Death, Awareness & Truly Living

We tend to avoid talking about death; as if ignoring it makes it go away. But death happens to everyone, everywhere, whether we acknowledge it or not. The fact that death is a universal experience - the only certainty life gives us is not morbid, it’s liberating. Yet, each one thinks that somehow death doesn’t apply to them. It’s for others. 

The Taboo of Death

Death feels awkward to talk about, so it becomes taboo. But not facing the reality of death leaves a quiet emptiness in our lives. When we treat death as an abstract idea, we risk drifting through life without intention, without appreciation, without depth. Without an adequate preparation for it. 

Death as a Teacher

Imagine for a moment your own funeral.  Who would be there, what would they say, what memories would matter most? How many will remember you and for how long? Month? Year Two years? This isn’t meant to be depressing. It’s reflective. When you hold your mortality in your awareness, it sharpens what’s essential. Relationships become more vibrant. Moments become more precious. You lose the habit of postponing life for “later.” 

Giving Back to the Earth 

Death isn’t just an ending,  it’s a return. Just as a leaf falls in autumn only to enrich the soil, our own bodies and the energy we’ve shared continue in new forms. In this way, our death becomes a gift  not just to the Earth, but to the ongoing cycle of life. 

Being Fully Present

The sooner we internalise death’s inevitability, the more vividly we can inhabit the present. Awareness of mortality isn’t a burden, it’s a compass. It points us toward gratitude, towards relationships that matter, towards work that resonates with our values. The finite nature of life is what makes each breath, each conversation, each sunrise so precious. 

From Fear to Appreciation

When we stop fearing death and start seeing it as part of life’s natural rhythm, fear dissolves. We begin to appreciate life as the miracle it truly is, ie unexpected, fleeting, luminous. Death doesn’t cancel life’s meaning rather it elevates it. Each moment becomes not just time passing, but something to be fully lived. 

Call to Awareness

So let’s speak about death,  not in dread, but in reflection. Let’s let the awareness of death deepen our capacity for love, kindness and presence. By knowing what it means to die, we learn how to truly live and with intention, with joy and with gratitude for the finite gift of now.

I often see people trapped in a mind  created vortex of wanting more. They have everything one could possibly ask for -  from wealth, fame, power, a flourishing career, world travel, lavish food to every imaginable comfort. Yet their hunger never ends. They keep running towards the next achievement, the next possession, the next validation, while all that they have already accumulated is left behind to be guarded by maids and caretakers. Isn’t that a strange kind of foolishness? No doctor on earth can save anyone from death. No medicine has ever cured ageing. And yet, people continue to run as if time were infinite. Wouldn’t it be wiser to pause and to be alive to this moment with awareness and contentment, rather than cursing ourselves or others for decisions made right or wrong in yesteryears ? To love our spouses, children, grandchildren and friends simply for loving them, with purity and presence, should be enough. 

When I once stood at Manikarnika Ghat in Varanasi, watching many funeral pyres burning together, a question arose within me. Are they liberated now, after death? And quietly, the answer came. Liberation is not meant to be postponed for something to be achieved after death. It is best to be liberated while alive. 

By Ashutosh - A View on Death, Being Dead when Alive & Being Alive in Each Moment.