The silence of death

Death, may I come in?

```

Death, may I come in?

"No, definitely not!

You are a shameless liar;

You are a worthless coward,

An impossible creature!

"Hundreds of times

You have begged me

To allow you

To enter into my lifeless Hall,

And I have given you

My immediate permission.

Yet you have invited fear

To capture your heart.

"No more opportunity

Shall be given to you.

With you I shall not share

My nectar-pleasure

And my silence-treasure,

Never!" ```

Delayed arrival

```

Death, I do not deny

That I have badly disappointed you.

I have been delaying and delaying my arrival.

But you can easily forgive me

Because my mother,

My father, my brother,

My sister and many

Bosom friends of mine

Have committed suicide.

They came to you;

They entered into your Hall

Long before they were due.

I am sure their early arrival

Can stand against my late arrival.

"You fool, they came in

Before I had invited them.

They were unpardonable intruders.

Never do I forgive such intruders,

Nor does God forgive these life-takers.

I have thrown

The members of your family

And your friends

Into the lowest hell,

Far below your imagination's flight.

Ceaseless torture

Has embraced them.

"I give you my first and last

Piece of advice:

Never take your life away,

Never!

"Although in your case the time has

already expired,

And in spite of my immediate need

And demand for your presence,

I am ready to wait for you

Indefinitely!" ```

Death, where are my brothers?

```

Death, where are my

Divine brothers,

Sri Krishna and the Christ?

Do you know anything

About them?

Did they enjoy your company?

Did you enjoy their company?

"I hate your divine brothers.

They did not say a word

In my favour

On earth.

They spoke only of Eternal Life,

My eternal enemy.

But my big heart forgave them;

I immediately showed them

The way to the highest Heaven.

I must say that

Gratitude did not altogether

Desert your divine brothers.

The pride of the East

And the pride of the West

Both garlanded me

Before they left me

For their Father.

Needless to say,

Their Father and my Father

Are eternally one

And supremely inseparable."

```

Death, why do you live?

```

Death, why do you live?

"I live because

Your human life needs divine rest,

Your human life deserves supreme rest

After you have fought

In the battlefield of life."

Death, when will you die?

"I shall die

The moment

Bondage and ignorance

Forget your life

And the life of Earth." ```

Death, tell me something, please.

```

Death, tell me

Something about yourself, please.

"I shall tell you

The most important thing

About myself:

I love God because He is supremely great.

I love man because he is hopelessly helpless."

```

Death, how old are you?

```

Death, how old are you?

"I am as old as your friend, Life."

Death, unfortunately

I know not my friend's age.

"You fool, don't you know that

Your friend is as old as his earthly hope?"

Death, what is earthly hope?

"Earthly hope is man's future eye,

future heart,

future role,

future goal."

```

Death, tell me why?

```

Death, tell me, please,

Why some people love you

And some people hate you.

Why?

"My lovers love me

Because I don't think of them at all.

My haters hate me

Because I think of them

When their hour is due."

```

Death, what do you and God speak about?

```

Death, how often do you speak to God?

"I speak to God constantly."

Can you tell me

What both of you talk about?

"We talk about our achievements

And

Our disappointments.

I tell God about my achievements

On earth

And my disappointments in Heaven.

God tells me about His achievements

In Heaven

And His disappointments on earth."

I see.

Thank you, Death. ```

Death, do you have a God?

```

Death, do you have a God like me?

"Yes, I do."

Perhaps we have the same God.

"Yes, we have the same God.

But unlike me

You have two Gods."

No, never!

I have only one God,

And I pray to only one God.

"You liar!

When wild frustration

Embraces you

And untold disgrace

Dances around you,

Whom do you pray to?

To me, my child, to me.

You pray to me:

'O Death, O bountiful Death,

Do come and embrace me.

I need your immediate presence.'

You must know that

Whoever you pray to

Is your God,

Your real God.

Therefore at times

I become your God,

Your only God."

O Death, my stupid curiosity

Deeply admires your Wisdom-Reality. ```

Death, how often do you speak to Satan?

```

Death, how often do you speak to Satan?

"I never speak to Satan.

I hate him!

I hate his brutality;

I hate his ignorance-existence-reality.

He is just impossible!"

Why, Death, why?

"You know why.

I love both Heaven and earth.

I love Heaven's flower of beauty.

I love earth's fruit of duty.

"Rascal Satan is always eager

To destroy the flower of God's own Heaven

And the fruit of God's own earth.

One day I shall conquer Satan.

I shall devour Satan.

And then I and my Dream-boat shall enjoy

God the Beauty,

And I and my Reality-shore

Shall enjoy God the Duty,

Unreservedly and eternally." ```

Death, please illumine me.

```

Death, please illumine me.

Some people are killed

While defending their own country

When they come to you,

What do you do with them?

"When they come to me,

I bless them and bless them.

I embrace them and embrace them

Until they are tired of my embrace."

And what about those

Who are killed

While attacking another country

And killing its people?

My question is,

What do you do with those aggressors?

"Aggressors?

I hate them,

I literally hate them!

I hate them to the same extent

That I hate Satan.

And when they come to me,

I turn them all

Into a huge football

And kick them and kick them

With all the strength of my Thunder-Feet,

Until I am completely exhausted!"

```

Unfortunate deaths

```

UNFORTUNATE DEATHS

Death,

I know

You vehemently detest suicide-death.

What about the unintentional, unavoidable tragedies:

Fire-death

Water-death

Famine-death

Car-death

Aeroplane-death

And other

Unfortunate deaths?

"I tell you,

It is mischievous Satan

Who is responsible for all

Sad happenings on earth.

He creates such problems for me!

At times I find it extremely difficult

To house those unfortunate human beings properly,

To my real satisfaction.

I hate Satan

At each hush-gap,

And I really mean it."

```

Death, do you have telephones in your country?

```

Death, here on earth we have telephones.

Do you have telephones in your country?

"Yes, we do."

I am so delighted to hear that.

Now, do you make long-distance calls

As we do from America to Russia?

"Yes, we do.

At every moment

My assistants make thousands

Of long-distance calls

On my behalf."

Thousands of calls?

Good gracious!

To whom do they make so many

Long-distance calls?

"They speak to Heaven and hell on the phone.

At every moment,

Thousands of human souls

We have to dispatch

Either to Heaven or to hell.

We inform Heaven and hell first

Before we send them new members.

We throw those members down,

Who are meant for hell,

And we push those members up,

Who are meant for Heaven."

```

Death, I am extremely curious

```

Death, I am extremely curious to know

Something from you.

"Just ask me,

And my answer will be immediate."

Death, when a desiring man dies,

What do you do with him?

When an aspiring man dies,

What do you do with him?

When a realised man

Leaves the body,

What do you do with him?

"When a desiring man dies,

I immediately give him

The book of frustration to read.

When an aspiring man dies,

I immediately give him

The book of determination to read.

When a realised man

Leaves the body,

I immediately give him

The Kite of Liberation to fly." ```

Death, how do you know?

```

Death, how do you know

That you do not give us

A false rest?

"Pilgrim, how do you know

That your life on earth

Is not a splendid illusion?"

Death, I know that my life on earth

Is not an illusion

Because

I play here on earth

With God and His Sound-Life.

"Pilgrim, come and enter into me.

You will see me playing

With God and His Silence-Soul."

```

Destruction and dissolution, haven and Heaven

```

Death, are you destruction

And

Dissolution?

"Yes, I am."

Death, are you haven

And

Heaven?

"Yes, I am."

Death, how?

"Pilgrim, easy

I just destroy and dissolve

The demands of the human body

And

Comfort and immortalise

The tears of the divine soul." ```

The quick surrender, the brave fight

```

Old men slowly, helplessly

And peacefully

Enter into the Hall of Death.

Death proudly, deliberately

And triumphantly

Enters into the Life-chambers

Of young men.

O Death, I like the quick surrender

Of the old men,

And

I love, admire and adore

The brave fight

Of the young men. ```

How he plays with God

```

It matters not

If

A man actually dies.

It matters not

Where and when

He eventually dies.

But

It matters much,

It matters more,

It matters most

How

He plays with God

On earth

In the Garden

Of Love-Light. ```

Who still remains?

```

Death is dead!

Who still remains?

Time,

Time survives.

Life is dead!

Who still remains?

Light,

Light survives.

Love is dead!

Who still remains?

Aspiration,

Aspiration survives. ```

When are they afraid of you?

```

When

Is death afraid of you?

When you smile.

Why?

Because the brother in death

Needs your smile.

When

Is life afraid of you?

When you despair.

Why?

Because the mother in life

Hates your despair.

When

Is truth afraid of you?

When you give up.

Why?

Because the father in truth

Wants you to try

Time and again.

Never give up.

Never!

```

I think of death

```

I think of death

Not because

I am afraid of death.

I meditate on death

Not because

I am afraid of death.

I love death

Not because

I am afraid of death.

I think of death

Because

Death needs my smile.

I meditate on death

Because

Death needs my life.

I love death

Because

Death at least,

And none else,

Acknowledges my heights.

```

What shall I do?

```

My body is dead.

My vital is dead.

My mind is dead.

My heart is dead.

My soul is seriously ill.

My God is not feeling well,

Either.

What shall I do?

Alas!

What can I do?

Alas!

Who can save me?

Alas, alas, alas!

```

Death is the end, death is the beginning.

```

To the pleasure-lover,

Death is the end.

To the joy-lover,

Death is the beginning.

To the pleasure-lover,

Death is the end

Of his desire-life.

To the joy-lover,

Death is the beginning

Of his aspiration-inquiry.

```

A contradiction in terms

```

Death and success

Are a contradiction in terms,

Like a wise fool.

Death and progress

Are a contradiction in terms,

Like a divine liar.

```

Death, why are you not natural?

```

Death, why are you not natural?

"Pilgrim, who told you that?

Just live in your soul,

And you will see

That nobody is as natural

As I am."

Death, why are you not useful?

"Pilgrim, who told you that?

Just live in your heart,

And you will deeply appreciate

My tremendous usefulness."

Death, why are you not universal?

"Pilgrim, who told you that?

Just live in your mind,

And you will learn

That my universality surprisingly surpasses

The rest of God's creation put together." ```

Death, do you speak to God?

```

Death, do you speak to God?

"Yes, I do."

How often do you speak to God?

"I speak to God quite often

And

Also quite a lot."

Death, what do you talk about?

"We talk about various things,

But mostly we talk about

Man's helplessness and man's cleverness.

God thinks all human beings are helpless

And

I think all human beings are clever.

God has decided to make them all

Secure and powerful.

I have decided to make them all

Wise and self-giving."

```

My death and my life

```

My death shall be the death

Of my black-brown fears.

My death shall be the death

Of my brown-black doubts.

My life shall be the birth

Of my blue-gold hope.

My life shall be the birth

Of my gold-blue promise. ```

Death and life, I need your capacity

```

Death, I need your capacity

To even all.

Life, I need your capacity

To feed all.

Death, I need your sense of duty

To embrace all.

Life, I need your breath of beauty

To perfect all. ```

My endeavours, my achievements, my Goal-Sun

```

Death:

My earthly endeavours

Have quietly ended.

My Heavenly achievements

Have smilingly begun.

My supremely supreme Goal-Sun

Shall eternally shine.

"Pilgrim,

Stop not your endeavours.

Pilgrim,

Lose not your achievements.

Pilgrim,

Belittle not your Goal-Sun." ```

Death, I love you.

```

Death, I love you.

"Pilgrim, why?"

Death, I love you

Because your body is peaceful.

"Pilgrim, I love you."

Death, why?

"Pilgrim, I love you

Because your heart is soulful." ```

Death, do you have any friends?

```

Death, do you have any friends?

"Yes, I do."

Who are they?

"Pilgrim, my friends are

Earth, Heaven and Hell."

Why are they your friends?

"Pilgrim, Earth is my friend

Because

Earth satisfies my hunger.

Pilgrim, Heaven is my friend

Because

Heaven utilises my service.

Pilgrim, Hell is my friend

Because

Hell acts as my counsellor." ```

What I do with death

```

The philosopher in me

Ignores death.

The singer in me

Glorifies death.

The poet in me

Immortalises death.

The Yogi in me

Commands death. ```

Duty, beauty and reality

```

Life is a thing of duty.

This duty is a great expense.

Death is a thing of beauty.

This beauty is a greater expense.

Love is a thing of reality.

This reality is the greatest expense. ```

Instant illumination

```

Death, when a spiritual Master visits you

On his way to Heaven,

Do you give him a special reception?

"Yes, I do.

But I am so lucky

That God has turned only very few human beings

Into spiritual Masters

Since the very birth of His creation.

Only on very rare occasions

Do I have to welcome a spiritual Master."

O Death, my poor ignorant friend,

Those days are buried in oblivion!

Nowadays thousands of spiritual Masters

Are offering their loftiest Height,

Purest Light

And

Deepest Delight

To their younger brothers and sisters in spirit.

To your wide surprise,

There are some spiritual Masters

Who have the capacity —

Unlike Krishna, the Buddha

And the Christ —

To grant Illumination,

Liberation and Salvation

In the twinkling of an eye.

Again, there are some

Who are simply unique.

Do you know what they do?

They initiate

Over ten thousand people

At a time!

And their initiation has

The thaumaturgic power

To offer their disciples

Illumination, Liberation and Salvation

All at once!

"Is it so?

I must immediately go to Heaven

And inform my comrades Krishna, Buddha and Christ

About the incredible

And unprecedented capacities

Of these spiritual Masters.

I shall tell Krishna, Buddha and Christ

That if they really want to be

Worthy of their successors,

Then they must

Immediately come down

And be their most humble disciples.

I assure you, my divine friends

Are extremely sincere seekers.

They will immediately

Come down

And kiss the very dust

Of the feet of these Masters

Who are granting

Instant Illumination, Liberation and Salvation

Like the earth's instant coffee.

I am so grateful to you

For offering me

This creation-illumining news."

Death, I am so happy that at last

My most dedicated service

Has been of some use to you.

```

From:Sri Chinmoy,The silence of death, Aum Press, Puerto Rico, 1973
Sourced from https://srichinmoylibrary.com/sd