The Fear of Death

Death

” Death is the greatest enigma in life. It has baffled humankind from times out of mind. And yet despite all attempts to solve the , it has remained as mysterious as ever before. The Saints … know the shadowy character of death. They teach us that death is not what it seems. It is a joyous birth (born again) into a life more beatific than we ever dreamed of here. It is just as sun sets on this side of the globe and rises in the other part. They point out and demonstrate to us the way to conquer the seemingly invincible and terrifying death and thus become fear-free. This is the grand lesson that we can get from the Saints.”

Perhaps it will not be out of place to explain here the meaning of the term ‘Spirituality’, which is often confused with blind faith in sacred books, a display of miracles, psychic phenomena, or Yogic powers. Spirituality is an inner experience and its alphabet begins where all philosophy and Yoga practices end. It is the experience of the soul. When one says, “I am the body”, it is a feeling based on the intellect and is defined as ignorance. When he says “I am not the body, I am an awakened soul”, it is learnt knowledge or theory only; but when he gets an actual experience of the soul by self-analysis and contacts the Overself, it is called Spirituality. The first practical lesson commences when there is a complete withdrawal from the physical body through the kindness of a practical Master. No one can withdraw and separate himself from the physical body unaided. If anyone claims otherwise and thinks that he can, he but deceives himself. All attempts without the assistance of a Master, who alone is qualified to impart this experience, will end in failure. Masters come to distribute this treasure of spiritual blessings to seekers after Truth. Spirituality cannot be bought nor taught, but it can be caught by contact with spiritual people. Moreover, Nature’s gifts, such as air, water, light etc., are free. Spirituality is also Nature’s gift and is also given free by the Masters. Likewise, Spirituality cannot be acquired from books, which is a fact all sacred scriptures uphold. Books are a valuable record of the inner experiences of others in Spirituality. They fill up gaps in history and contain messages from past Masters, which help us to verify the facts revealed by a Living Master, thus confirming our faith in the Science. Man is confused by the various translations, interpretations and expositions, each different from the other, which instead of relieving his mind, tend rather to bewilder and confuse him. His egoism too has created hundreds of religious circles, whose aim is aloofness and narrow orthodoxy instead of love, and insularity instead of integration. Torn between conflicting emotions, men develop hatred and think of war.