Dr Brainerd Prince
It was not too long back that I was working with one of my students on the themes of suffering and theodicy. The theoretical discussions we had and the many theories we explored have indeed taken on an existential twist with the second wave of Covid in India. In the last few days, we have seen people literally drop dead around us. Not a day goes by without the death of someone we know in our social networks. Death is no longer a stranger. All of us either first-hand or through our networks have seen death at close quarters and experienced the suffering it brings.
The romantic mystery that usually surrounds death has been unshrouded by its sheer repetition over the last few days. No one has the time or strength to philosophize over death even as one has to quickly move, even if figuratively, from one cremation ground to the next. A long time ago I read somewhere that the activity of philosophy began about thirty-thousand years ago amongst the human species precisely at the cremation grounds, where humans would sit, mourning over their dead. It was here that man first began to think about death and then about life and thus began the life of reflection, or the philosophical life. In my own journey, the philosophical quest took definite form while I was researching on Sri Aurobindo. Even as I understood Aurobindo’s deep quest to spiritualize matter through his yogic endeavours I realised that his ultimate goal was to immortalize matter in his own body so that he would defeat death. As I sat on the floor for hours in front of his samadhi (burial place) in the Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry, the thought that kept ringing in my head was this – for all the tremendous work Aurobindo had done, his yoga was unable to defeat death. Death had triumphed and won a great victory once again. One of the greatest efforts made by man, in the life and work of Aurobindo, could still not overcome death.
We are once again faced with deathin our families and social networks due to Covid. However, we must put aside our tear-soaked towels, and wipe our tear-stained faces and reflect on what is going on around us. If there is one thing that separates us from the rest of the living, it is the life of reflection. Charles Taylor in his book The Language Animal, following Herder, uses the German term Besonnenheit to describe this life of reflection. Herder’s concept of Besonnenheit as ‘reflection’ refers to ‘the entire economy of man’s perceptive, cognitive, and volitional nature’, as it is the essential condition for the working of the mind, in its totality, and not only in his act of thinking. In other words, it refers to the fundamental core of what makes humans as humans.
We all must exercise Besonnenheit today even as we ponder over the phenomenon of death. Death is not similar to a player being called back to the benches during play to either cool off or to refresh himself so that he is able to go back and play. Death is also not like taking a holiday and going away for some time, only to return at the end of the break. As we know it, death is an irreversible end of life. The Covid plague may well end at some point, but those who have died and perished are not going to come back. They are gone forever. Furthermore, death has no respect for class, wealth, caste, or even spirituality. Covid deaths have shown us that clearly. Everyone dies! Teachers, pastors, priests, criminals, the good, rich, poor, the hardworking, the brahmins and shudras, everyone dies! Finally, it is near impossible to make any sense or meaning of death. All our efforts to knit a narrative together of a life whose death could be meaningfully or even coherently explained is futile. Death is an anomaly and wildly incomprehensible. We are left tantalized asking the question – why? Let us then be careful and extremely cautious when we speak about death. Talking glibly about it will only reveal our lack of maturity and depth with regard to the human condition that undeniably ends with death.
If this irreversible finality of death is real then how should life be lived? There are many prophets in our world who appear to possess confident answers to this question and I leave you to their graces. However, I would like to pursue the question of our response to death, especially of someone who is close to us, perhaps, even belonging to our family. I would like to suggest three responses to death and the suffering it brings to us.
Firstly, grieving the temporality of the human condition and the reality of death. Grieving the loss of a loved one, experiencing the pain of this irreversible separation is an important response to death. It is rightly said, death is experienced only by the living. Those of us who are left behind, it is we who experience death, the death of a loved one. Death brings about an irreversible loss, and no power on earth is able to bring the dead back to life. Therefore, those of us who experience death must allow ourselves to grieve the loss. Religious traditions give us stories of hope to console us in our time of loss. And, perhaps, all of us need these extraordinary stories to combat the extraordinary loss that death brings. But remember, no story of hope is a quick fix to overcome the grief brought about by death. After a time, the story telling must cease, and a season of silence must be allowed, for the grieving of the loss of the loved one. In grieving, there is healing, in grieving, the memories get refined, and a final picture of the departed one gets formed in the hearts of the dear ones left behind. It is only after grief has taken its full course that the mourning will be turned into joy even as the life of the loved one who has passed away can be celebrated. The celebration must not come in too soon and neither should the grieving end too soon.
Secondly, especially for those who are religious and spiritual, this is an opportunity to explore the resources your tradition offers as explanations for suffering and death. Of course, sorrow and grief bring with it, questions – the big questions about life and death. Why is there death and suffering at all? For those who believe in God, the question of suffering is raised at him – if you are real, then why do I have to experience this pain, or suffering, even death of a loved one? The real question that is being asked beneath all these questions is this – if there is a God who is good, loving and all-powerful, then why does he allow suffering and evil, including death? The technical term that is used for an explanation that seeks to resolve the goodness and omnipotence of God with the reality of suffering and evil is theodicy. The term ‘theodicy’ etymologically from Theos (God) and Dikē (justice), literally means ‘justice of God’ and raises the paradoxical question of the reality of God’s love and power at the face of evil and suffering and seeks a justification for the reality of both. There have been several explanations put forward through history: at one end of the spectrum are explanations that blame humans and the misuse of their freewill as the reason for human suffering and pain. At the other end of the spectrum are explanations that argue that God uses suffering and evil to discipline humans and that it is part of their soul-making process. Without getting into further technicalities, it seems that humans have two main ways of understanding death and suffering – it is either their fault or it is an instrument in the hands of God. However, there is a kind of evil, and suffering that defies this spectrum completely – I am talking about natural evil, such as the one we are experiencing with the corona virus. Irrespective of its origin, it has become a natural disaster like a tsunami or an earthquake or a plague. The spectrum appears to be shattered in addressing natural evils and suffering. It is no longer about fixing blame or what profit can humans get from experiencing such devastations. This is not the time for naïve and simplistic answers but a time for deep probing into spiritual realities and perhaps even into the nature of God. Allow these experiences to challenge us if necessary and grow us, without having to throw away faith and turn to scepticism.
Finally, it is also an opportunity to look beyond our self. What if natural sufferings like the Covid plague are here to remind us that we humans are not the centre of the universe. What if these so called natural evils and the sufferings caused by them seek to open our eyes to the planet and the natural surroundings that house and sustain us. What if these natural evils are nothing but deep groaning of Nature demanding a radical change in our way of life? Perhaps, an appropriate human response would be to humble oneself and to pay grateful attention to everything around us – the air, water, flora and fauna, everything that makes up our universe and allows us to inhabit it. Indeed, in its preservation and flourishing is human flourishing.
