Preparing for Death (Book Review)

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They published what was yet a working draft. Very repetitive and does little justice to the subject it sets out to treat. Only the last chapter has some significant comments. Of religious sermons, I have had enough. The book is mostly anecdotes from the lives of spiritual men, quotes from scriptures, mostly Buddhist, and couplets. Arun Shourie merely restates scriptural statements and adds some personal account to back it up. He anchors the book with episodes from lives of a few great men towards the fag end of their lives and in their final moments. The author seeks lessons for us ordinary mortals in their acceptance of death and in their indifference to prolonging their earthly life.


I wonder what can I learn from the lives of these men who were convinced of an everlasting life into which they will be delivered upon physical death. Besides controlling appetite(s) and coveting solitude, I don't think there is any other lesson or preparation possible for me. Appetite-control ruled out. Solitude I love. I don't think I have any issues with stepping into the unknown; that unknown better be a quiet place. I could carry some anxiety about not providing my folks with enough for the future. And maybe, some regret about unread books. But, by the time I am invalid, I won't even have mental capacity to process what I am reading. So, there won't be any hankering for the unread books too. How pompous of me to bring in my love of books to the death narrative! 

Death inspires fear. So does life. Life can be boring and enervating too. I am fed up of sorting out my old tax returns, renewing my expired driving license, renewing my passport, having my Aadhar updated every time I move, fixing the chronically leaking kitchen sink, redoing the flaking paint; watching stock market tank; planning a family vacation after dithering for years, enduring travel anxiety and frequent complaints from my co-travellers; haggling with neighbours encroaching my parking, arguing on behalf of my daughter and her friends when neighbours shoo them away for raising their voice while playing; of convincing my wife of little utility we have for things she wants to buy; and, of generally obliging people. And, if now I have to work from office. Death would be a good riddance for most of us.

There is an interesting anecdote about Buddha instructing his disciples about the impurity and impermanence of the physical body and how one has to constantly meditate upon it. Later, Buddha goes into seclusion for 15 days. When he emerges from his isolation, he finds the assembly of his disciples has shrunk significantly. He learns that about 500 of his disciples had committed suicide. Their meditation on the evanescence of the body created such revulsion in their minds that they chose to be free from the body of 9 orifices that only oozes dirt and filth. I can imagine the orator in Buddha congratulating himself. One could say that he was not against associating with body but against getting attached to the body, or to anything for that matter. 

In our natural wisdom, we associate with many but weave strong emotional bonds only with our immediate relations. It's an evolutionary trait, nothing to be ashamed of. Imagine, you lose that bind. What’s left to keep you tied to the place you call home? Appeal to duty, you say. Buddha himself chose a higher calling over duty. Body is the condition of my existence. Its filth is checked every morning. Let’s keep things simple, silly! 

Only they prepare for death who see it as a door, a career move. I see it as termination of my existence. Take me there sedated. I can prime myself for death, not for dying. 

I have no control over my life in a state of youth (40 is the new 20, right?) and health. To talk of control when death comes knocking! I am not putting up a brave face if my final days are full of pain and suffering. I will whimper like a dog if I go in pain. Let people call me a good man if I can avoid cursing them in that state. Until then I will happily philosophize and give a bad rating to badly written books!

All the individuals featured in the book are religious personalities. To balance it out, the author should have accommodated atheists like David Hume and Bertrand Russell who also accepted death gracefully. 

My rating: 1.5/5

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