Gems of Wisdom -

Relevant enquiry.
As long as a man is in the full vigor of life, he forgets the naked truth of dea
th, which he has to meet. Thus a foolish man makes no relevant inquiry about the
real problems of life. Everyone thinks that he will never die, although he sees
evidence of death before his eyes at every second. Here is the distinction betw
een animalism and humanity. An animal like a goat has no sense of its impending
death. Although its brother goat is being slaughtered, the goat, being allured b
y the green grass offered to it, will stand peacefully waiting to be slaughtered
next. On the other hand, if a human being sees his fellow man being killed by a
n enemy, he either fights to save his brother or leaves, if possible, to save hi
s own life. That is the difference between a man and a goat.
An intelligent man knows that death is born along with his own birth. He knows t
hat he is dying at every second and that the final touch will be given as soon a
s his term of life is finished. He therefore prepares himself for the next life
or for liberation from the disease of repeated birth and death.
A foolish man, however, does not know that this human form of life is obtained a
fter a series of births and deaths imposed in the past by the laws of nature. He
does not know that a living entity is an eternal being, who has no birth and de
ath. Birth, death, old age, and disease are external impositions on a living ent
ity and are due to his contact with material nature and to his forgetfulness of
his eternal, godly nature and qualitative oneness with the Absolute Whole.
Human life provides the opportunity to know this eternal fact, or truth. Thus th
e very beginning of the Vedanta-sutra advises that because we have this valuable
form of human life, it is our duty-now-to inquire, What is Brahman, the Absolut
e Truth?