"Awareness of death is the very bedrock of the path.
Until you have developed this awareness,
all other practices are obscured"
— The Dalai Lama
Until you have developed this awareness,
all other practices are obscured"
— The Dalai Lama
The sage Yudhisthira is asked: "Of all things in life, what is the most amazing?" Yudhisthira answers: "That a man, seeing others die all around him, never thinks that he will die." It is through the contemplation of, and the surrender to death that we come to fully embrace life. By bringing death into the midst of our lives, we learn to meet each moment with more presence, taste its fragrance, and appreciate its beauty.
— The Mahabharata
"Death is our friend precisely because it brings us into absolute and passionate presence with all that is here, that is natural, that is love."
— Reiner Maria Rilke
This is a dark time, filled with suffering and uncertainty. Like living cells in a larger body, it is natural that we feel the trauma of our world. So don’t be afraid of the anguish you feel, or the anger or fear, because these responses arise from the depth of your caring and the truth of your interconnectedness with all beings.
— Joanna Macy