and the earnest, the immediate effect of meditation on death would certainly be despondency and drooping of the spirit. The benefits would surface only later.

Swamiji agrees on the aforesaid : "Quite so. At first, the heart will break down, and despondency and gloomy thoughts will occupy your mind. But persist, let days pass like that and then? Then you will see that new strength has come into the heart, that the constant thought of death is giving you a new life, and is making you more and more thoughtful by bringing every moment before your mind's eye the truth of the saying, 'Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.' Wait! Let days, months, and years pass, and you will feel that the spirit within is waking up with the strength of a lion, that the little power within has transformed itself into a mighty power! Think of death always and realize the truth of every word I say. What more shall I say in words!"

As always, Swamiji was only echoing the instruction of his guru, Sri Ramakrishna, who taught: 'The world is impermanent. One should constantly remember death."' On another occasion Sri Ramakrishna said: "Do your duty in the world but remember that the "pestle of death" will some time smash your hand. Be alert about it".

The importance of keeping the thought of death always before our mind's eye has been emphasized in many other religious traditions too. Ansari (d.1088), a Persian Sufi master and poet, said, 'O man, remember death at all times.' In Ecclesiasticus (VII.40) we find this instruction: 'In all thy works remember thy last end, and thou shalt never sin.' Daidqji Yusan (i7th cent), a samurai and author, wrote: 'The idea most vital and essential to the samurai is that of death, which he ought to have before his mind day and night, night and day, from the dawn of the first day of the year till the last minute of the last day of it.' Takeda Shingen (1521-1573), a great Japanese general and student of Zen, remarked: 'Zen has no secrets other than seriously thinking about birth and death.' The Imitation of Christ expresses the idea this way: 'Thou oughtest so to order thyself in all thy thoughts and actions, as if today thou wert to die.'

About the author

Swami Tyagananda

Swami Tyagananda is a monk of the Ramakrishna Order and presently head of the Ramakrishna Vedanta Society in Boston.

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