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Condition?
August 11th, 2010 by Gary
Hipworth
This is a problem that has been around ever since man became self-conscious and there really seems to be no cure
for the human condition, meaning we want immortality but we have a mortal body that we are stuck with!
Will the truth about ourselves set us free? What is the truth? When one tears away the ego mask and its many
defences, one is left with despair.
Thanks very much!
The journey into the deep inner world has been called many things, including ‘dark night of the soul’, ‘ego-death’
or simply having a nervous breakdown.
If one is successful in this terrifying transition then we are told that one comes out a very different person.
Some call it becoming enlightened, the blissful state, or liberation or simply the natural and common birthright of
all humans but subsequently covered over by the conditioned self.
Some rare beings would appear to make this transition, but it is not for everyone.
So if you prefer to side-step the dark night of the soul, then you may still want to know how to better manage the
death paradox, so that you can make the most of your life, without always looking over your shoulder. Here are some
strategies for managing or moderating the fear of death:
- Nietzsche’s eternal return
: What can you do now in your life so that you will have no future regrets, and you can then die knowing you lived
a full life.
- Faith in a saviour:
a religious belief may give you comfort that this life is only a short interlude until you go to a better
place.
- Epicurus:
this ancient Greek philosopher taught that the soul is also mortal. Why fear death when you won’t be there?
And when you are dead, you are in the same state as before you were born, so what’s the problem?
- Rippling:
Much like the ripples in a pond, rippling relates to the fact that each person creates circles of influence
that may affect others for many years to come.
- Creating a new piece of art or writing or music:
This can help the author to transcend their fear of death, at least for the time they ‘lose themselves’
in the process of creating their works
- Change your attitude to what you can’t control:
To paraphrase, Epictetus, who said two thousand years ago, ‘I must die, I must be imprisoned. But must I die
groaning?
We have come to realize that the human brain is so unbelievably conditioned to deny death at a conscious level,
that most people are actually half-asleep in their normal waking hours and therefore take their one precious and
fragile life for granted and may never ‘wake up’ fully to make the most of their potential and their talents and
their passions.
It therefore usually takes a near-death experience or the death of a loved one before it sinks in that one’s life
can be over in a split second, but surely this is the worst possible way to change your life?
It can be extremely painful to confront one’s mortality, but it is a fact of life and unless this is done on a
regular basis, the individual tends to lose themselves in the daily grind of ‘earning a living’ rather than ‘making
a life’.
On your deathbed, will you be worrying about not spending more time at the office, or being happy that you always
paid your bills on time? Use the ‘idea’ of death to create a sense of urgency in your life and make the
important changes now.
*Refer to Irvin Yalom's wonderful book, 'Staring At The Sun' for more details on some of the above strategies for dealing with death.
