‘Don’t be dead serious. Life is a brief sparkle, but you shall be dead for a very long time.’
Death: An Inside Story authored
by Sadhguru depicts a whole new take on the concept of Death and everything that
followed it. Sadhguru, like his talks, discusses death with a traditional yet
witty take. Reading this book feels similar to listening to him as if he is trying
to talk to us through the pages. This kind of writing establishes a connection
with the reader, making the book very hard to put down.
About The Author
Source - wikipedia.com
Internationally renowned speaker and bestselling author,
Sadhguru has been an influential voice at major global forums including the
United Nations World Headquarters and the World Economic Forum. Sadhguru is the
founder and head of the Isha Foundation, based in Coimbatore, India.
Named one of India’s 50 most influential people, Sadhguru’s
work has touched the lives of millions worldwide through his transformational programs.
Dedicated to the physical, mental, and spiritual well-being of humanity and
gifted with utter clarity of perception, Sadhguru possesses a perspective on
life and living that never fails to intrigue, challenge, and surprise all those
he encounters.
For All Those Who Shall Die
Usually, the target audience of any author is people of a
specific age range, region, country or so. But, Sadhguru took an interesting
take on the target audience for this book by giving it the subtitle ‘A book for
all those who shall die.’ This subtitle tends to create homogeneity in the
audience, conveying a beautiful message to the readers that society might
differentiate among humans, but death doesn’t.
The whole book describes death as something beautiful and
important. It gives out the message that something inevitable should be accepted
with respect and grace. Coupled with his real-life experiences and conversations,
the opinion of the author on death and everything related to it is fresh and
unique for every reader
Life And Death In One Breath
The book is divided into three parts and twelve chapters
in total. The three parts and chapters categorized under each one describes a
different aspect related to death. The first part is titled ‘Life and Death in
One Breath’. Interestingly, the author says that we experience life and death
as frequently as we breathe.
If inhalation is a sign of life, exhalation is a sign of
death. Both of them tend to coexist and are incomplete without one another. To keep
breathing, inhalation and exhalation are equally important. Similarly, to keep
the cycle of life going, life and death both are important.
Further, the author continues to discuss topics like what
is death, the process of death, the quality of death, whether can death be
hacked, and the glorious concept of mahasamadhi. The author digs up historical
and mythological facts to give an example for his take on such articles.
The Gracefulness of Death
As mentioned earlier, the author discusses death as something
beautiful and important. He mentions and discusses various traditions and rituals
related to death that have been passed on through generations and their
significance. He describes how since ancient times, death has been treated with
the utmost respect.
Sadhguru mentions various ways followed by people to
prepare for a good death, how some rituals assist in dying, and grief and
mourning followed. As per the author’s signature style, he discusses these rituals,
followed by a logical and valid explanation for all. Interestingly, he also discusses
how in ancient times people were trained for death and death rituals.
One prominent example stands to be Bhishma Pitamaha from
the times of Mahabharata. He discusses how Pitamaha was
able to decide his time of death, and invite death when he wanted to. Many other
interesting stories are highlighted from the past times, signifying how death
becomes one with the human it touches.
Life After Death
One of the most popular questions remains ‘what is life after
death?’ While everyone has a different version of themselves, Sadhguru discusses
popular opinions and clears out the prevalent doubts. Some unbelievable concepts
like ghosts, reincarnation, rebirth and so are discussed with stories and logic.
While one might take some time to absorb and believe all
this information, this section of the book stands to be the most interesting
read. Many topics like past-life memories of children, couples for a lifetime,
your past lives and so are presented in a very crisp and intriguing manner.
As the book has many terms out of our casual dialect, a
section of a glossary is provided for better understanding.
Overall Rating – 4.5/5
Written by – Simran Mahon
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