| Title | : | Death: An Inside Story |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0143450832 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780143450832 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 376 |
| Publication | : | First published February 21, 2020 |
Death is a taboo in most societies in the world. But what if we have got this completely wrong? What if death was not the catastrophe it is made out to be but an essential aspect of life, rife with spiritual possibilities for transcendence? For the first time, someone is saying just that.
In this unique treatise-like exposition, Sadhguru dwells extensively upon his inner experience as he expounds on the more profound aspects of death that are rarely spoken about. From a practical standpoint, he elaborates on what preparations one can make for one’s death, how best we can assist someone who is dying and how we can continue to support their journey even after death.
Whether a believer or not, a devotee or an agnostic, an accomplished seeker or a simpleton, this is truly a book for all those who shall die!>
Death: An Inside Story Reviews
-
I ended up writing this short piece after reading this book.
Death :-
Mere utterance of this word,
takes one to the subtle truth
of its inevitability,
However, the beauty lies
in its awareness.
With awareness, comes preparation
Where every moment,
one takes a step closer
towards that final moment
Where everything dissolves,
And a new possibility unveils.
For some, it evokes fear
For some, it brings beauty & grace
The secret lies- how one lived one's life,
With mindfulness or with disgrace.
Life & Death
Death & Life,
Its a moment by moment process
One inhales and lives,
One exhales and dies.
None can escape death
Its same- no matter whether,
a king or a miserable
an eagle or an ant
a beauty or a beast.
One who has come ought to leave
But- How to leave, is the responsibility
one can take.
Life is brief,
Don't spoil it in illusions
Every moment is precious
Let's be 100% responsible
no matter what it takes.
When death arrives,
Open the door and welcome
it with love & grace,
For it has come to relieve us
Of accumulations, we gather here
treating life as a race.
What a fool, I have been
Searching & running
for life all around.
Now, this death is so taintless
That to die every moment
is my new life!!
Well! This book takes us to the journey where we question our life, dwell in emotions that erupt in middle, evoke wonder and amazement and finally changes the way we perceive life and everything around us.
Its true- Nothing is granted!
Heartfelt Thanks to Sadhguru!
A must read and re-read for all those who shall die. -
"We all want to live well, and when it is time, die well too."
A discussion of Life and Death in One Breath.
"Do you know you will die one day?"
"You can die well only if you accept your mortality."
The contents of this book are deep and heavy, they are not to be treated lightly, and are also not for everyone. Even though this book, as stated in the title is 'for all those who shall die', it may not be for general reading. -
Having read a lot of his other books, getting initiated in a couple of Isha programs - inner engineering and Hatha yoga, watching hours and hours of YouTube videos of him, there was still something that lacked. The rawness of what he is. This book clarified it.
I also would like to warn that this book may not be easy for everyone, especially the ones driven by science and logic may find the content totally ludicrous. But, for me, I enjoyed each and every word! An absolute masterpiece! -
To be honest for past 4 or 5 years i have been looking for meaning of death and what happens after death. Ofcourse i can't talk about it with someone otherwise they will have negative notion about me. It is just me who is delving for more and try to be more aware about the concept of death. This book gave me various perspectives and i got my answers at some levels.
The book is not a read for entertainment. In a video Sadhguru said, one must read the book in a few sittings. Digesting that much in a few sittings was hard for me. I am glad he has decided to go real deep and detailed here. This one goes beyond, sharing some not easily palatable details. Sadhguru with his astonishing skill to evoke ancient wisdom, juxtaposed with his keen insight into modern, contemporary life, the chapters roll along effortlessly. I am personally happy that he has lifted the veil a little bit on things not in the realm of ordinary experience.
I will definitely re read this book. Informative and enlightening read. -
I hugely recommend this book to all my friends who are in some kind of pain! It will shatter the pain and make you acutely aware of what really is happening in this thing called life! By the way I am re-reading this for the umpteenth time and once again (like the first time) I am smiling (with genuine happiness) through all my current life challenges. So, please pick it up! You will thank me!
“The existence has no moral compass. It is about life, not about social or psychological judgements!”
One of the reasons why I review certain books here is because they never cease to drill enormous volumes of sense into my head, and this reiterating realisation of how stupid it is to cling to attachments, people's opinions and suffering is so enormously transformative that I can't pull myself back from putting it RIGHT in FRONT OF PEOPLE'S Eyes.
Because of this interest, I will take the liberty of posting a personal event here and revealing how enormously this book opened me up towards my mortality. As you read, try applying my experience into your life and see what happens.
I was enormously humiliated at work, like enormously and I remember with absolute 100% certainty I did nothing wrong but you cannot by any measure protest against the seniors. But I knew I had done my best. There is no way I was wrong. Yet the humiliation was tremendously difficult to bear and it kept encircling my mind the entire damn day. I tried sooo many things---meditation, watching motivational videos, mom's comforting voice and each and everyone of them was transitory. In this grim state, I recalled a line I had read somewhere, perhaps here in Goodreads only, "Life is TOO SHORT to end with 'What ifs"......and suddenly a boulder had been struck against my head. But that wasn't enough, my mind was still struggling.
While walking back home from work that day, I spotted a dog by the street. It was famished and looked shrivelled up and thin. I gave it all the cookies I had within my purse while meditating over its life and deeply grasping that it wasn't any different from me---I am LIFE and it is LIFE. But given its physical condition I became aware that it wouldn't survive long.
At this point something strange happened to me and I became acutely aware of the fact that I am mortal. No! I mean it, it wasn't a fleeting thought I had right then, I became deeply aware of the fact that I am 100% mortal and that death is an option that is within my reach right now. Stop the heart, the lungs and it's over. All my body, my dreams, my family, my career, my friends, my accomplishments---THIS WHOLE THING WOULD JUST CEASE TO EXIST! AT ANY MOMENT, the soft structures (the vitals inside me) that are keeping my life alive can quit or be crushed to quit due to unexpected external circumstances!
At any point! (READ THIS LINE....SIT WITH IT FOR SOMETIME....don't look. for what else the review holds....it applies to YOU too ......--->AT ANY POINT YOU COULD CEASE TO EXIST!)
Once that happens and it could REALLY happen ANY MOMENT, would any of this silly event mean ANYTHING in those FINAL MOMENTS!??????? Nothing! Like what if I am told, as an unchangeable truth, that I literally had to accept that I wouldn't make it to the end of the road I was walking on and it is now all coming to an end, wouldn't I simply inhale a breath of pure gratitude for this life just to depart in peace?!!
Sadhguru teaches, "Reminding yourself the truth of your mortality every second, not just to accomplish goals but to become aware that you REALLY are mortal, is the only way you can live an absolutely fabulous life." Truth be told, many people will say, "Oh! I do it all the time. That is why I waste no time to go about making my dreams come true!!"
but what about the quality of your life? Are you living blissfully every second?! That's the most important question!
these reflections removed all my sadness and I became absolutely free and happy instantly!
this is the level of transformation this book can impart to you!
Couple of lines from the book I would like to share with you:
“Moreover, humans have never been comfortable with their mortal nature. So, the success of medical science has only breathed a fresh lease of life to the historic quest for immortality.”
“Unfortunately, today’s science has access to the being only from the point where the body begins to the point where it ends. Science does not even acknowledge the possibility that something could precede life or succeed death. The hypothesis that life is just a chance occurrence in the vast universe of infinite permutations and combinations of factors is riddled with many holes.”
“Moreover, humans have never been comfortable with their mortal nature. So the success of medical science has only breathed a fresh lease of life to the historic quest for immortality.”
“If you are aware of the mortal nature of your life, where is the time to get angry with someone or to quarrel with someone or to do anything stupid in life?”
Now coming to the point about suicide:
This one is big——I tried committing suicide at least twice (for real) and made around 13 suicide attempts….this is nothing to feel proud about (it’s very dumb and you will realise that in a minute)…..and yet at the time, I knew no better and it seemed like the only way out of the hounding I was seeing around me! When you have nobody to help you understand pain, it is, in that moment of delusion, natural to assume “your existence is of no use.”
Why I am stating this is because this one book by Sadhguru completely altered my way of looking at suicide. I was horrified reading the perspectives of sucide he gave. No text/ article in Google offers anything even remotely close to what is stated by him and trust me when I say, you will be convinced right away, when you read what he has to state:
“Committing suicide is irrational because you don’t have an intellect capable of grasping what the hell is happening within them.”
“For many people who are on the verge of committing suicide, just one moment of distraction is all it takes to prevent it.”
There are at least 6-7 mind-blowing other insights on Suicide that just BLEW MY MIND! It is not motivating talk——it is a slap on your head!... -
This is a book for anyone ready to entertain the possibility of this version of existential reality beyond the limited realm of logic and intellect.
When something is not in our experience, we cannot decide between true and false. So the only option is to explore this book with an open mind.
Personally, I'm very grateful to Sadhguru for writing this book. It gave me a peek into the spiritual aspects of life and death like no other. And theoretically answered lot of my burning questions and curiosities.
Some parts of the book could seem very hard to digest for the 21st century mind. But coming from a traditional Indian family helped me understand many concepts better, as most of them were already familiar to me, but in a hazy way. -
When you read such books, it is essential to be on high alert! The book is well-written, properly organized, and overall- an inspiration to live a positive life! There is no harm done, if one follows its practices.
However, there are concerns and a rational thinker should be very vigilant about writers who throw in words such as "scientific" without giving proper references that can be verified. Here are few excerpts that I found (of the many), concerning:
1) There is a part in the book, where he says that some researchers tested him while he was meditating, and they found that the readings indicated, medically, he was dead! I was not able to save this reference, but it is there in the book. Such statements, require some sort of evidence, with a link to the research paper or a blog post by the reviewers.
2) "They have isolated some eight key chemical compounds that make up the human scent of death."-There was no reference to this study provided. I think he is talking about the paper in this link (
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/art...). However, these are nothing magical (I don't think he believes it is so), but the way it has been mentioned gives his ideas some grandeur that is unwarranted.
3) "The worst part of this modern life is everything has to be explained."- This is not a bad thing. For mature people who are willing to research and study, every claim needs to be explained. Else, such claims are not for rational thinkers, but for the masses.
4) "Now, about the people who bounce back to life from vegetative or near-death states, don’t think that they died and were put back. That is not true."- Saying, it is not true, is not scientific, if not proven scientifically. Sadhguru, takes his liberty in just stating "this is not true", assuming no responsibility to state why it is not true. Such luxuries are given to no one, by rational thinkers.
5) "...it is not because of medical workers or a miracle. Maybe the medical workers made the body a little more
hospitable than what it would have been, but it is always life which makes the decision to stay because the body
is still hospitable."- Again along the similar lines of the above point, he takes full freedom in blurting out claims with no reasonable evidence.
6) "It is unfortunate that we have moved from intuition to information."- Someone who learns Science, initially is excited that his/her intuitions can be mathematically explained, and mathematical statements can be intuitively understood. However, as one gets to more advanced concepts of Science (such as Relativity or QM), one realizes, relying on intuitions is a folly! Every rational thinker, must move from an intuitive understanding of the world, to a mathematical and scientific understanding of the world.
7) "...marriage was a scientific process of binding two lives in such a way that there was no question of
incompatibility."- There is nothing scientific or non-scientific about marriage. It is a human concept, and it is beautiful, but Science has nothing to do with it! You can still pro-create and still love and care, without actually getting married!
8) "Even if you make a paper pyramid...You can place a vegetable inside it and you will see that what would normally rot in about three days will still not have rotted even after three weeks. It would have shrunk, shrivelled out, but not rotted. This is because if you create a pyramidal form, Vyana Vayu gets trapped there naturally. Vyana Vayu is in charge of the preservative function of the body. So something can be preserved for a long time, if you can hold it."- Now, this is an interesting tactic by Sadhguru! He can now claim that he has given here (and in other parts of the book), a test to verify his claims. However, this not even remotely close to anything that is required to verify his ideas in this book. Also, if the tomato doesn't get rotten, it is just an observation, and the explanation for this is not (necessarily) what he states here.
9) "I think we live in a society which is too logical and too immature for other aspects of life."- My comments for this will be similar to the one I made in point 3 above.
10) "If a scientific study is conducted, it is possible that they find a correlation between breastfeeding and past-life recollections in these infants."- This is not sensible! This is just a tool for him to claim that, he asked for a test and the scientific community refused to do so. There is no mention of how it can be tested- the equipment required, the environment required, how can it be falsified, etc". This is like me saying, a scientific study can be conducted by going to the far ends of the Milky Way, to confirm that my idea of a flying invisible donkey actually, is true".
So, in a nutshell, it is a fantastic read, but don't waste your time, trying to follow them! -
Serves me right for trying to read this. Started well but then he just says whatever he wants, neither backed by the ancient scripture nor science.
Less said the better. Mistake to think wisdom comes from here. -
"Every day of your life, you need to be aware that you are mortal. It is not that I want to die today, but if I do, it is all right with me. I will do everything to protect myself, to nurture myself, to take care of myself, but if I have to die today, it is okay with me."
Wuhan virus is ruling the world and becomes messenger of death. Its breath is just beside one's neck. Death is certain but how to die and before dying it is always good to know SOP of dying and all paraphernalia related with it.
This book helps in loosening oneself from the staff called body. The technique is with Sadhguru, but if any one gets clarity of the point that one's body belongs to earth, then it will have an immense impact on life.
The book gives an awesome clarity about reality which is nothing but accumulation of memories such as elemental, genetical, evolutionary and karmic. After death, only karmic memory remains and with that another new journey of seeking appropriate wombs begins, called reincarnation.
Though, while reading sometime it may feel that the book is soft marketing of all coursed conducted by Sadhguru, but however one can get enough information about the process of death and after life.
If one is in a situation of 'work from home' or in lock down stage due to Wuhan virus, this book can be a best accompanist.
"The significance of being a human is that you have the ability to discriminate and choose the course of your life. If you don’t employ that, then you are not much of a human being." -
I have been extremely intrigued by this topic for a few years now! A few incidents in your life leave you curious for a very long time, hence I keep reading on this reality called ‘Death’ a lot!
And then I finished this one piece of utter shit !!! The book is like my respect for this man, initially I was very fond of point of view And the logic he has, he just made so much of sense and then suddenly it all just became a nonsensical blabber!!! So is this book!! The first 100 pages are a real beauty!! They explain you the reality of death, it’s so real that it becomes comforting, you start feeling the nirvana!!! Exceptional 100 pages, must read for that matter!
And then don’t touch the rest 200! The book just turns into a dark nonsense! From explaining the reality of death it just turns into something weird! So damn weird!!! Starts promoting Hinduism! Ways of Hinduism, justifying the rituals and not in a practical way that too, very very nonsensical justifications. Things that you see in ‘zee horror show’ come to life in it!! And no they don’t make sense! Concept of death makes sense but his explanation on everything else makes zero sense!
Though the first 100 pages are great but don’t risk buying the book for those 100 pages cos the rest 200 will make you throw up!
PS - all Sadhguru fans, I have nothing against the guy, so please don’t get offended and start your hate comments! Being someone who is intrigued by the reality of death I just didn’t like the way the book is constructed. ✌🏻 -
I have always been afraid of following a guru and then see him caught in a scandal. So, I don't do that. I don't know if Sadhguru is really englightened or he really carries his memories among different lives. I don't know all that stuff. And I am not sure if there is any scientific way to know that. All that is meant to be felt.
But considering what he speaks and how he speaks, it all makes sense. No doubt he is an intellectual who does not just say bullshit. He has the guts to say something not in the societal norms. I can say he knows what he is talking about and I would listen to him any time.
The same goes for the book as well. He explains that death is just another process. I am not sure what I should write here but he will tell you a lot many things you are supposed/not supposed to do and you won't be able to argue with that. I'd suggest to read this book if you want to have some scientific perspective of the spiritual processes. -
DNF
I honestly tried to give it a fair chance, there was a time when I found Sadhguru to be an eloquent speaker (never believed him to be a Godman or a philosopher), but in recent years his speeches have taken a dangerously narcissistic turn which I am unable to get past. Don't get me wrong, I have read biographies and autobiographies of yogis, and they have done/achieved some incredible (and slightly unbelievable) things as children, but none of them came across as pretentious or pompous. Sadhguru has become a person who doles out a heavy-handed dose of his own implausible accomplishments and then laughingly tries to appear bashful and humble. It has become absolutely disgusting to listen to him toot his own horns in such a grandiose and self-important manner. His so-called profound answers are full of unproven pseudo-scientific bullcrap, and he doesn't shy away from using fake claims of non-existing research papers to further his goals, whatever they may be. YouTube is full of his channels and videos propagating how grand he is, and how thug his answers are, when in reality, if you analyze, he is an expert in dodging the asked questions. He starts with some human lacking(which is totally unrelated to the question), moves on to some mystical profound statements which make you feel bellyful with spirituality, cracks a few jokes in the middle to keep the audience engaged, finds a way to inject how great he is, and ends with a shaking laugh and a pious expression on his face. It is only when you think really deep then you realize how he has masterfully evaded answering the question. His recent drive to cast his webs in the West, clubbed with narcissism, evasion, grand pseudo-scientific claims, and undeniable eloquence, has made me think of him as a cult leader more than anything else. So I bid adieu to this guy. -
My learnings from the book:
1/ Death is a creation of the unaware. Because if you are aware, it is life, life, and life alone - moving from one form of existence to the other.
2/ Death is not a tragedy. People spending their entire lives without experiencing life is a tragedy. If you are afraid of death, you will fail to live, and still wont escape death anyways.
3/ Life is a joy if you are able to control your mind and health. Death is compassion because it relieves you. Life needs a certain amount of tension to continue. Death is the highest relaxation. If death doesn't come to you at the right time, you will have a miserable life. You will long for death.
4/ Inhalation is life. Exhalation is like Death. Exhalation is most relaxing. Inhalation creates an optimal tension.
5/ Don't try to avoid anything in life. Let life happen to you. Did we come here to "experience" life, or "avoid" life. The moment we try to avoid life, death starts to come closer - because that is what we are asking.
6/ There are a total of 114 chakras, 112 inside the body and 2 outside the body. Those 112 inside are categorized into 7 groups. The level of activation of chakras greatly determines the quality of life. Same way, the quality of death is characterized not just by how pranas have exited the body, but through which chakras they have exited.
7/ One of the ways to regularly cleanse yourself is to take bath in flowing water like a river. If not river, a bath every day even in your own house does a lot of good to you - makes you feel better by removing negativity.
8/ There are more rich people that commit suicide than poor. A poor person lives in hope of a better life. For the rich, there is hopelessness. And hopelessness arises because we have not learnt how to handle life and its various aspects. If life is not making enough sense to you, then it is obvious that you do not have enough sense.
9/ Nothing gives you the right to take your life, because you are not capable of creating a new life.
10/ Grief and joy are both infectious. You have to make up your mind as to what you want to infect the world with.
11/ Time for you is measured by the number of breaths and not by the clock or the number of calendar years. If we slow down our metabolism and breathe fewer times, we will live longer as per the calendar years.
12/ Its a misconception that miserable people want to die. In fact they want to cling on to life more than others. Happy people are loosely attached to life. The more miserable they are, the more they cling to everything in life.
13/ When we have to go on a long journey, we always prepare ourselves well. The journey after death is a pretty long one, especially if we compare it with our life span. Therefore preparing to die well is vital. So, ideally, we should know how to live blissfully and then leave the body in the best possible manner - without fear.
14/ Why are people afraid of dead bodies - whom they don't even know? Living bodies can be dangerous but dead bodies are absolutely safe. The fear of death is because we are ignoring the reality called as death.
15/ We get so attached to the body and talk about it as of we came with it. We did not. We gathered it starting from mothers womb and naturally, we will lose it as well. This may be my body but this is not me. I am more than the body. There are many other dimensions that our soul needs to experience other than this body.
16/ Living in this body is like a bank loan. You can take a 10 year loan, but you have to pay it back for sure. With smartness and knowledge, you can extend it to 15 or 20 years, but you have to return it in any case.
17/ Getting anxious about death will bring you closer to death anyways.
18/ Fear only means that your imagination is out of your control. In reality, there is nothing called as fear. Its just imagination, cooked up.
19/ Constantly reminding yourself that you are mortal, and you may die today can take away your fear of death. If you religiously practice this consciously, and when the time to actually die comes close, it will not be a very big deal for you.
20/ After a certain age, when one is done with responsibilities in life, one should move out of the house and get close to nature (Vanaprastha in ancient India). That is a wonderful way to live the remainder of the life and accept death, rather than continuing to live with the loved ones in hospital beds.
21/ Living your life is like a flowing river - moving with a particular goal in a direction. We decide where we want to go, what we want to do. Even if we are hungry and the food is in front of us, we may decide not to eat it at our discretion. Once you leave the body, you are like an evaporated form of water or clouds - you will flow where the wind takes you. There is no purpose, no mission, no goal. Angels, as they say, are looked up in the skies. When we die, we lose our discretion powers.
22/ In the absence of description powers, the last state while dying is vital. Because this last state can multiply manifolds after my death since we will not have discretionary powers. While alive, we can get angry and then control it. Post-death, we have no control. Thus dying well, dying in peace and happiness and satisfaction is vital, since this decides the quality of path ahead.
23/ Any experience of grief shows our own incompleteness. Otherwise, the world is perfectly complete.
24/ Letting people die gracefully is needed. We cannot latch on to people. Dying completes their cycle. Imagine the poor state of the world if we don't let people die.
25/ Life is complicated only if you are hell bent on moving the world in a particular direction. For everyone else who accept things as is, what's complicated in life?
26/ Nature is not thinking in terms of punishment or reward for your next birth. Whatever is unfulfilled within you at the time of your death, you get the kind of body that is suited to best fulfil those tendencies. Ex- if a money hoarder dies with unfulfilled desires about hoarding enough money, he may end up becoming an ant or a bee - just so that his hoarding tendencies are fulfilled.
27/ Don't waste your time and effort digging into the past lives. Make good use of the life that you have in hand right now. If you can do just that, it is more than enough.
28/ It is only the master-disciple relationship that can transcend lifetimes because this relationship is based on energy and not on needs. All other relationships come together in a lifetime for the convenience of need fulfillment like social, emotional, physical, financial, psychological needs etc. -
One of my favourite Indian lores is the story of the Yaksha asking Yudhisthira about one of the greatest wonders of this world. Of course Yudhisthira's reply is the interesting part. He says, all around us we see people dying on a regular basis, yet somehow we believe or hope that we will manage to escape this eventual truth.
Hence, a book titled Death, by someone like Sadhguru, was a no-brainer for me to pick up. And the book did not disappoint, for the most part. I particularly liked the explanation of death as a process rather than an event, the various repositories of Karma, 8 types of memories, the 5 sheaths that the human body is composed of and the five types of Prana. Having heard some of these concepts before, it was interesting to understand the thesis behind each. One could also associate some of these ideas with the typical ritualism surrounding death in India. Hence, another layer of familiarity.
The most interesting concept in the book is one where Sadhguru exhorts the reader to build more awareness of one-self. The exercise of trying to be aware of the moment when one falls asleep is quite fascinating and in some sense connects well to the distinction between the body and the soul. Its something I have started trying!
However, a significant proportion of the book is devoted to those who have already accepted Sadhguru as the latest incarnate. His stories about his past lives, his own ability to help a being break the shackles of re-birth, and in general, the fact that he is the enlightened one.
As one who considers himself a rational reader, I have no qualms in accepting that I find Sadhguru to be intriguing and a lot of his views to be sensible and practical. Yet, I am not one who is willing to accept the word of anyone who had to go through the mortal life as gospel. Here Sadhguru fails to provide additional validation or any insight into various assertions of his. Maybe these are too complex for the ordinary mind, but would have nevertheless helped one appreciate these aspects.
I debated whether to give this book 3 or 4 stars, but eventually settled for 3 as i decided to be more deliberate and discerning in my actions than I usually am. Yet, I do look forward to going to Coimbatore sometime soon, to learn more about Inner Engineering and whatever else that I am capable of learning, to facilitate my journey into the beyond. -
2nd read - Love it still. Some things became a little more clear. Will reread over and over. Packed with insight and information. Hard to retain it all.
1st read:
Mind blowing.
A must read for those who want to not only live joyfully but who also wish to die gracefully.
I love Sadhguru with all my heart and soul. -
Death ! Everyone hates this word. No one wants to die. All who born should definitely need to die. It is a fact. But no one wants to accept that mere truth about life. Sadhguru beautifully explains the various aspects of Death, After life, Reincarnation, Death rituals etc… Everyone concentrates on living well but dying well is also an equally important thing no one actually cares about. Death is not an end, it is liberation. For a spiritual seeker, neither God nor heaven is the goal-mukti or Liberation is.
“Every breath you take, you are getting closer to the grave. But every breath you take, you can also get closer to your liberation” -
At first, this is not just a book which needs to be read and grasped. But, this is something to be experienced.
Being brought up in a significantly orthodox Hindu Family and nurtured under the umbrella of Science and Technology, I always had so many confusion wrt why we do what we do at our homes.
The insatiable thirst of my curious mind was never got satiated witnessing not just the daily rituals, but other rituals which typically happens during marriages, deaths, naming ceremony etc.
This book written by Sadhguru has not just satiated my thirst by answering those teething questions but has also enhanced my perception to a level where I am able to appreciate things at the micro-level of our fundamental nature of life.
Having initiated to a couple of Isha programs - inner engineering, Sambhavi Maha Mudra; practising Hatha yoga designed by him, following him and his activities endlessly in the social media, there was still something that was unknown to the normal ctiizens. This book has revealed the core and raw form of Sadhguru.
This book is not easy to handle for everyone, especially those search logic and so-called scientific validation in every other thing. But, for me, I enjoyed each and every word! An absolute masterpiece! -
At some point you will relate to the book while at the other edge it will sound as a promotion to a meditation center.
Page 100 makes a lot more sense for looking life at a different aspect but as you hit page 150 and ahead it looks like he lost the content and summed up everything of superstition and unrelated logics. Might not recommend for budding readers. -
Death; An Inside Story
full review
https://youtu.be/wsosAdFo3WA
this book is not mainly for enjoyment but more for experiment and learning
check out the video for more details
I loved some part of it and some part Is hard to digest -
For all those who shall DIE.
We believe in enhancing our life because we are experiencing.
But can the death be enhanced? This book is all about that. -
Death is always a fascinating phenomenon to me since childhood, I have witnessed many people leaving their bodies throughout life. I always wondered why they die, what happened after they die and where do they go. Whenever a member of the community dies in the village, family members gather around to send them off with a grand ceremony. Rituals followed after their deaths outbreak a curiosity bombarded with many questions in me. Questioned my uncle and grandma about rituals, they had an answer to few but not for all. So those answered questions buried deep in me looking for an explanation. Sadhguru in this book has put enormous effort to describe the beauty of death and the ceremonies behind it in the Indian culture.
Death is the most ignored aspect of human life, despite knowing the inevitability of its happening. Materialism and hedonism raise in a society defined death as an end of life. This leads to humans craving to attain the artificial idea of living well under the umbrella of materialism. Sadhguru argues that death is a fiction created through unawareness, If you become aware death is living alone, Its a movement from one dimension to another dimension. I can't disagree with that Because even science is doesn't know what happens after death and no one has witnessed it as well. It is foolish to call something has ended which is unknown to our present comprehension.
The utopia of success in modern life is to live in a good home, wear good clothes, Partying on weekends and wear good clothes, Are we living well with all the affluence?. The idea of living well is fundamentally raised from looking at other people who don't have the same thing and feel good about it. Isn't it a sick life?. Most of our joy raised from comparing ourselves with people who are not doing well as us. This is the only joy we know in all in our life and We refused to admit this sickness, And call it a Noble life. How can we not be a part of sickness??. The answer is acceptance of death not as a separate entity and accepting it has a cycle of life. Sadguru argues that living well can happen only Whether you have something or not it does not matter to you. Life needs to be lived with utmost awareness, That can happen only when we accept life and death as inseparable entities.
To support his arguments, In the second chapter, Sadhguru Explains what constitutes our body. He has given a reasonable explanation of Koshas which makes our body in spiritual and metaphysical perspective. The most important topic in the second chapter is Pancha Pranas who plays the role of bridging life and death. This is the most important chapter which offers a deep understanding of death by providing thoughtful analysis on topics like Types of death, the Gracefulness of death, and assistance of dying. By the end of this chapter, you will look at death with acceptance and realize the significance of preparing ourselves for death which is a disembodied state internally and externally. Before death and after death rituals are clearly explained in this chapter answered so many questions buried inside me for a decade.
My favorite line in this chapter:
When there is no existence, you are even free from freedom, because freedom is also certain bondage. As long as you exist, one way or the other you are bound. If you are existing physically, it is one kind of bondage.
In reality, death is not the end because there is no such thing as death. Death exists only to one who has no awareness of life. There is only life, life, and life alone. But Mahasamadhi means the real end.
The third chapter mainly deals with Life after death. Some of the wrong perceptions we have about ghosts and their impact on our life are addressed from a spiritual perspective and the riddle of reincarnation is also solved in this chapter.
My favorite line in this chapter:
Life is just one. Numbers are only in your mind. There is no such thing in Existence. Let us say, there is a pond full of water and you dip your bucket and take out the water in it. Can you say that I have taken this particular water? It is just some water. Once again if you dip the bucket into the pond, you will get some more water. But there is no such thing as this water or that water. It is similar, to life. The fundamental life force is not in terms of numbers. Just one is enough. One can populate the whole population. What we are referring to as the being is beyond the physical. Once there is no physical, there is no boundary. For that which has no boundary, there is no one or two or ten or million. So that is not the way to think at all.
This book could be a guide to know death so we can know life for what it is. Maybe most of the people will not get a chance to live well due to certain situations, Sadhguru thinks at least we should help them to die well through spiritual process and sadhana. This can happen only when we are human aspirations is a fusion of living and dying well.
Favorite quote:
‘Hundreds and thousands of living beings meet death at every moment, yet the foolish man thinks himself deathless and does not prepare for death. This is the biggest wonder of life.’ -
In general non fiction books do not have a plot which is entertaining. Therefore, most of the fiction books are sold in large numbers because the human mind is creative and imagination has no limits. When it comes to a non-fiction theory there is a dearth in imagination and in contrary the exercise of self-introspection takes birth which of course is hated mostly.
Sometimes we seek help for problems ranging from 0 to 100 in the scale of magnitude, be it practical or social or psychological from books or people. There is certain amount of comfort seeking help from strangers because we are not judged. Such help can also be sought from books because it happens to be a self talk. Self talk always gives the best solutions. This prologue of self talk is to explain how beautifully Jaggi has given some I sights about death.
Everyone on this earth is aware that he is gonna die someday. But we often for get the fact and start living as if we are immortals. He who lives consciously keeping in mind that every passed second pulls him towards the death, is the most successful and efficient person. Because he knows his limitations and hence works hard. In this book Jaggi explained every aspect of living i.e. breathing, sleeping, talking, loving etc as the main boulders of topics.
Though many concepts are explained by him in other books, this single book 'Death' right from the title and well it's cover image attracted me very badly. I wanted to read it asap and now I am happy. Irrespective of the not so positive talk About him fee books are good to read. This is one of them. With a very nice narration the book is a good read.
I rate it 4/5. -
You believe Death to be an Eternal Truth? Well Sadhguru sees it otherwise. There is no such thing as death; there is just life, life and life moving from one dimension of existence to the other.
What is death in terms of Prana? Explanations behind the rituals after the death, suicide and the significance of the time during death are discussed by Sadhguru in this book. Obviously you have every right to deny him as the book is just an intellectual play but it has better story about Death than any other books have to offer.
5 stars not because I thoroughly loved it. It's because I thoroughly enjoyed it and consider it a must read book! -
This gem is brutal truth about the whole cycle of life. This book helps us to look at the things in a certain way in which they might not have been looked up to. Sadhguru nicely explains the meaning and the importance of this event in everyone's life with beautiful descriptions. Can't even rightly fathom with how much passion this book would have been written. It a repeat read for me.
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While most books teaches how to live well, this book teaches how to die someday gracefully. A mind bending cognitive dissonance experience from the very first page to last about Life and Death.
Before starting to read, keep the logical mind aside and come from a curiosity not from judgement. -
A must read for those who shall die!
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In your reading journey, every few years or so, you come upon a master piece & this is one of that. Jaggi Vasudev Sadguru, the famous spiritual mystic who's invited for lectures all over from MIT, Google to Microsoft, the author has a learned, erudite approach & presence. I have only read his biography earlier. This is the 2nd book by him, I just finished reading. I am majorly an "Osho" reader & I can't help but compare their styles which are vastly different as chalk from cheese- both having their values and purposes. While Osho discourses as transcribed in all his books are rather easy and simple to read despite being loaded with meanings & philosophy, Sadhguru's books are heavy on content that you really need to gather all your faculties to concentrate to understand the processes as described to undestand the significance of ancient rituals & paths. This book was purchased in our main Sayaji Vaibhav library of my hometown on my strong recommendation, as I have found the title & tagline rather catching, mysterious and mystic. And quite naturally, I was the 1st reader to lay my hands upon it. And how lucky & privileged I was that I did. The book as the title suggests, really is an inside story of the death. The veteran, mystic author discussed in detail about death as process, steps, rituals and reincarnation from yogic and vedic point of view, as he points about various layers of body as Samana-vayu, Prana-vayu, Udana-vayu, Apana-vayu & Vyana-vayu, explaining how each is important for various functions & how one by one exists at the time of death. He also talks about 114 charkras in body (16×7=112 inside body & 02 outside body, total 114) & various phases in one's life as described in ancient Hindu Vedas, from Balvastha (childhood) to Sanyasa ashram (old age -renounciation). He also discussed the mysterious Tantric rituals to occult practices, saying that one's inner memory, energy & time in third dimension determines one's duration & nature of one's Life & Death. Ultimately, one's own experience while leaving this outer body cloth decides next course of action of that 'being' as heaven or hell. The book is divided in total 13 chapters from what is death, process, quality of death to last, reincarnation & final round to nirvana with several sub chapters under each. The book is immensely readable, profound with knowledge & information which I enjoyed sip by sip like great ambrosia. This is one of the few books, I found something in me changed profoundly, at much subtler level. I am so hooked with this book that I know that I will be coming back to it to read yet again after sometime & mostly with my own purchased copy of this book. And so, It finds it place in my 'favourite' section of the books. 05 stars👌👍👏⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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Rational says – what science cannot prove, I won't believe that.
Ask a rationalist – why the universe is expanding and contracting at the same time? Why does the pace of the interstellar bodies are so perfectly aligned? Who initiated the big-bang? Who was that 'subject' who initiated the universe?
Scientists and rationalists (confused people, in fact) just ditch everything anything and everything they don't know. And this is, to be frank, the worst dogmatic behaviour I have come across!
And to the readers who want to understand death and beyond, you will find too many things in the book that will fascinate you. Do read it!
