a reminder
So today I found out that my boss' father passed away at 6 am. He suffered from renal failure yesterday, and we all knew his outlook wasn't good. Still, it came as a shock. I've never met the guy, but I'm friends with my boss, so.. yeah.
But what really got me thinking is that... well, to my boss and to his family, this death is a huge tragedy. I'm sure their whole world changed today. A beloved father and husband died... and yet, the whole world just keeps going. The sun rose as per usual; the subways ran. I woke up thirty minutes after his time of death, unaware; I had my usual orange juice and a cup of tea; I walked to the train. It's just a day like any other for me and for millions of others. I'm pretty sure that, barring some nuclear or cosmic disaster, the day I die will be exactly like this: the sun will rise, the trains will run, some young woman will have a cup of English Breakfast and head to work. Right? Right.
I'm contemplating this whole thing right now.
Colloquially speaking, this shit is bullshit.
And more eloquently:
The three worlds are impermanent like the clouds of autumn.
The birth and death of beings are like a drama you are watching.
The life of beings passes like a flash of lightning in the sky.
It goes quickly, like water tumbling down a steep mountain.
Through the power of craving, becoming, and ignorance,
Beings circle helplessly through the five realms
Of humans, gods, and the three lower existences.
It is like the spinning of a potter’s wheel.
The three worlds blaze with the sufferings of old age and sickness.
There is no protection here from the fiercely blazing fires of death.
Beings who arise in this world are ever deluded.
They are like bees trapped in a vase, circling.
But what really got me thinking is that... well, to my boss and to his family, this death is a huge tragedy. I'm sure their whole world changed today. A beloved father and husband died... and yet, the whole world just keeps going. The sun rose as per usual; the subways ran. I woke up thirty minutes after his time of death, unaware; I had my usual orange juice and a cup of tea; I walked to the train. It's just a day like any other for me and for millions of others. I'm pretty sure that, barring some nuclear or cosmic disaster, the day I die will be exactly like this: the sun will rise, the trains will run, some young woman will have a cup of English Breakfast and head to work. Right? Right.
I'm contemplating this whole thing right now.
Colloquially speaking, this shit is bullshit.
And more eloquently:
The three worlds are impermanent like the clouds of autumn.
The birth and death of beings are like a drama you are watching.
The life of beings passes like a flash of lightning in the sky.
It goes quickly, like water tumbling down a steep mountain.
Through the power of craving, becoming, and ignorance,
Beings circle helplessly through the five realms
Of humans, gods, and the three lower existences.
It is like the spinning of a potter’s wheel.
The three worlds blaze with the sufferings of old age and sickness.
There is no protection here from the fiercely blazing fires of death.
Beings who arise in this world are ever deluded.
They are like bees trapped in a vase, circling.