Mindful of Old Age, Sickness and Death
The Buddha began his spiritual awakening when, upon escaping the protected confines of his family palace, he encountered four phenomena for the very first time: an old person, a sick person, a dead person and a monk. He suddenly realized that this life included suffering and impermanence and that there were ways to practice relating to the way life is.
After trying many spiritual paths and techniques and finding them all lacking, he finally sat down under a tree and simply became aware of his awareness. After some time he fully awoke to the stunning realization that this life is indeed perfect and that there is a way to relieve all suffering. His realization was that by shining the light of mindfulness on suffering, impermanence and interdependence, we could live this life in happiness, peace, compassion and wisdom. What a staggeringly wonderful realization.
In a little over three months I will celebrate living seven decades on planet Earth as this particular being. Every day I become a little more aware of the inevitability of sickness, old age and death. I think about my legacy. What have I already done? Is it enough? What else do I need to do in this life? When will I die? How long do I have?
I know that I could die at any moment. Of course that has always been true throughout my whole life. But now it seems more real, present, urgent.
Every day I dedicate myself to continually waking up to suffering, impermanence and interdependence. I dedicate myself to relieving the suffering of all beings including myself. I dedicate myself to being compassionate and understanding. I dedicate myself to living a peaceful, happy life.
I dedicate myself to teaching, training, writing, consulting and facilitating to awaken others to our time of crisis and opportunity, the possibility of an emerging civilization of compassion and strategies and methods of innovative, creative, facilitative, integral leadership.
Is this enough? Can I do more? Can I love more? Can I give more?
And then it is over. And I am gone. And it is finished.
Yet, it goes on - humanity, life, this Earth, this Cosmos. And I am part of it forever, flowing onward, changing, awakening, giving.
Gratitude.
Yes.