Bob Dylan sang that, “those not busy being born are busy dying” but from what I can tell most everyone is doing both at once. Each new moment is a moment of rebirth. What seems constant and solid is a renewal, one heartbeat, one breath at a time. And that’s how close we are to dying; that same heartbeat, that same breath might be our very last.
We spend a lot of time trying to stay alive; we look both ways before we cross the street, eat our vegetables, get daily exercise, talk to God, and receive continuous advice from others about how to live better and longer. Knowing what works and what does not is largely a matter of opinion and belief; a Japanese gentleman named Jiroemon Kimura who recently turned 114 year old, when asked to give the reason for his longevity, said he had no idea, adding that he tried not to worry.
Worrying about living longer might kill you; no doubt the stress of living takes a mighty toll. The villains out to get us are far too numerous to mention in full but a short list might include: anxiety, cholesterol, refined sugar, mercury in tuna fish, airborne radiation from Japan, food poisoning, cigarette smoking, high fructose corn syrup, drinking too much alcohol, eating too much fat, lack of physical exercise, drunk drivers, drug-resistant bacteria, trips and falls, choking on a big piece of meat, murderous drug gangs, malignant cancer, rising oceans, famine, warfare, pestilence, aliens from outer space; you get the picture. Life will kill you.
For many, longevity is tied to sin or lack thereof; we die when we do because we do or do not live righteously. We pray for long life for ourselves and our loved ones, good health, fortune and deliverance from suffering, and there are many who continue to believe in the blessings of the divine. Medicine tells us such belief and prayer does little harm, but no scientific evidence has proven faith adds any time to life at all. Empiricists like Mr. Kellogg (of Corn Flakes fame) advocated regular “colon cleansing” to sustain health and well-being, and of course there were the famous “Carter’s Little Liver Pills,” and “Geritol for tired blood.” Today it’s Lipitor, Cozaar and Abilify. Tomorrow? Nanobots that circulate in your blood and eat the harmful LDL cholesterol, grow-your-own-organ at-home kits, and internet-connected silicon chip brain implants.
Our attempt to overcome death is about trying to kill chaos. By chaos, I mean the inconceivably complex interconnected interdependent web of reality which precedes each of us and lasts well after we’ve departed. Chaos is the very thing that made us, or should I say the very everything that made us. We try to kill chaos by exercising control, but chaos is too big and our control is too little. There’s the chaos of our genes, the genes of others and every thought and action that arises. Controlling something small, like what goes in or comes out of our mouth, is possible, but it’s still a losing game. We are hostages to life itself, and in this particular episode, nobody gets out alive – all hostages are killed.
Better perhaps to give in, go with the flow and like Jiroemon Kimura, don’t worry.
