මහාමේඝ 2563 නවම් (2020 පෙබරවාරි) මස කලාපය

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Aging and Death
Life goes through the process of aging and
eventually ends in death. Those with minds steeped
in ignorance think that death is a pleasant thing.
Such a belief shows the extent of their ignorance.
Some people would very much like to bid goodbye
to their human life and die, thinking that death will
give them the opportunity to meet their relatives in
the next world. They will be able to break free from
this wrong view when they learn the reality of life and
death through the Dhamma. The Buddha taught that
both aging and death fall under the first Noble Truth
of Suffering, which must be realized. The Buddha
knew very well that aging-and-death is a sorrowful
experience for all ordinary beings.
Ordinary beings beg for life when faced with death.
They become utterly helpless. The Buddha described
aging and death as follows:
Monks, what is known as aging? The aging
of the various beings in the various realms
of beings, their growing old, loss of teeth,
graying of hair, wrinkling of skin, diminishing
of lifespan, maturation of the faculties. This,
monks, is called aging.
Monks, what is known as death? The passing
away of the various beings from the various
realms of beings, their perishing, breakup,
disappearance, mortality, death, completion
of time, the breakup of the aggregates,
abandonment of the body, severance of the
life faculty: this is called death.
Thus, this aging and this death are together
called aging-and-death.
SN 12.2 – Analysis of Dependent Origination
(Vibhanga Sutta)
All of us are living a life that will end in death.
Therefore, we should understand this life. If we
constantly live our lives revolving around the concept
of “mine,” “my self,” and “I am,” we are destined to
continue existing in this endless cycle of births and
continue to experience the suffering of death. The
Buddha’s teachings are clear in the following
verse:
Though a person conceives: “I am,”
“mine,”the same he abandons at death.
The wise, being well aware of this,
never do they get attached, saying, “I am,”
and“mine.”
Sn 806 – Old Age (Jarā Sutta)
Death becomes a critical, woeful, and
terrifying experience for those who live immoral
lives. However much one tries to hide or run
away, there is no escape from death. At times, we
face situations when life becomes unbearable. At
such times, we think death would be a solution to
end suffering. But when we are faced with death,
we wish to be able to live at least a moment
longer. We live here for a very brief period of time.
Our life exists hand-in-hand with death. We can
understand this only when we wisely consider
the instructions of the Buddha.
Is it a falsehood to speak of the sorrow and
despair that people face due to aging-anddeath?
All living beings inherit the reality of
aging-and-death when they are born. This
is certainly a sad fate. All those who fail to
understand the reality of aging-and-death
become utterly helpless. Those who believe
in a powerful creator god pray for deliverance
from aging-and-death. Others believe that
aging-and-death occurs due to the influence of
planetary movements. As a result, they make
offerings and sacrifices in the hope of nullifying
these supposed astrological effects and warding
off aging-and-death. Others believe agingand-death
are natural occurrences. They claim
that nature should be allowed to run its course
without any intervention. Still others believe
karma to be the sole cause of aging-and-death
and that there is no possibility of countering the
effects of karma.
Aging-and-death cannot be prevented
through material comforts and conveniences,
such as vehicles, health food and drinks, vitamins,
and the medicine of our so-called advanced
scientific world. There is no artificial method of
avoiding aging-and-death. We have no choice but
to face this reality of life. The Buddha had a very
clear understanding of this reality.
Short, indeed, is this life;
most die before a hundred years.
Barely does one live longer—
having aged and suffered, one dies.
Sn 804 – Old Age (Jarā Sutta)
Creationist religions avoid discussing the reality
of life by teaching that only human beings are
subject to aging-and-death and gods are immune
to it. Only those who have faith in the god are
supposed to be reborn in heaven and become
immune to aging-and-death themselves. Those
who hold these beliefs do not have the wisdom to
understand that death inevitably exists wherever
there is birth. The Buddha states that even a god
with a lifespan of an eon is subject to aging from
the moment of birth. Therefore, aging-and-death is
a universal reality that befalls all living beings.
On one occasion, Sakka, lord of the devas, came
to meet the Buddha and listened to the sublime
Dhamma taught with great compassion. At the end
of the discourse, the god Sakka became a streamenterer.
By that time, the god Sakka’s lifespan was
almost over. He passed away in the presence of
the Buddha and was immediately reborn again
as Sakka by spontaneous rebirth. By becoming a
stream-enterer he achieved the protection and
comfort of not being reborn in a bad destination.
God Sakka was delighted with his fortunate rebirth
and uttered the following stanza to the Buddha:
While staying right here, remaining in the
godly form, my expended lifespan was
once again renewed. Great sage, may you
know it thus!
DN 21 – The Discourse on Sakka’s Questions
(Sakkapañha Sutta)
To page 21..