Epicurus, the hedonist philosopher of Greece, advised his followers thus: "Eat, drink and make merry today as you shall die tomorrow". Similar themes are seen in India in the atheistic philosophy of the Charvakas. On the contrary, the Bible, Vedas and the holy scriptures of the major world religions insist on the continuity of life even after death. The differing world views have their practical consequences in our daily lives. While the former is confined to this world and to our bodily needs, the latter takes into account a life after death and to the needs of our souls. Jesus succinctly proclaimed this essential truth by giving priority to the Kingdom of God without neglecting the reality of our present life in the world. In this Section we shall make an attempt to have a balanced and harmonious view of the essential relationship between the end of life in this world and its continuity forever.
Death is commonly understood as the separation of the soul from the body. This view brings to the fore the diversity between the body and the soul at the expense of their essential interconnections. Though they are different, the one cannot survive without the other and at death the soul must be feeling out of place as it was so long attached to the body. The body readily disintegrates although its association with the soul may not be easy to be shaken off. Therefore, to understand their relationship better, we shall describe death as a transformation of life from one state to another. There is continuity not only to the soul but also to the body though in different degrees and forms. Even scientifically speaking, all matter is ultimately energy and it cannot be completely annihilated but can only be transformed from one state to another. The longing, therefore, for reclaiming its partner is incumbent upon both the soul and the body. In this context, the Christian teaching of the immortality of the soul forever and the resurrection of the body at the end of the world is very convincing as it is cogent to the nature of things as they are.
Death is seen as a transformation if we are prepared to see birth and death as two sides of the same coin. They are not opposed as they are complementary just like day and night are not opposed to each other as the one presupposes the other. They are harmoniously united to one another since the one follows the other without any break and they are not to be taken as conflicting events. Similarly, birth or life and death should be seen as parts of a harmonious whole , the latter replacing the former for a transformed kind of life. Death is a passport to an upgraded form of our life just like in our birth we were upgraded from the womb to this earth. That we cannot recollect anything from our stay in the mother's womb does not in any way take away from the beauty of this world we experience. Death allows us to be born into the next world where too we are to slowly grow up to meet God in His full effulgence.
Death is not to be taken as something that happens at the end of one's life. Every moment of our life death is foreshadowed in the destruction and renewal of cells in our body that also indicates to us the need of transformation of our body. Death is the gateway to our ultimate transformation to be finalized in the realignment of the body with our soul at the resurrection. For this to happen we have to be actively aware and be engaged in the process of transformation with the aid of the Word of God and religious teachings. This transformation takes place from inside , i.e., from our soul to the outside,i.e., our body. In this process, the Spirit of God is actively present turning us into spiritual entities. The concept of spiritual bodies is very much present in the Indian way of thinking as can be seen from the Vedas. St. Paul in his first Letter to the Corinthians elaborates in some detail the nature of different kinds of bodies in connection with the question of resurrection from the dead (See 1 Corinthians, 15:35-49). The comparison of death with sleep in the New Testament is very significant regarding the wholesome understanding of death and the new life emerging out of it. Jesus himself considered death only as a mode of sleeping in the case of both the daughter of Jairus and of Lazarus both of whom he raised to life. In this sense, there is similarity between sleep and death since both of them are under suspended animation for a shorter or longer period. The greatest pleasure here on earth is achieved in sleep although without consciousness of the same. Similarly, after resurrection from the dead we shall experience the greatest pleasure, with a transformed consciousness, in contemplation of God. A glimpse of this kind of pleasure known as bliss may be seen in our meditative experience when communion with God is felt as palpable. (To be Continued).
Death is commonly understood as the separation of the soul from the body. This view brings to the fore the diversity between the body and the soul at the expense of their essential interconnections. Though they are different, the one cannot survive without the other and at death the soul must be feeling out of place as it was so long attached to the body. The body readily disintegrates although its association with the soul may not be easy to be shaken off. Therefore, to understand their relationship better, we shall describe death as a transformation of life from one state to another. There is continuity not only to the soul but also to the body though in different degrees and forms. Even scientifically speaking, all matter is ultimately energy and it cannot be completely annihilated but can only be transformed from one state to another. The longing, therefore, for reclaiming its partner is incumbent upon both the soul and the body. In this context, the Christian teaching of the immortality of the soul forever and the resurrection of the body at the end of the world is very convincing as it is cogent to the nature of things as they are.
Death is seen as a transformation if we are prepared to see birth and death as two sides of the same coin. They are not opposed as they are complementary just like day and night are not opposed to each other as the one presupposes the other. They are harmoniously united to one another since the one follows the other without any break and they are not to be taken as conflicting events. Similarly, birth or life and death should be seen as parts of a harmonious whole , the latter replacing the former for a transformed kind of life. Death is a passport to an upgraded form of our life just like in our birth we were upgraded from the womb to this earth. That we cannot recollect anything from our stay in the mother's womb does not in any way take away from the beauty of this world we experience. Death allows us to be born into the next world where too we are to slowly grow up to meet God in His full effulgence.
Death is not to be taken as something that happens at the end of one's life. Every moment of our life death is foreshadowed in the destruction and renewal of cells in our body that also indicates to us the need of transformation of our body. Death is the gateway to our ultimate transformation to be finalized in the realignment of the body with our soul at the resurrection. For this to happen we have to be actively aware and be engaged in the process of transformation with the aid of the Word of God and religious teachings. This transformation takes place from inside , i.e., from our soul to the outside,i.e., our body. In this process, the Spirit of God is actively present turning us into spiritual entities. The concept of spiritual bodies is very much present in the Indian way of thinking as can be seen from the Vedas. St. Paul in his first Letter to the Corinthians elaborates in some detail the nature of different kinds of bodies in connection with the question of resurrection from the dead (See 1 Corinthians, 15:35-49). The comparison of death with sleep in the New Testament is very significant regarding the wholesome understanding of death and the new life emerging out of it. Jesus himself considered death only as a mode of sleeping in the case of both the daughter of Jairus and of Lazarus both of whom he raised to life. In this sense, there is similarity between sleep and death since both of them are under suspended animation for a shorter or longer period. The greatest pleasure here on earth is achieved in sleep although without consciousness of the same. Similarly, after resurrection from the dead we shall experience the greatest pleasure, with a transformed consciousness, in contemplation of God. A glimpse of this kind of pleasure known as bliss may be seen in our meditative experience when communion with God is felt as palpable. (To be Continued).
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