Estimated reading time: 7 min.

Dear reader, 

Welcome back to Guiding Words.

In the previous lesson we argued that death is not an absolute state but a movement from one state of Existence to another, and we concluded that we should strive to live in a way to meet our end with serenity and empty of any more desire for life.

Most major religious movements promise eternal life in one way or another. The three great monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) consider that immortality is achieved through the resurrection of the body at the time of Final Judgment, while Hinduism, on the other hand, believes in an immortal soul which is reincarnated after death. These four religions together make for more than 70% of the world population. Therefore, in this lesson, we will reflect on the ego’s desire for immortality.  

Let’s begin with some Words of Art:  

The days of our lives are made of blocks (chapters) of routine (sameness) with occasional novelties that happen randomly or by design. 

There is value in recognizing, highlighting and accepting that fact of life, both that of our lives and that of every living creature. 

Routine and repetition are the gears on which the cycle of life revolves. 

Living creatures (and their consciousness) cannot bear a state of continuous production of new. 

Realizing that life is cycles of routine and repetition should be liberating in the sense that there is no need for immortality, because the moments of life of the immortal being will only be made of the same chunks of routine and repetition with the occasional novelty similar to the life of the mortal. 

The days of the immortal are no different from the days of the mortal, there’s just more of them. 

Find comfort in acknowledging that tomorrow, more often than not, will be just like today and for those times that tomorrow is different, it is never different for long. As tomorrow changes, you will change, thus reinstating new habits, routines, and repetitions. 

New is a moment in time.

Same, is the state of time. 

There are many legends throughout cultures and history that speak of different objects that have the power to grant immortality to those who obtain them. Some of them are: the mushroom of immortality referenced in Chinese texts as early as 475 BCE; the Amrita, a mysterious substance drunk by Indra, the god of heaven, and Agni, the god of fire in Hinduist and Indo-European traditions in order to gain immortality; the Elixir of life, in medieval European cultures which was a potion that supposedly cure all diseases and grant the drinker eternal life and youth. 

Modern scientists have continued the work of ancient alchemists by formulating for the public, among others things, anti-aging creams, serums, surgical procedures and by engaging in deep research in epigenetics by laboratories such as the Paul F. Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research at the Harvard Medical School, among many other such centers around the world.

Since the dawn of time, men have desired immortality. But, what is immortality if not one day after another, forever?

Think about yesterday. What did you do?

Think about today. How different was it from yesterday?

And think about tomorrow. How much different do you expect it to be from today?

What makes you think that if you had more days to the point where they never end, the succession of your day-to-day life would be that much different from now?

Life expectancy has greatly increased in our modern times, but the age of retirement has also increased. Even though we live longer, we spend more of that time inside and online than in nature and with each other. The industrial age has given birth to inventions that have saved humanity trillions of hours, like the washing machine, the dishwasher, the microwave and many more, but what have we done with those hours? How much happier and fulfilled are we? 

There’s a famous quote from Benjamin Franklin that is often used to encourage people to be proactive, and it says: Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today.

But what if there were always a tomorrow to put it off to. When will you end up doing it? 

Quantity does not lead to quality and quality can be achieved without quantity. 

People who say one life isn’t enough are people who lack imagination or courage and, most of the time, both.

Gaius Julius Caesar died at the age of 55 at the head of one of the mightiest empire the world had ever seen, the Roman Empire. Joan of Arc died at the age of 30 and was canonized as a patron saint of France for her role in the siege of Orleans. Mark Zuckerberg started Facebook at the age of 19 and Steve Jobs started Apple at the age of 21. Colonel Sanders sold the Kentucky Fried Chicken corporation for $2 million in 1964 at the age of 73.

We should ask ourselves individually and as a society, what are we running away from or to with our desire of immortality and, more importantly, what have we done with the present that we got to enjoy, again, today? 

The fabric of life is made of routine punctuated with moments of change which quickly become routine again. Change, in of itself, imposes stress and tension on the mind and requires the expenditure of more energy and effort than usual, which is why most people are averse to it. Moreover, a dull life will not be more exciting just because a decade or three has been added to it. 

Therefore, Serenity is about realizing that there is no need to fantasize over dreams of immortality or life extension. If you were to be honest with yourself, based on how you have lived up until now, how will two hundred more years make a difference to the script of your life? It is not the quantity of life that creates feelings of happiness and fulfillment but what we have done with whatever number of years we had in the first place. Don’t obsess over how much time you have left, but obsess over how many satisfying experiences you can fit within any given period of time, because more often than not, it’s not life that is short, it is us who are short sighted.  

This concludes our lesson on the ego’s desire for immortality. In the next lesson, we will reflect on the nature of time.

See you in three days and until then, may Serenity be upon you.

Didi

Question: After reading this lesson, do you think you need to live forever to have a chance at finding happiness and achieving fulfillment? 

Reply with a yes or no and feel free to go beyond two or three characters.

P.S.: I am trying to find the right words to convey my thoughts in a language that is not mine, so please pardon my mistakes and feel free to reply with any suggestions and/or corrections that can make this reading experience more enjoyable. 

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