I may have covered this topic in some earlier article but the topic is of such importance that it is worth writing another article on it.
Do you fear old age and death? If so, what can be done?
All people who have pondered the subject fear old age and death. The cause of this fear is identification with the BMI (the Body-Mind-Intellect aggregate). As long as we are identified with the body we will fear death. The Bhagavad Gita compares dying with changing worn out clothes and wearing fresh ones. This comparison may be valid for the enlightened sages but almost no one amongst us can view death with that much detachment.
There are many ways to free ourselves of identification with the BMI. But that is spirituality of a very advanced level and I do not have the expertise or the experiential understanding to talk of it. In this article I would like to explore how belief in God, Nirvana and/or Heaven will enable us to live life fearlessly and well. We will not be able to overcome the fear of death completely but we will be able to live with the fear and it will not stop us from living a good life.
I’ll start with my own story. When I was young I admired and liked the writings of Osho, Bertrand Russell and books on Buddhist teachings. I did not believe in God or Heaven and considered myself an agnostic. I had or wanted to have a sceptical and scientific temperament and did not want to believe in something unless there was conclusive proof that it existed.
Combined with that I tried practicing Buddhist mindfulness techniques of living life in the present moment and freeing myself of the ego. I met only with indifferent success. I was filled with future anxieties and past regrets and could not free myself of the ego and really live in the Now.
Belief in God/Heaven/Nirvana is what can be a cure for identification with the ego. Jesus says in the Bible that we can be of good cheer as we have a place in heaven through the grace of God. If you truly believe that then there is no reason for anxieties or regrets. Being free of the ego we can be more present in the Now and have life more abundantly.
I am assuming that Jesus had a better understanding of human nature than the authorities who decided on the nature of my education when I was young. He was a prophet after all. I am also assuming that He is trustworthy and had direct first hand knowledge of what happens after death and the existence of God.
In Vipassana meditation also SN Goenka, the guru, exhorts us to believe in the possibility of our becoming enlightened. In other words, we are asked to believe that we will attain Nirvana. Live Life in the present by reminding ourselves moment by moment that what we are experiencing is transient and not worth craving or having aversion. Do your practice with the hope that we will experience the deathless compared to which the threats and temptations of the world are of little consequence. Those transient experiences will pass away in due course.
The Bhagavad Gita teaches us to believe in rebirth. It says that even a little bit of Dharma can save us from terrible fear.
If belief in God can help us to this extent to deal with past regrets and future anxieties, then we should at the very least examine what reasons are there for assuming the existence of God even if there is no conclusive proof. It is thoughts of the future and the past that prevent us from living in the present.
The reasons why I believe in traditional religion are explained in the article below:
This may be called a carrot and stick approach. To this I can only say that what works for me works for me. All roads lead to Rome and if my nature is such that only the carrot or the stick will motivate me then that is just the way it is. It may not be the highest path but it serves my purpose.
I’ll end here. Please comment on the blog if you liked it or even if you didn’t. Feedback from my readers keeps me going.
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