If a person is not afraid of death. "Death is a reason for life"

It is the largest in 90% of the planet. It is not surprising - death is associated for most of us with an inevitable end, with the end of life and the transition to a new incomprehensible and frightening state. In this article we will talk about whether it is possible to get rid of such fear in principle, and how to stop being afraid of death.

We sing the ode to life

Imagine spring. Blooming trees, fresh greenery, birds returning from the south. This is the time when even the most gloomy pessimists feel ready for any deeds and submit to the general good mood. Imagine the end of November now. If you do not live in warm regions, then the picture is drawn not the most rosy. Bare trees, puddles and mud, slush, rain and wind. The sun sets early, and at night it is uncomfortable and uncomfortable. It is clear that in such weather, the mood is, as they say, lousy - but in any case, we know that autumn will pass, then a snowy winter with a bunch of holidays will come, and then nature will come to life again and we will be genuinely happy and happy with life.

If only things were so easy and understandable with the understanding of life and death! But it was not there. We do not know, and the unknown strikes us with terror. of death? Read this article. You will receive easy-to-follow recommendations that will relieve you of far-fetched fears.

What is the cause of the fear?

Before answering the question of death, let's look at what it comes from.

1. It is human nature to assume the worst.... Imagine that a loved one does not come home at the right time, and does not pick up the phone and does not answer messages. Nine out of ten people will assume the worst - something bad has happened, since he cannot even answer the call.

And when a loved one finally appears and explains that he was busy, and the phone "sat down", we throw out a lot of emotions on him. How could he make us so worried and nervous? Familiar situation? The fact is that people most often assume the worst in order to then breathe out with relief or accept the inevitable already doomed and prepared. Death is no exception. We do not know what it is, but we are already in the mood for the worst outcome.

2. Fear of the unknown. We are afraid of what we do not know. Our brain is to blame for this, or rather, how it works. When we repeat the same action day after day, a stable chain of neural connections is built in the brain. For example, suppose you go to work the same way every day. One day, for whatever reason, you need to take a different path - and you will experience discomfort, even if the new road is shorter and more convenient. It's not a matter of preference, it's just that the structure of our brain also scares us for this reason - we did not experience it, we do not know what will happen next, and this word is alien to the brain, causes rejection. Even people who don't believe in hell feel discomfort when they hear about death.

3. Concepts of Hell and Paradise. If you grew up in a religious family, then you probably have your own opinion about the structure of the afterlife. The most widespread religions today promise paradise for the righteous and hellish torments for those who lead a life that is not pleasing to God. Given today's realities of life, it is very difficult to be righteous, especially as required by strict religious canons. As a result, every believer understands that perhaps after death he will not see the gates of paradise. And boiling cauldrons are unlikely to inspire enthusiasm to quickly find out what is hidden behind the threshold of death.

Don't think about the white monkey

Next, we will tell you about several proven ways to stop fearing death and start living. The first step is to accept the fact that you are mortal. This is inevitable, and as they say, no one has yet left this place alive. However, fortunately, we do not know when our departure will happen.

This may happen tomorrow, in a month or many decades. Is it worth worrying about what will happen at an unknown date? They are not afraid of death, simply accepting the fact of its inevitability - this is the first answer to the question of how to stop being afraid of death.

Religion is not the answer

A common misconception is the idea that religion gives comfort to the living and relieves the fear of death. Of course it does, but in a completely irrational way. Since no one in the world knows what will happen after the end of life, there are many versions of this. Religious ideas about hell and heaven are also a popular version, but is it reliable? If you honor your God from childhood (it does not matter what religion you profess), then it is difficult for you to accept the idea that not a single priest knows what will happen to you after death. Why? Because no one has yet left this place alive and no one has yet returned from there.

Hell in our imagination is drawn as a completely inhospitable place, and therefore death can be frightening for this reason. We are not encouraging you to give up your faith, but no faith should inspire fear. Therefore, there is another answer to the question of how to stop thinking about death. Give up the belief, the inevitable choice between hell and heaven awaits you!

Often people are afraid not so much of death as of what may lead to it - for example, disease. This fear is as meaningless as the dread of death, but it can be effectively dealt with. As you know, a healthy mind lives in a healthy body, which means that as soon as you feel healthy, irrational fears will leave you. Go in for sports, but not through "I do not want", but with pleasure. It may not be so boring serving as a favorite pastime - dancing, swimming, cycling. Start watching what you eat, quitting alcohol or smoking. As soon as you feel yourself confidently on your feet, with good health, you will stop thinking about disease, and therefore, about death.

Live the day

There is a saying: "Tomorrow never comes. You wait for the evening, it comes, but it comes now. I went to bed, woke up - now. A new day has come - and again now."

No matter how afraid you are of the future, in the general sense of the word it will never come - you will be in the moment of "now" all the time. So is it worth letting your thoughts carry you far while you are in the here and now all the time?

Why not?

Now it is fashionable to make tattoos in the form of life-affirming inscriptions, and young people often choose the Latin expression "carpe diem". Literally it stands for "Live by the day" or "Live by the moment". Don't let negative thoughts take you out of your life - this is the answer to the question of how to stop fearing death.

And at the same time remember death

Exploring the life of authentic Indian tribes who live in Latin America, historians were surprised to find that the Indians honor death and remember it every day, almost every minute. However, this is not because of fear of her, but, on the contrary, because of the desire to live fully and consciously. What does it mean?

As we said above, thoughts often carry us from the moment now into the past or future. We know about death, we are often afraid of it, but on a subconscious level we do not believe in its reality just for us. That is, it is something that will happen someday. The Indians, on the contrary, understand for themselves that death can come at any moment, and therefore they live with maximum return right now.

How to get rid of the fear of death? Just remember about her. Do not expect with fear, but just keep somewhere in the subconscious that she can come at any time, which means that there is no need to postpone important matters for later. How not to be afraid of death? Pay attention to family and friends, your hobbies, go in for sports, change your hateful job, develop a business that is close to you in spirit. As you go about your life, you will stop thinking about death with fear.

Sometimes we worry not so much about ourselves as about those who are dear to us. Such experiences are especially familiar to parents - as soon as the beloved child lingers on an evening walk or stops answering mom's calls, the most terrible thoughts come to mind. You can deal with your fear - if you want, of course.

You will not be able to take care of your child forever, and besides, nothing good comes from your experiences. But you yourself suffer, shaking your nervous system with far-fetched fears.

Accept that things run their course. Be calm, don't worry. And remember that thinking about the bad is a favorite activity of the brain, but not yours.

Most modern people know very little about death, how the transition takes place, and what awaits a person after it. What does death mean? What does it mean to die? Do I need to prepare for death and how to do it? This topic touches the deepest feelings of people. And at the same time, this topic is the most difficult to talk about. If you try to talk about it with someone you know, you will probably hear: “I don’t want to talk about it.” Or they may ask: “Why think about it and what to prepare for? It doesn't depend on us. All people die sooner or later. Our time will come someday. "

For people who have never seriously thought about death in their entire lives, its arrival is a shock, it is a tragedy, it is the end of earthly life, the end of the existence of an individual. And only a few know that only the body dies, and some part of the person continues to exist, retains the ability to see, hear, think and feel.

We, oddly enough, think about anything. Reflections on serious topics do not attract us much. There is neither desire nor time for this. And this is facilitated by the way of life that we lead - or, as we sometimes think, are forced to lead.

Why should we think about death if we are healthy and happy? Moreover, we are always busy, our day is scheduled almost by the minute. If there is time for reflection, then, as a rule, we think about the prospects for the future, about what we have not yet managed to do. Everyday hustle and bustle, work, family chores, summer cottage, TV ... We are practically all the time busy with some "important" affairs, and we have absolutely no time for any thoughts about the meaning of our life. What for? After all, everything is fine anyway ...

Even if some such thought arises, then the mind will immediately throw up a decision - if the existence of a person ends with death, then why acquire new knowledge, cultivate new qualities in oneself, why think about the future at all? While there is still time, you need to take from life everything that it can give - you need to eat, drink, "love", gain power and honor. Why think about something unpleasant?

Doesn't that seem strange? After all, death is the most important event in a person's life on Earth. Any event may or may not happen. But with a 100% probability it can be argued that sooner or later we will die. There is nothing more definite and more definitive for a person. There is not a single person who could choose a different fate for himself. Everyone knows this, everyone understands it, but we still don’t want to think about it.

Why don't we want to think and talk about death? Is there any explanation for this? Of course have. The thought of death itself is unpleasant. It is unpleasant that the discussion of this topic confronts us with the fact - the prospect of our own death. We will very quickly come to the disappointing conclusion that we ourselves are mortal. This conclusion is frightening. After all, we, as a rule, think not about the death of the physical body, about death as something terrible and incomprehensible. Any normal person in such a situation triggers a kind of defense - not to discuss this topic in order to save himself from unnecessary worries. This behavior can be compared to the "policy of the ostrich" - if I do not see it, then it does not exist at all.

Be that as it may, for all of us the problem of facing our own death remains. Even if we ourselves do not want to think on unpleasant topics, life will always give us a reason to think. No matter how happily and joyfully we live, sooner or later we will come across phenomena that will make us think about the frailty of earthly existence. This can be the loss of a loved one, friend, colleague, accident, natural disaster, attack of a dangerous illness, etc. But having gone through another misfortune, we, as a rule, quickly forget about everything.

Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy once said about this:

"Only those who have never seriously thought about death do not believe in the immortality of the soul."

If we talk about the process of thinking in general, then human thinking is very lazy, although we often think otherwise. Most people live with the same worries day in and day out. They think mainly about various trifles and entertainment. So it turns out that some people have no time to think, others are simply afraid to think. Thus, we know very little about death. But the worst thing about death is the unknown. And the question "What will happen to me later?", and remains unanswered.

Almost all of our modern civilization is aimed at denying death. If earlier a person was treated by a zemstvo doctor right at home, now a large number of hospitals are at the disposal of patients. Rarely, when his relatives constantly sit by the bed of a seriously ill patient. If a person has died, then his body is in the house for a very short time. Sometimes he is taken from the morgue directly to the cemetery. The loved ones of the deceased do not sit with him, they say goodbye to him very quickly, they do not perform the funeral service according to the church rite, and the funeral itself takes place in a great hurry. As a result, we do not see death and try not to think about it.

But you won't be able to close your eyes and not think about death. Death is both natural and inevitable. If we remember and think about death, then we are not afraid of it. The memory of death is essential for a full and dignified human existence. Even in ancient Rome they said: "Memento mori" ("Remember death").

Once Saint John Damascene taught:

“The thought of death is more important than all other deeds. It gives birth to uncorrupted purity. Mortal memory encourages the living to work, to patiently accept grief, to abandon worries and to pray. "

There is also a wise life advice for all time:

"You need to live each day as if it were the last day of your life."

§ 2. Why are we afraid of death?

Almost all of us are afraid of death to one degree or another. The fear of the unknown is intense fear. How is this going to happen? Will I suffer? What will happen next? These are all specific questions that require specific answers.

First, let's figure out why almost every person has a fear of death. If we look at this issue more broadly, then we will inevitably come to the conclusion that such fear is associated with the instinct of self-preservation. Any living creature will be reluctant to part with its bodily shell. Attachment to your body is born with the birth of this body. Such attachment is inherent in Consciousness by nature itself. The instinct of self-preservation, and hence the fear of death, helps to preserve life. In other words, the fear of death is a natural feeling necessary for life. Life is a precious gift, and in order to preserve it, we have been given the fear of death along with life. It's quite normal.

It's another matter when this fear of death is stronger than it deserves, if it acquires a panic character. Then in death we see exclusively the unknown, dangerous and inevitable. But most of our fears come mostly from ignorance. And the most powerful cure for ignorance is knowledge. Everything that we were able to understand and explain is no longer scary. In ancient times, people were afraid of thunder and lightning in panic. But later they were able to explain the reason for these natural phenomena and the panic disappeared.

The main reason for the fear of death is the identification of a person with his own body. Asking questions about the meaning of life, a person will inevitably come to the question: "Who am I really?" And without thinking too much about the answer to this question, a person decides that he is his body. Or decides that the body is primary and the Soul is secondary. "I am Russian. I am an engineer. I'm a Christian. I am the head of the family ”- these are typical examples of this identification with the body.

It is quite natural that having come to such a conclusion, a person begins to care exclusively about the needs of his body. Although, if you think a little about the needs of the body, then you can find out that in fact our body needs very little. But a person identifies himself and his consciousness with his own mortal physical body. And the time comes when a person is no longer aware of himself without this body. Now his body constantly needs air, food, sleep, pleasure, entertainment, etc. A person becomes a servant of his body. The body does not serve a person, but a person serves his body. And when a person's life comes to an end, the fear of death takes over him entirely. He convulsively clings to his weak body, thinking that with the disappearance of the body, the person himself will disappear, his Consciousness and Personality will disappear.

The pattern is straight forward. The more we are attached to our body, the more we are afraid of death. The less we identify ourselves with the physical body, the easier it is for us to think about the inevitability of death. In fact, we fear death more than it deserves.

What else are we afraid of? First of all - the inevitability of death. Yes, death is inevitable. But we already know that only our physical body, our temporary bodily suit, is dying.

Let's say for a second that you are buying a new suit from the store. The style you like, the color suits, the price is reasonable. Already at home you demonstrate the costume to your loved ones and they also really like it. You wear this suit to work every day. And after a year you notice that the suit is a little worn out, but it may still serve you well. A year later, the suit worn out even more. But it has become so dear to you that you are ready to spend a lot of money on repairs and dry cleaning. You don't even think about buying a new suit. You have practically merged with your old suit. You carefully store it in the closet, regularly clean it, iron it, do not react to the surprised looks of your family and colleagues, but only avert your eyes. More and more often, the thought comes to your mind that sooner or later you will have to part with this suit. This thought robs you of peace and sleep, you are close to insanity. You will say: “This cannot be! This is complete absurdity! " Of course, this is unlikely to happen to a normal person. But this is exactly how most people relate to their body, to their temporary suit!

There is not so much to understand in this case - our temporary suit will sooner or later become unusable. But in return we get a new suit, a new body. And it is likely that this body will be even better than the old one. So is it worth it to be sad?

We are also afraid of the unknown. "What will happen to me next?" We often think that after death we will completely disappear. As we said, the best cure for fear and uncertainty is knowledge. The knowledge that life goes on beyond the threshold of death. It takes on new forms, but this is the same conscious life as life on Earth.

There is another reason for the fear of death. For some people, especially those who consider themselves an atheist, this reason may seem irrelevant. For many years, over many centuries, people were called to order with the help of threats and punishments, promising them long torment in hell. The fear of hell is one of the reasons for disbelief throughout our lives. Who wants to believe in life after life if this future will bring us only suffering? Now no one is intimidated by anyone, but fear, driven into the subconscious by many generations, is not so easy to eradicate.

What else scares us? The feeling of painfulness of the forthcoming transition is terrifying, it seems to us that death is prolonged suffering, very painful sensations. The thought may even come to mind: "If I die, then I would like to die immediately or in a dream, so as not to suffer."

In fact, the transition itself occurs almost instantly. Consciousness turns off for a short time. Pain symptoms act only until the very moment of transition. Dying itself is painless. After the transition, all symptoms of the disease, physical disabilities disappear. The human personality, having crossed the earthly threshold, continues to live in new conditions of existence.

However, if we could not get rid of fear, then this fear will remain, because after the transition, Consciousness is not lost and the Personality does not disappear. As a rule, we see in death an enemy who wants to take our life. We cannot fight this enemy and we try not to think about him. But death, because they don’t think about it, will not disappear. The fear of death will not only not disappear, but will go even deeper, into the subconscious. There, without awareness, he will be even more dangerous and harmful.

Let's say that a person died while sleeping and he had no near-death experiences. After the transition, a person will see himself in a different environment, but all his thoughts and feelings, from which he could not get rid of, will remain. What was in our consciousness and subconsciousness before the moment of transition does not disappear anywhere. A person only loses the ability to control his no longer needed physical body. All his thoughts, experiences, fears remain with you.

Wanting to leave life in a dream or in another unconscious state, we lose a lot, we lose the entire period of the growth of the Soul. You will learn about the growth period in Chapter 6.

Let's look at this problem from a philosophical and religious point of view. It doesn't matter if we consider ourselves to be believers or not. At least in our souls we are all philosophers.

First, we must find out our purpose, and then fulfill it. This is also evidenced by the parable of Jesus Christ about talents, where the master at the end of the centuries asks the slaves how they used the time and talents given to them (Gospel of Matthew 25: 14-30):

14. For He will act like a man who, going to a foreign country, called his servants and entrusted them with his property:
15. And to one he gave five talents, to another two, to a third one, each according to his strength; and immediately departed.
16. He who received five talents went and put them into business and acquired other five talents;
17. Likewise, he who received two talents acquired other two;
18. He who received one talent went and buried it in the ground and hid the silver of his master.
19. After a long time, the master of those slaves comes and demands an account of them.
20. And coming up, the one who had received five talents brought the other five talents and said: "Master" you gave me five talents; behold, I have acquired five other talents with them. "
21. His master said to him: “Well, good and faithful slave! you have been faithful in little things; I will put you over many things; enter into the joy of your master. "
22. Likewise, the one who had received two talents came up and said: “Master! you gave me two talents; behold, I have acquired two other talents with them. "
23. His master said to him: “Well, good and faithful slave! you have been faithful in little things; I will put you over many things; enter into the joy of your master. "
24. And the one who received one talent came up and said: “Master! I knew you, that you are a cruel man, you reap where you did not sow, and gather where you did not scatter,
25. and being afraid, he went and hid your talent in the earth; here's yours. "
26. His master answered him: “Sly and lazy slave! you knew that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter;
27. Therefore, you had to give my silver to the merchants, and when I came, I would receive mine at a profit;
28.So, take the talent from him and give to him who has ten talents,
29. For to everyone who has it, it will be given and he will increase, but from him who does not have, what he has will also be taken away;
30. Throw away the worthless servant into the outer darkness: there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. " Having said this, he cried out: He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

Now you yourself can come to the conclusion, why are we still afraid of death? The conclusion is simple. In the depths of our subconsciousness, a certain task has been formed - the fulfillment of a specific purpose. If we have not yet fulfilled this purpose, have not fulfilled our program of being on Earth, this will bother us at the subconscious level. And this anxiety, penetrating to the level of consciousness, will cause a specific fear in us.

Thus, on the one hand, this fear reminds us of an unfulfilled destiny. On the other hand, such fear, expressed in the instinct of self-preservation, makes us take care of our lives. And vice versa. People whose life on Earth has been spent in constant labor and for the benefit of others often feel that they have fulfilled their destiny. When the time comes to die, they have no fear of death.

Perhaps the Abbot of Mount Sinai is talking about this in the "Ladder"?

"The fear of death is a property of human nature ... and the thrill of the memory of a mortal is a sign of unrepentant sins ..."

Also, one of the Orthodox saints wrote:

“It would be strange if at this time we did not have a fear of an unknown future, there would be no fear of God. The fear of God will be, it is beneficial and necessary. It helps to cleanse the soul preparing to leave the body. "

Individuals may develop exactly the opposite attitude towards death. People who live according to the principle "after us - even a flood." Why think about death at all, if you can enjoy well already in this life? Someday I will die. So what? We will all die someday. Why think bad? Let's enjoy life now without thinking about the consequences.

There is also another extreme. Archimandrite Seraphim Rose in 1980 published a book in English "Soul after death"... He writes that the testimonies of people who have survived the temporary death of the body often paint a false and dangerous picture. There is too much light in it. One gets the impression that there is no need to fear death. Death is, rather, a pleasant experience, and after death, nothing bad threatens the soul. God does not blame anyone and surrounds everyone with love. Repentance and even thoughts about it are superfluous.

Father Seraphim writes:

“Today's world is spoiled and does not want to hear about the reality of the spirit and responsibility for sins. It is much nicer to think that God is not very strict and that we are safe under a loving God who will not demand an answer. Better to feel that salvation is assured. In our age, we expect something pleasant and often see what we expect. However, the reality is different. The hour of death is a time of devilish temptation. The destiny of a person in eternity depends mainly on how she herself looks at her death and how she prepares for it ”.

In principle, it's not bad when we don't dwell on our future, because everything is in the hands of the Lord. You need to live here and now. Live and be aware of every minute of your existence. If these are pleasant moments, then we should share our joy with others. If these are sad moments, then this can push us to understand the meaning of life. But in any case, no matter how we treat our life on Earth, our purpose remains. Whether we take everything from life or more of this life and give to other people - this purpose does not disappear anywhere. Accordingly, the task becomes a little more complicated - every minute we must remember our mission and every minute we must use it to fulfill it. And this, you must admit, does not fit with the principles "after us - even a flood" and "take everything from life."

Many people may argue with us: “We are happy and satisfied with life now. We have everything - a good job, a good family, successful children and grandchildren. Why should we think about some mythical future ”? We do not deny that there are many really wonderful, kind and sympathetic people on Earth who, with their qualities, deserve such a happy life. But there is another option. It was in their past life on Earth that these people were kind and sympathetic. And they have developed a certain Spiritual potential. And in this life, they do not gain this potential, but simply waste it. Indeed, in this life everything is good with them. But the potential is rapidly diminishing. And in the next life, they may have to start all over again.

Of course, you can not believe in all this. And this is a separate topic for conversation. Therefore, we invite the reader to simply reflect on such questions. In principle, all people have almost equal opportunities. A person is born, goes first to kindergarten, then to school. And here the paths of people diverge. Some go to college, others go to the army, some go to work, some have a family, etc. That is, everyone follows their own path: someone is growing, someone is falling, someone is happy, and someone is not. That is, everyone seems to have the same opportunities after leaving school, and as a result, in 5-10 years, the gap between people can be simply enormous.

They may object to us: "It's not just about the possibilities, but also about the abilities."... And this is what we propose to think about. Where did people get their abilities and capabilities? Why is someone born a genius, while someone is not even able to finish school? Why is one person born into a wealthy family, while someone is born sick or into a family with one parent? Why was such an injustice inherent in the first place?

Who is running this? God or man himself?

You can ask: "Are you getting this fear man needs?" But you yourself can already answer this question. Needed, but only as an instinct for self-preservation. And nothing more. To get rid of this fear, in fact, not much is needed - only knowledge. The knowledge of why we are on Earth and the knowledge that this life on Earth is only a part of one big life of ours. You can read about all this in our book “Life is only a moment. Knowledge of the XXI century ".

In any case, having received this knowledge, and you, having taken this book in your hands, have practically already received it, you will be able to remember your immortality and get rid of the fear of death forever. And if it will be just one person, we will consider our destiny already fulfilled.

§ 3. Why is there no need to be afraid of death?

It is, of course, very easy to take and say: “Do not be afraid of death. Death is as natural as life itself "... It is much more difficult not only to get used to this thought, but also to realize it in full. If a person has never seriously thought about what awaits him after death, then it is difficult for him to accept new information. We live in a material world, in a materialistic society, and this knowledge still seems unusual and implausible.

Our ancestors knew that death is a phenomenon as natural as life, and they accepted it calmly. The dying person experienced a feeling of grief; he was sorry to leave close people, nature, home, everything that he loved on earth, but, you see, such a feeling is quite natural.

We have already said that the transition itself is painless. This is confirmed by everyone who has been outside this world, experienced clinical death. Pain symptoms were associated with the disease itself, but they only lasted until the moment of transition. During the transition and after it, there was no more pain. On the contrary, a feeling of calmness, peace and even happiness came.

For many people, even the very moment of transition was imperceptible. Some talked about losing consciousness for only a short time. Thus, at the moment of dying, there will be neither pain nor any other unpleasant physical sensations.

We also need to get rid of other concerns: "What if after death I disappear completely?"... We need to understand that death is not the destruction of the person himself forever. The main part of a person is his Personality, his Consciousness continues to live even after the physical body ceases to function.

Of course, even having understood this, we will not cease to be afraid of death. But if you believe that death is not an enemy, but a part of our life, the process of getting rid of fears can be faster and easier. If we refuse to think and receive new knowledge, then we make the unknown even darker.

If we are able to understand that the transition itself is not terrible, then it will be easier for us to understand that life beyond the “threshold” is also not terrible. There will be no loneliness in this new life. We will be surrounded by people like us. We will get all the help we need. But the ultimate fate of the Soul cannot be predicted. Just as “our deeds follow us,” so our destinies will be different for all of us.

Elder Ambrose of Optina taught:

“Before the judgment of God, it is not the characters that matter, but the direction of the will. The main thing in the Christian attitude to death is fear and uncertainty ... but this fear is not hopeless. People of a good life are not afraid of death. "

But a perfect attitude towards death is free from fear. In the "Bulletin of the Russian Christian Movement" (No. 144, 1985) there is an article by the Christian philosopher O. Matt el Meskin. He's writing:

“The first and definite sign that the life of God has begun to operate in us will be our freedom from the sensation of death and its fear. A person living in God experiences a deep feeling that he is stronger than death, that he has come out of its grip. Even when he dies, he will not feel it; on the contrary, he will have a strong sense of an ongoing life in God. "

Also, one of the Church Fathers advises:

“Try to live according to the commandments of Christ, and you will cease to be afraid of death; your life will become full and happy, emptiness will disappear, dissatisfaction, uncertainty and fear of the future will go away. "

There is also another side to the issue. Our Universe is created very intelligently and harmoniously. Even atheists and scientists, for whom the concept of God is unknown, recognize that there is an all-encompassing force that controls all objects and processes in the Universe. Our Universe is a living organism that develops according to certain laws and undergoes its own evolution. A simple conclusion follows from this - human life on Earth makes sense only if the death of the body is not the end of the existence of a person, his Personality. Another conclusion follows from this conclusion - there are other, higher conditions for human life, other plans of the Universe, where humanity leads the same intelligent and conscious life as on Earth.

Coming out of the deceased body, the human Soul passes into other conditions of existence and continues to live there. With our limited senses, we are able to sense only the manifestations of this visible material world. But there are other worlds as well. On Earth, we have limited Consciousness and limited feelings, therefore we are not able to see these worlds. But they really exist. Life is in full swing in these worlds too.

Death is only a transition from the earthly world to another. And birth is coming to Earth from other worlds. We need to understand that we do not have two lives, but one. Life on Earth is a kind of business trip. The business trip is over and we are returning to our homeland. During the transition, the personality of a person does not change and his individuality is preserved. After the death of the body, the development of the Soul continues, but already in other spheres of Being.

The question may arise here: “If a person comes to Earth on a business trip, then why should he just die? Is it possible to somehow simplify this process? For example, a man got into some kind of aircraft and flew away. Why die? Why injure yourself and your relatives? "

There are explanations for all this. We come to Earth for a reason, but for specific tasks. One of the main tasks on Earth is to cleanse our Spirit, our Consciousness from the accumulated dirt. It is on Earth with its unpredictability that such a deep cleaning is possible. It is after a business trip to Earth that we determine the direction of our movement, towards light or towards darkness.

Death, with all its inherent experiences, is a very powerful cleansing process. It allows us to finally get rid of energy dirt in our Consciousness. Therefore, the very process of death, the very process of leaving the physical body, is extremely important for us. To put it simplistically, at the moment of death the purified part of our Personality, our Consciousness, let's call it the Soul, dumps the remnants of dirt into the physical body and leaves this body. If a person could somehow avoid death, then he would take these remnants of dirt with him. And so they remain in the physical body. In the future, the body is interred in the earth, and the remnants of the energy mud are processed by earthly energies.

Also, as we already wrote, the death of a loved one is a certain test for his loved ones. Strong experiences are also energetic clearing. After such experiences, a person may reconsider his views on life and, perhaps, even become better. Such tragic events, oddly enough, allow a person to develop such qualities as mercy, sensitivity and compassion. And all this leads to the appearance of sprouts of Love and Faith in a person.

Agree that with this understanding of death, it is quite easy to accept the fact that death is the most important event in a person's life. On the one hand, at the moment of dying, a person finally cleans his Consciousness from dirt, and, on the other hand, the very phenomenon of death is a kind of stimulus for the loved ones of the deceased. A person's departure from life is always a test for someone and a chance to start self-improvement. It seems that the death of a loved one is a tragedy. But by his departure, this person gives those who remain the opportunity to reevaluate their life, the opportunity to feel God. Agree that for many people who have lost their loved ones, this is really a chance.

And, finally, the last aspect, why death, as a phenomenon, is necessary on Earth. Imagine for a moment that you took a new job, for example, as a painter. The working conditions of the painter require certain equipment, the same work suit. The firm you work for is pretty successful. She has developed a new work suit based on new materials. Now this suit does not need to be washed, neither by the worker himself, nor by the company itself. When a suit is completely dirty, it is not washed, but recycled as waste paper or even burned.

Planet Earth is a specific energy and natural environment. To live on planet Earth, you need a certain physical body, a certain "suit", which is most adapted to the conditions of life on Earth. When this "suit" has worn out and a person's working time (business trip) on Earth has run out, this "suit" is not erased. The old suit is thrown off and the person gets a new suit, a new body. Well, and certain laws of the planet itself, the laws of the Universe do not allow a person to just “jump” from one suit to another. To change the costume, a person must first die (drop the costume), and then be born again (get a new costume).

As an example of why there is no need to be afraid of death, let us cite the story of a soldier who experienced clinical death. It happened in 1917.

“Physical death is nothing. You really shouldn't be afraid of her. Some of my friends grieved for me when I passed away. They thought that I was really dead. And here's what actually happened.

I remember very well how it all happened. I waited in the bend of the trench for my time to take over. It was a beautiful evening, I had no presentiment of danger, but suddenly I heard the howl of a shell. There was an explosion somewhere behind. I involuntarily squatted down, but it was too late. Something hit me so hard, hard and hard - in the back of the head. I fell and, while I was falling, without noticing even for a time no loss of consciousness, I found myself outside myself! You see how simple I am telling this so that you understand everything better. You yourself will find out how little this death means ...

Five seconds later, I stood next to my body and helped two of my comrades carry it through the trench to the dressing room. They thought I was just unconscious, but alive. I didn’t know if I had jumped out of my body forever or for a while due to a shell shock. You see how little death means, even a violent death in war! ..

My comrades need not be afraid of death. Some are afraid of her - of course, behind this is the fear that you might be destroyed, that you will disappear. I was also afraid of this, many soldiers are afraid of death, but they rarely have time to think about it ... They put my body on a stretcher. I all wanted to know when I would be inside him again. You see, I was so little "dead" that I imagined I was still alive ...

I started a new chapter in my life. I'll tell you how I felt. It was as if I had been running long and hard until I got sweating, lost my breath and threw off my clothes. This garment was my body; it seemed that if I had not thrown it off, I would have suffocated ... My body was taken first to the dressing room, and from there to the morgue. I stood next to him the whole night, but I didn’t think about anything, I just looked ...

I still felt like I was awakening in my own body. Then I passed out and fell fast asleep. When I woke up, I saw that my body had disappeared. How I was looking for him! .. But soon I stopped looking. Then the shock came! It fell on me suddenly, without warning: I was killed by a German shell, I am dead! ..

What is it to be dead! I just felt free and at ease. My being seemed to expand ...

I, probably, am now in some kind of body, but I have little that I can tell you about it. It doesn't interest me. It is comfortable, does not hurt, does not get tired. It seems to resemble my previous body in shape. There is a subtle difference here, but I cannot analyze it ...

It seems that I fell asleep a second time ... and finally woke up. "

We will also give a famous story about the prayer of a soldier. During the Patriotic War, the Red Army soldier Alexander Zaitsev was killed in battle. His friend found in the pocket of the victim's tunic a poem written on the eve of the battle.

“Listen, God, not once in my life
I did not speak to you, but today
I want to greet you.
You know, since childhood, they always told me
That You are not, and I am a fool believed.

I have never contemplated your creations.
And so tonight I watched
To the starry sky that was above me.
I realized suddenly, admiring their flicker,
How cruel deception can be.

I don't know, God, will you give me your hand?
But I will tell You and You will understand me.
Is it not strange that in the midst of the most terrible hell
Light suddenly opened to me, and I saw You?
And besides that, I have nothing to say.

I also want to say that, as you know,
The battle will be wicked;
Perhaps at night I will knock on You.
And so, even though until now I have not been your friend,
Will you let me in when I come?

But I seem to be crying. My God,
You see what happened to me
That I have received my sight today?
Goodbye my God! I’m walking, I’m unlikely to return.
How strange that now I am not afraid of death. "

Faith in God came quite suddenly and this faith destroyed the fear of death.

Thus, death as a phenomenon has many aspects, none of which can be called tragic. Death is not a hopeless situation, but a transition from one plane of existence to another. This is not an event to be feared and feared.

We need to understand that our deceased loved ones do not go anywhere. They live in the same universe as we do. The difference is that they are freer than we are. Both of our worlds are one and the same.

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- Thanatophobia: obsessive fear of death
- The main factors of fear of death
- Symptoms of fear of the end of life
- Reasons for fear of death
- Recommendations for reducing anxiety
- Additional techniques to help you stop being afraid of eternal rest
- 4 Tips on How to Get Rid of Doom Panic
- Conclusion

A separate niche in the group of anxiety disorders is occupied by thanatophobia - a generalized fear of death. This pathological, uncontrollable, obsessive and inexplicable fear is one of the most common in the modern world, and it is a relatively difficult phobia to treat.

There are very few people who have no fear of death. First of all, this is explained by the fact that a person is not destined to know what death is.

The paradox of the pathological fear of death is that a person suffering from thanatophobia is constantly afraid, even without a source of danger to existence. Although the semantic direction of anxiety is the anticipation of the fact of his own death, the patient does not specifically know what provokes and is the object of his anxiety. Some are afraid of the unknown that awaits after death, others are afraid of the painful, in their opinion, process of dying.

Like other human fears, thanatophobia also has positive intentions. The pathological fear of death is a unique basis for self-improvement, which allows you to symbolically put an end to a false, meaningless life and acquire a new genuine "I".

Confirmation of this aspiration of the majority of thanatophobes: when seeking medical help, they still do not know what to do to get rid of the anxiety that possesses their minds and how to live on, but they realize that it is impossible to lead the existence that was before.

When diagnosing a disorder, it is necessary to take into account that a pathological fear of death is characteristic of patients in whom the presence of an obsessive delusional idea is associated with an underlying mental illness. In any case, a specialist consultation is required to confirm the diagnosis of thanatophobia. In the case of thanatophobia, self-medication is categorically undesirable!

- The main factors of fear of death

1) Fear of illness or severe death.
This is what many people fear. Their phobias are based on bodily sensations. Such patients are afraid of pain and agony. These fantasies can be reinforced by some kind of illness or certain negative experiences that the person has experienced in the past.

2) Pointless leaving.
Most patients fear dying without leaving a trace. That is, not to do something significant in life. Such people are late all the time. They are chasing luck. They want to achieve something meaningful to be appreciated. The fear of leaving without a successfully completed task is worse for them than bodily pain.

3) Loss of contacts.
People who suffer from loneliness are prone to this phobic disorder. At the same time, they are afraid to die, being left alone with themselves. Such patients cannot be alone for long. Here, the reason is low self-esteem and impaired socialization.

4) Religion and superstition.
People who are immersed in any beliefs are afraid to die because after death they will go to some terrible place. The fear of hell is often much stronger than the fear of death itself. Many are waiting for death with a scythe or something similar.
Why are people afraid of death? The answer can be unequivocal. People are primarily afraid of life. Both fears are the same.

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- Symptoms of fear of the end of life

Fear of death has a variety of symptoms. First of all, there is an increased sensitivity to any stimulus. Man is afraid of almost everything. He is afraid of getting terminally ill. Concomitant phobias appear, which provoke a number of serious psycho-neurological disorders.
People who fear for their lives often stay at home and avoid any change. An upcoming flight in an airplane may cause them to faint and panic attacks. The second type of disorder deserves special attention.

Panic attacks, which often underlie fear of death, are a complex physical disorder. At the same time, quite suddenly, a person develops shortness of breath, dizziness, tachycardia, blood pressure rises, and nausea occurs. Stool disorder, increased urination, and intense fear may also present, leading to panic. It seems to patients with such disorders that they are about to die, but these are just manifestations of the autonomic nervous system, which thus reacts to phobias.

The fear of death at the same time reaches its peak intensity. A person can become desperate. Panic disorder attacks can occur at different times. Sometimes they happen at night, in some people they appear in public places or during some sudden changes.

Thanatophobia is often associated with anxiety disorders. The person cannot relax. He is in constant tone. As a result, the nervous system is depleted, blood circulation in various organs and systems deteriorates. People with constant feelings of anxiety often feel painful manifestations in the stomach and intestines, suffer from colitis, gastritis and ulcerative defects of the mucous membrane. As a result of increased anxiety, the production of gastric juice is stimulated, which negatively affects the walls of the organ.

Stool disorders are common. A person can suffer from constant bouts of diarrhea or constipation. There is often a lack of appetite. Patients with this fear lose weight and performance due to the obsession with phobias.

- Reasons for fear of death

1) "Information surplus".
Television is the main breeding ground of thanatophobia

The information flow that falls on a person who intends to "put life in order" is striking in its scale. To understand one specific issue, you need to spend a huge amount of time studying the sources, analyzing the opinions of experts. There is no time to fully immerse yourself in the problem. You have to either go forward, despite the lack of experience, knowledge, or stop in despair from the impossibility to take even a step further. "Delay is like death," and thoughts about the worthlessness of being begin to visit more and more often.

2) "Everything is meaningless."
A neurotic disorder may be caused by the thought “it is pointless to do something”, because you can have time a little, there are no necessary resources for a quality life and any other reason that emphasizes the lack of desire to build something in life.

3) "Popularization of immortality".
Fear of death is a phobia that can develop under the influence of the media, where the fact of human mortality is presented under various sauces, including commercially profitable ones (putting the idea of ​​immortality into the subconscious mind). By the way, the higher the frequency of articles in popular science newspapers about theories of immortality (“digitization” of the personality and other variants of eternal life), the more people are involved in a panic called thanatophobia.

4) "False well-being".
Not looking at the increased safety of life and the creation of the maximum number of comfortable conditions for a person, fears worry more often. With a low level of medicine, frequent mortality was perceived rather as a norm and did not cause strong emotions. Today the event is colored with extremely dramatic tones.

In the mind of a person there is a category “safe, comfortable, painless”, but the realities demonstrate the other side - dangerous, uncomfortable and rather painful. At the junction of two extremes, neurosis often arises. We are too accustomed to "well-being" and do not agree with the opposite. Death in the 21st century is beginning to cause shock and rejection.

5) "True well-being."
In a separate group, it is necessary to single out people whose fear of dying is due not to a "false life", but to a true one. The fear of losing everything beautiful at once (ideal family, financial well-being, excellent health) deprives a person of joy. Accordingly, not only "obsolete human nature" gives rise to thanatophobia. The reason may lie in the area of ​​a prosperous life, but is it possible in this case to assert about satisfaction with it?

1) focusing on the issue of self-realization: identifying unused aspects that can be realized, looking for an answer to the question “how do I really want to live, who do I want to be?”;

2) changing your life taking into account “potential regrets”: what needs to be done in order not to regret what has been done / not done in a few years;

3) understanding that death only enhances the value of life, providing all the opportunities for its sensual, emotional and other enrichment: to fill every moment with action, deed, feeling;

4) awareness of the "ripple effect": your good deeds will become an extension of your life;

5) consolation can be found in religious movements, but this is reminiscent of an attempt to avoid solving the issue, the denial of death, its “immortality”, which is not an adequate attitude towards it.

- Additional techniques to help you stop being afraid of eternal rest

1) It is necessary to answer the question, what is the most terrible thing in death. Then analyze your answer. If this is pain and anguish, then try to remember similar situations. When the feeling of loneliness is the basis, then it is already necessary to solve the problem of socialization.

2) Fear of death is a phobia that affects almost 80% of people on the planet. To live with this, you need to be aware of your presence in the real world, and not in a cloud of your negative fantasies.

3) When a state of exacerbation arises, and the thought begins to stifle, it is recommended to imagine yourself from the outside. Look at your condition from the perspective of a doctor and draw a conclusion.

5) Keep peppermint essential oil or ammonia on hand. When there is a feeling of the onset of an attack, you just need to inhale the listed funds and it will immediately become easier.

6) Correct breathing. If your heart beats very hard, then you need to try to calm yourself. To do this, you can slowly walk around the room, turn on relaxing music or your favorite movie.

7) After a preliminary consultation, a psychotherapist will tell you how to deal with the fear of death correctly. In this case, the assessment of the patient's condition is very important.

1) Impending old age.

You will not repeat the mistakes of your grandmother, you will think in advance about securing your old age and use retirement for travel, new hobbies and other joys in life.

2) I'll just disappear ...

It is much easier for deeply religious people: they believe that after death they will have Paradise, because they led a righteous lifestyle.

But for those who doubt and unbelievers, it is better to know in advance how to get rid of the fear of death, because they cannot convince themselves that after death the most important part - the soul - continues to live, which means that a person is afraid to simply disappear, fall into oblivion.

Believe in God, reincarnation, better worlds, fabulous countries. Think for yourself where your soul will go after death.

3) My life is meaningless !!!

As a child, we dreamed of our adult life. We imagined that when we grow up, we will have a lot of money, a big house, a beautiful car, family, children and other attributes of a successful person. And now we are already quite adults, but none of this is there.

And the years are running by, old age is just around the corner, etc. etc.

If you are not yet on your deathbed, then you have a lot of time to fix everything: find a good job, tidy up your face and figure, start earning decent money, start looking for your soul mate. You can make your life the way you dream.

4) To whom will I leave everything?

People who have achieved a lot in life have a lot to lose.
Pets of fortune love life, so they are terribly afraid to say goodbye to it.
What to do: Take a philosophical look at the problem.
As long as you are alive, you should not think about death.

- Conclusion

Fear of death torments many people. even if their lives are not in danger. However, as long as you want to live, you will not die. Therefore, you should not fill your head with thoughts of an imminent death. Such thoughts will not lead to anything good.

Think for yourself, your thoughts about death will only spoil your mood and most likely bring its arrival closer. Now you are alive and this is the most important thing. Rejoice in what is now. After all, the whole world is at your feet. I think when you die, you will not care. So I see no reason to worry about this.

The material was prepared by Dilyara specially for the site

Sages say that we cannot change our birth: if we were born unconsciously, then we cannot do anything about it: this fact has already happened. However, we can completely change our departure from life, and for this a person needs to think about this as early as possible. People are simply terrified of death, closing their eyes to it in every possible way, avoiding these thoughts, despite the fact that not a single person has managed to avoid it. Despite the endless search for eternal life, miracles and elixirs, not a single creature managed to remain forever alive. The physical body has its own boundaries, its own energy reserve, which decreases over the years, and we have to leave it, no matter how we cling to it.

However, a person's fears of death are not justified. People are not afraid of death as such, but of certain things accompanying it. And first of all, the truth that they may face. If you live your life honestly, living every moment as totally as you can, without giving up your path, then you will approach the moment of death also totally, realizing that the time has come to say goodbye to this world. However, if you did a lot of ugly, bad things, if you betrayed yourself and other people, if you turned a blind eye to what you should have done, but did not, then you will be very scared to die. First of all, you will be afraid to answer the following question: “How did I live this life? Did I live it as best I could? Or because of various fears I did what I did not want and what went contrary to my inner perception just because I was afraid? "

Official religions also speak about this, only in a different language: they say that you are moving to another world, where you will have to answer before God, and you will be rewarded for your good and bad deeds. However, in the end, moving inward, you understand that there is no other world, like some God separate from you: there is always your reality and your deep self, and if you want, you can call it By God. If you follow it, then everything is in order: whether you are in this body or in another, it essentially does not change anything. Today you are a woman, and in your next life you are a man, but if you honestly move, then today you will live your feminine part as much as possible, developing and knowing your feminine qualities, and in the next life - masculine, recognizing totally your masculine traits. In this life, you will know yourself as a subordinate, living this side of yours, and in the next you become a leader in order to now connect with another part of what is happening.

If we learn to look at the world in more volume, to see it in a complex, and not in disparate components, then we can live many of our hypostases during one life. We can experience different manifestations of ourselves, standing on one side of the situation. But this is possible only if we let go of the idea of ​​striving for something. As long as we continue to strive to achieve something in life, we cannot be open enough to experience all that is given to us. We continue to cling to some goals and intentions in the future, and this blocks our ability to unfold in the present moment. We are looking for some kind of realization in the future, without living the present and thus constantly putting off life for later. It seems to us all the time that it is impossible to live now because we have not yet realized something, but growing up, we understand that life never comes. Because first we run to the future, and then we regret the past.

If we follow our path, not being afraid to live what comes to us - even if the waves of feelings overwhelm us, then at the moment of death we will also honestly face this state of ours. Even if it scares, we will treat it the same way as we would any other fear: if we have learned to let it pass through ourselves, without giving it unnecessary significance, then we can also let it go at the moment of leaving this world, giving ourselves the ability to leave the body without clinging to it.

Osho says death is like changing horses at the station. You understand that this body is already tired, it has grown old, and it needs to return to where it came from - to the earth, while the spirit knows that it still cannot die, and therefore, if it needs the next rebirth, it will find a new body for living the next experiences on Earth. Throughout your life, you love your body, take care of it, clean it and take care of it - this is your home for 60-70-80 years, and you are grateful to him that with his help you can exist in this world, but you always remember that this is not you, but still only your home. It lives as long as it is allowed to, if we do not reduce its duration by our wrong actions and thoughts. If we have many programs of self-destruction, then we can die earlier, but in any case, the body has only a certain charge of energy given to it by the parents, and it will leave after this charge ends. It can last a little more, but it will still be just until the next station, where it will have to be left.

When seeing off people who are passing away, it is very important not to cling to them. First, with our tears and suffering, we prevent people from leaving peacefully. It’s already difficult for people to disassociate themselves from everything that they used to consider “themselves”, it’s already difficult for them to remember who they really are, and when an army of crying relatives and friends is around a dying person, they are completely lost. It is difficult for them to perceive the departure from here correctly - after all, they see tears, suffering, everyone says that they leave so early that they should still live, but this moment has come and somewhere deeply they know that this is right.

If this is a disease, then the only thing that can really cure a person is his deep desire to change the situation. On the physical level, this should be a desire to live, and on the level of the spirit, a person should understand that there is an opportunity to change the situation on an emotional, psychological level. Because in the end, any illness of the physical body is also a moral illness. As much as you psychologically feel bad, so much you feel bad in your body. If you are full of strength and energy, then you can cope with the disease, both physical and emotional, but if you feel that whatever you do, nothing changes, then despondency sets in, there is an unwillingness to live. Therefore, the first thing that needs to be given to a person who is sick is the understanding that the situation can be changed. If he accepts this, then you can continue to work and try to help him get out of the disease, but if not, then having tried everything and using all possible methods, you need to give him the opportunity to leave calmly.

It is not uncommon for a person who has been ill for a long time to finally leave his body at a time when the people caring for him, for some reason, could not be with him. Then they very much reproached themselves that they overlooked, overlooked and because of this the person died. But I must say that this is not always and not entirely correct vision. Usually these people have long wanted to die, but others continue to maintain a small tongue of flame in them in order to somehow leave them here. Sometimes a person already has almost no life in his body, it can even be paralyzed, but the other loves him so much that for years he takes care of him, leaving him alive. There are also karmic tasks here, so it is clear that if such a situation has happened, then you will have to deal with it, but if a person dies, then you don’t need to reproach yourself - the time has come, no matter how sometimes it seems to us exactly the opposite. The same is true if there are dying people next to you - relatives or friends. This is the best moment to face death, and not hide from what is happening. It's useless to escape from this - we all have to face it one day, so it's better to do this in advance - to look at death directly in order to stop being so much afraid of it.

So, if a person dies while you are away, this does not necessarily mean that you are a bad person or were not caring enough. For example, children may worry that they left, and his weak parent died at that moment, and now this person is scolding himself. But the following often happens: if parents love their children very much, and are worried that their life has not yet been arranged, for example, then they are very scared to leave. They always believed that if not them, then no one would take care of their children, and after death no one would be able to love them as much. This is not true, this is a very limited perception - life is much wiser and will always take care of the person. But if the children are nearby, moreover, if they are very upset, then it is very difficult for these parents to leave, even if their time has come. They can be very painful, maybe they feel that they no longer have the strength to fight the disease, that they just want to rest, stop fighting, but cannot do it, because they worry about the feelings of their loved ones. And when they leave somewhere, they finally have such an opportunity to let go, get out of the body, in order to return to where we all came from.

Also, more than once I came across mothers who could not survive the death of a child: this is probably one of the most difficult losses. But in this case it is necessary to look at the situation differently. Working with people, I saw that women carry this charge of sadness and sadness for many years, negatively influencing these feelings on the next children. I am also talking about miscarriages, especially in the long term. Working through the deepest feelings of sadness and despondency, and reaching their roots, at some point it came to the understanding that all these children did not just appear with these mothers who could not bear them. Each of these children had their own task and it is not for us to decide why this happened. The child leaves, and it is also his choice to live here so little (now we are talking about deep unconscious layers), and to continue holding him for many years after his death is wrong neither for the mother, nor for this departed soul, nor for the living children. I will repeat once again - if a child was lost, he also had a definite task to live so little. If the parents understand that some of their actions led to this death, then, of course, you need to think about it, and correct what was done or thought incorrectly, but at the same time not take responsibility for someone else's life. Each, EACH of us, comes with his own tasks, absolutely every human being chooses his parents according to what he needs to realize, and we cannot be responsible for this. There is, without a doubt, an external material level, where we enter into material relations with each other, and here we take care of children, old people and sick people, but nevertheless, inside we must always be in contact with our source, and take more deeply the course of things, even sometimes so far inaccessible to our understanding.

Therefore, you should not reproach yourself if someone died and you think that it is your fault. If you were afraid and ran away from a person while he was sick, that's another matter - you still have to deal with this, but if you were honest with him as much as you need, then this is completely different. Just accept that he has the opportunity to finally leave. In the end, each of us knows that when a person leaves, he no longer hurts, it hurts those who remain. Thus, these are already the problems of living people - to work with their feelings and let through the waves of sadness, longing and pain of loss. In addition, by letting go of these feelings, we help leaving people to leave more calmly and painlessly.

For a person who leaves, the most important thing is to look in fear. First of all, in the fear of the unknown. The further during his life he was from his source, or, one might say, from God, the more terrible he will face death. Because, as it was said at the beginning, at this moment everything that was previously suppressed and pushed aside will emerge. If you came to this world to become an architect, but at the time when you were growing up and choosing a profession, this occupation was unprofitable, or your parents said that this was a bad profession, and you became a successful financier, then now, before you die, you will have to answer the question to myself: "Why did I spend my whole life on something that was not what I needed to do?" You will be able to explain to anyone - children, parents, friends - why you did what your heart was not about, but you cannot lie to yourself. In the last moments of your life, the money that you relied on as the main argument or a rich house, or something else, will turn out to be fiction - it will literally dissolve in your hands - no matter how you want it, you cannot take it with you ... Social status, honor - you cannot take all this, but the only thing that will remain with you is your questioning eyes and your heart, which always knows the truth: "What have you done with your life?"

No human can escape this. In religion, this is called a transition to the kingdom of God, but in essence, it is just contact with oneself. In religion, they scare us that if we do not live our lives by going to church and reading prayers, then after death we will feel bad and we will go to hell. Well, if we are, then to heaven. But, of course, this is just a certain way of expressing thoughts. Jesus 2000 years ago could hardly have conveyed to people that level of consciousness that in the course of life one should move along with their feelings and sensations, without betraying oneself. Then people understood the language that hell is pans and devils, and heaven is a garden and a good life. Now a person can already understand that if during his life he feels in himself more than just a human body, if he moves in accordance with the will of life, the will of existence, then he has nothing to fear, that there is no heaven and hell, that this is all is present now. What more hell can we talk about today, looking around? A person lives with unloved people, does unloved work, is sick - what other hell can you be afraid of? A person is already mature enough today to understand another language: hell and heaven are already in the present moment. And only he chooses what to live in. And these concepts have nothing to do with material expressions. It is attunement with God, with being in the present moment. And if you are in tune, then you begin to understand that there is nothing to fear in death. You are absolutely honest with yourself and with God. You walked, doing as much as you could, made mistakes, corrected, did not run away from responsibility, did not run away from feelings - then what can frighten you? Maybe only a new state, since we do not know what it is like to be without a body, we are so accustomed to thinking that we are it, that it is not clear what will remain if it is not there. Therefore, from this point of view, it is better to start working on yourself and move inside yourself as early as possible, in order to become more and more disidentified with your body, to live in it, but not to consider that it is you. In fact, it is better not to stray far from yourself initially, then you will not make many mistakes - while we are still small and open in heart, we always know whether we are acting correctly or not. Then it won't be scary to turn back and connect with who we really are.

In the Eastern tradition, there is a special technique for helping dying people, Bardo. When a person leaves, there is a master with him who leads him every moment, preventing him from falling asleep and losing awareness of this departure. As did, for example, Socrates, who showed how you can leave consciously. After accepting the poison that was given to him, he described every moment of his departure, telling his students: “Guys, now look at what is happening to me: why are you crying? My legs have now given up, now I have numbness up to the knee, now my body has already reached numbness, everything is dying off. But look, I continue to speak, so I cannot be my feet, and I cannot be my hands, if all this goes away, and I continue to communicate with you. See what you cry and why? Do not".

Bardo gives you the same opportunity: with the help of a master, be in awareness for as long as possible. Leave, being aware of what is happening, without falling asleep or disconnecting from fear. If just such a departure from life occurs, then in the next life you can be born with completely different sensations. Leaving as consciously as possible, you come to the next life with a different feeling. Osho said that his life was primarily due to the fact that dying in the previous one, he looked forward with curiosity: I wonder, he thought, and what will happen next? And this has already changed a lot.

But even without using any additional techniques, we can simply move with life and watch death occurring here. In the end, death occurs every moment: someone is born, and someone dies at the same moment. If it so happened that you faced death earlier or it is somewhere nearby now, if someone close to you is passing away, then it's time to stop running away from it and find the courage to turn to face it, consider whether it really is is it so scary, or is it the ghosts of our dreams that continue to spoil our lives. Get to know her, treat her as a necessary element of our existence, as a sacrament, and thus accept it. Having ceased to be afraid to look at death and to run away from it, we are more and more aware of our nature and are not afraid to live life according to our own direction, and not inspired by the ideas of other people. Remembering and bearing in mind the fact that at any moment we can leave this body, because no one knows what may happen in the next second, we can no longer betray ourselves, doing things that go against our heart and our inner perception. And it completely changes the whole concept of our life - knowing that you can die every second, what other fear can affect you to abandon yourself?

What is death? Why are all people more or less afraid of death? The fear of the unknown is a strong fear. As it will be? Will I suffer? What will happen after death? All these specific questions require specific answers.

First, let's try to figure out why almost every person has a fear of death. If we consider this issue more broadly, then we will certainly come to the conclusion that such fear is directly related to the instinct of self-preservation. Any living creature will be reluctant to part with its physical shell. Attachment to your body appears with the birth of this body. This attachment is inherent in Consciousness by nature itself.

The instinct of self-preservation, which means the fear of death, helps to preserve life. In other words, the fear of death is a natural feeling that is necessary for life. Life is an invaluable gift, and to preserve it, we are given the fear of death along with life. It's quite normal.

It's another matter when the fear of death is stronger than it deserves, if it becomes panicky. Then a person sees death in an exceptional degree as something unknown, dangerous and inevitable. Most of our fears, however, stem from ignorance. And the most powerful cure for ignorance is knowledge. Everything that we managed to understand and explain is no longer scary. In times immemorial, people were terrified of thunder and lightning. However, later people were able to explain the reason for these natural phenomena and the panic disappeared.

The main cause of the fear of death is the identification of people with their own body. Thinking about the meaning of life, a person will certainly come to the question: "Who am I in reality?" And without really thinking about the answer, a person decides that he is his physical body. Or decides that the body is primary and the Soul is secondary. "I am Russian. I am builder. I'm a Christian. I am the father of a family ”- these are typical examples of such identification with the body.

It becomes quite understandable that having come to such conclusions, a person begins to take care of the needs of his body to an exceptional degree. Although, if you think a little about the needs of the body, you can understand that in reality our body needs very little. However, people identify themselves and their consciousness with their own mortal physical body. And the time comes when a person is no longer aware of himself without this body. Now his body needs air, food, sleep, pleasure, entertainment, etc. all the time.

A person turns into a servant of his body. It is not the body that serves the person, but the person begins to serve his body. And when human life comes to an end, the fear of death takes over completely. He convulsively begins to cling to his weak body, thinking that with the disappearance of the body, the person himself will disappear, his Consciousness and Personality will disappear.

The pattern is straight forward. The more we begin to attach to our body, the more we begin to fear death. The less we identify with the physical body, the easier we will think about the inevitability of death. In fact, we fear death more than it deserves.

What else are we afraid of? First of all, the fact that - death is inevitable. Yes it is. But we should not forget that only our physical body, our temporary bodily suit, dies.

Imagine a situation where you bought a new suit from a store. You liked the style, the color is what you wanted, the price is reasonable. Already at home, you demonstrated the costume to your loved ones and they also really like it. In this suit you go to work every day. And after a year you notice that the suit is a little worn out, but it may still serve you. A year later, the suit worn out even more. However, it has become so dear to you that you are ready to spend a lot of money on repairs and dry cleaning. You don't even think about buying a new suit. You are practically one with your old suit.

You carefully store it in the closet, clean it, iron it in a timely manner, do not react to the surprised looks of your family and colleagues, but only avert your eyes. More and more often you are haunted by the thought that sooner or later you will have to part with this suit. This thought robs you of peace and sleep, you are close to a breakdown. You say: “This does not happen! This is sheer absurdity! " Of course, this is unlikely to happen to a normal person. However, this is exactly how most people relate to their body, to their temporary costume!

In this case, there is not so much to understand - our temporary suit will sooner or later become unusable. But in return we get a new suit, a new body. And it may well be that this body will be even better than the previous one. So is it worth it to be sad?

Also, a person is afraid of the unknown. "What will happen to me later?" Often we think that after death we will absolutely disappear. As already stated, the best cure for fear and uncertainty is knowledge. The knowledge that life continues after death. It takes on new forms, but this is the same conscious life as earthly life.

There is another reason for the fear of death. For some people, especially for those who identify themselves as atheists, this reason may seem irrelevant. For many years, over many centuries, people were called to order with the help of threats and punishments, promising them long torment in hell. The fear of hell is one of the reasons for disbelief in the continuation of life after death. Who would want to believe in life after death, if this future can only bring us suffering? Nowadays, no one intimidates anyone, but the fear that has lodged in the subconscious for many generations is not so easy to eradicate.

What else frightens a person before death? The feeling of painfulness of the forthcoming transition is terrifying, we think that death is a prolonged suffering, a very painful sensation. The thought may even creep into my head: "If I die, then I would like it to happen immediately or in a dream, so as not to suffer."

In fact, the transition itself occurs almost instantly. Consciousness turns off for a short time. Pain symptoms continue only until the very moment of transition. Dying itself is painless. After the transition, all symptoms of the disease, physical disabilities disappear. The human personality, having crossed the threshold of the physical world, continues to live in new conditions of existence.

But, if we could not get rid of fear, then this fear will remain, because after the transition, Consciousness is not lost and the Personality does not disappear. Usually, we see in death an enemy who wants to take our life. We cannot fight this enemy, and we try to drive away thoughts about him. But death, because not to think about it, will not disappear. The fear of death will not only not disappear, but will go even deeper, into the subconscious. There, without awareness, he will be even more dangerous and harmful.

Suppose a person died while sleeping and had no near-death experiences. After the transition, a person will see himself in a different environment, but all his thoughts and feelings, which he could not get rid of, will remain. What was in our consciousness and subconsciousness before the moment of death does not disappear anywhere. A person only loses the opportunity to control his no longer needed physical body. All his thoughts, experiences, fears remain with him.

Wanting to leave life in a dream or in another unconscious state, we lose a lot, we lose the entire period of the growth of the Soul.

Let's look at this problem from a philosophical and religious point of view. It doesn't matter if we consider ourselves to be believers or not. At least in our souls we are all philosophers.

We live in the material world not only in order to receive pleasure and take everything from life. The Lord, of course, does not mind people enjoying life, and gave them everything they need for this. But the Lord also gave each of us a certain life task that corresponds to our strengths and abilities. We are born in this world for a reason. Our task is to do something that is part of the Lord's Plan, to fulfill our destiny.

More specifically, during our stay on the earthly plane, we need to develop the highest abilities - the ability to Love and Believe. We also have to go through energetic cleansing - to cleanse our Soul from the dirt that has been accumulated over the period of our entire existence, to work out karmic problems with other people, that is, to become better and cleaner.

First, we need to find out our purpose, and then fulfill it. This is also said in the parable of Jesus Christ about talents, where the master at the end of the centuries asks the slaves how they used the time and talents given to them (Gospel of Matthew 25: 14-30):

... For He will act like a man who, going to a foreign country, called his servants and entrusted them with his property:

And to one he gave 5 talents, to another 2, to the third 1, each according to his strength; and immediately departed.

The one who received 5 talents went, put them into business and acquired another 5 talents;

in the same way, he who received two talents acquired other two;

The one who received 1 talent went and buried it in the ground and hid the silver of his master.

After a long time, the master of those slaves returned and demanded an account from them.

And, coming up, the one who had received 5 talents brought other 5 talents and said: "Lord" 5 talents you gave me; behold, I have acquired other 5 talents with them. "

Likewise, the one who had received 2 talents came up and said: “Master! You gave me two talents; behold, I have acquired other 2 talents with them. "

His master said to him: “Well, good and faithful slave! You were faithful in little things; I will put you over many things; enter into the joy of your master. "

And the one who received 1 talent came up and said: “Master! I knew you, that you are a cruel man, you reap where you did not sow, and gather where you did not scatter, and fearing, I went and hid your talent in the earth; here's yours. "

His master answered him: “Sly and lazy slave! You knew that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter; therefore you had to give my silver to the merchants, and when I came, I would have received mine at a profit; So, take the talent from him and give to him who has 10 talents, for to everyone who has it will be given and will increase, but from him who does not have, what he has will also be taken away; but cast out the worthless servant into the outer darkness: there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. " Having said this, he cried out: He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

Now you yourself can come to the conclusion, why are we still afraid of death? The conclusion is simple. In the depths of our subconsciousness, a specific task has been formed - the fulfillment of a specific purpose. If we have not yet fulfilled this purpose, have not fulfilled our program of being in the physical world, this will bother us at the subconscious level. And this anxiety, penetrating the level of consciousness, will cause specific fears in us.

That is, on the one hand, this fear reminds us of an unfulfilled destination. On the other hand, such fear, expressed in the instinct of self-preservation, makes us take care of our lives. And vice versa. People whose earthly life has been spent in constant labor and for the benefit of others often feel that they have fulfilled their destiny. When the time comes to die, they have no fear of death.

Perhaps the Abbot of Mount Sinai spoke about this in the "Ladder"?

"The fear of death is a property of human nature ... and the thrill of the memory of a mortal is a sign of unrepentant sins ..."

Also, one of the Orthodox saints wrote:

“It would be strange if at this time we did not have a fear of an unknown future, there would be no fear of God. The fear of God will be, it is beneficial and necessary. It helps to cleanse the soul preparing to leave the body. "

Individuals may develop exactly the opposite attitude towards death. People who live according to the principle "after us - even a flood." Why think about death at all, if you can enjoy well already in this life? Someday I will die. And so what? We will all die sooner or later. Why think bad? Let's enjoy life now without thinking about the consequences.

There is also another extreme. In 1980, Archimandrite Seraphim Rose published a book in English "The Soul After Death". He wrote that the testimonies of people who have survived the temporary death of the body often paint a wrong and dangerous picture. There is too much light in it. One gets the impression that one should not be afraid of death. Death is, rather, a pleasant experience, and after death nothing bad threatens the soul. God does not blame anyone and surrounds everyone with love. Repentance and even thoughts about it are superfluous.

Father Seraphim wrote:

“Today's world is spoiled and does not want to hear about the reality of the spirit and responsibility for sins. It is much nicer to think that God is not very strict and that we are safe under a loving God who will not demand an answer. Better to feel that salvation is assured. In our age, we expect something pleasant and often see what we expect. But the reality is different. The hour of death is a time of devilish temptation. The destiny of a person in eternity depends mainly on how she herself looks at her death and how she prepares for it ”.

In principle, it is not bad when we do not dwell on our future, because everything is in the hands of the Lord. You need to live here and now. Live and be aware of every minute of your existence. If these are pleasant moments, then we should share our joy with others. If these are sad moments, then this can push us to understand the meaning of life.

However, in any case, no matter how we relate to our earthly life, our purpose remains. Whether we take from life all or more of this life and give to other people, this purpose does not disappear anywhere. Accordingly, the task becomes a little more complicated - all the time we must remember our purpose and we must use every minute to fulfill it. And this, you must admit, does not fit with the principles "After us - even a flood" and "Take everything from life."

Many people may object to us: “We are happy and satisfied with life now. We have everything - a good job, a good family, successful children and grandchildren. Why should we think about some mythical future ”? We do not deny that there are many, in fact, wonderful, kind and sympathetic people on Earth who, with their qualities, deserve such a happy life.

However, there is another option. It was in their past earthly life that these people were kind and sympathetic. And they were able to develop a certain Spiritual potential. And in this life, they do not gain this potential, but simply waste it. In fact, everything is good with them in this life. But the potential is rapidly diminishing. And in later life they may have to start all over again.

Of course, you can not believe in all this. And this is a separate topic for conversation. Therefore, we invite the reader to simply think about this question. In principle, all people have almost equal opportunities. A person is born, goes first to kindergarten, then to school. And here the paths of people diverge. Some go to college, others go to the army, some go to work, some have a family, etc. That is, everyone follows their own path: someone is growing, someone is falling, someone is happy, and someone is not. That is, everyone seems to have the same opportunities after leaving school, and as a result, in 5-10 years, the gap between people can be simply enormous.

There may be objections: "It's not only about the possibilities, but also about the abilities." And this is what we suggested to think about. Where did a person get his abilities and capabilities? Why is someone born a genius, while someone is not even able to finish school? Why is one person born into a wealthy family, while someone is born sick or into a family with one parent? Why was such an injustice inherent in the first place?

Who is running this? God or man himself?

You may ask: "It turns out that a person needs the fear of death?" But you yourself can already answer this question. Needed, but only as an instinct for self-preservation. And nothing more. To get rid of the fear of death, in fact, not much is needed - only knowledge. The knowledge of why we are on Earth and the knowledge that this earthly life is only a part of one big life of ours.

O. Kazatsky, M. Yeritsyan