Life and Death: The Whys and Hows Of Life on Earth

By Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev

When it comes to creation, you never ask why, because you are just a tiny speck in this creation.

In the arrangements that you have made as a human being - in terms of family, your social structures, your financial securities, education, qualifications and positions that you have taken in the society, I know you slowly started assuming that, in many ways, you are the centre of the universe. But that is not the truth.

You might have created so many comforts, so much security, but still the inherent struggle of it, the inherent pain of it, the day-to-day tensions, remain. You fill yourself with enthusiasm; you find new reasons for yourself to do this and that.

But somewhere inside there is something which constantly struggles in every human being unless he attains a certain inner grace. Till then, the struggle continues. Some people have become aware of it; most people haven't. They just keep themselves busy, never to face the inner struggle.

The reason why people are keeping themselves so busy, so entangled with life is not because they have fallen in love with life. It is just to avoid the inner struggle. Many of them, if they don't get married and produce children, if they don't start businesses and don't get into all the mess that they are getting into on a day-to-day basis, they would be simply lost within themselves.

Just to keep a certain semblance of sanity, they keep all this activity going. If they just sit quietly for two days in one place, they will become aware of the inner struggle that is there in every being trapped in this limited body. It is always there. Some become aware.

Once they become aware, they start looking. That is when we say somebody is on the spiritual path, because he has become aware of the inner struggle. No matter what you do, something is struggling within all the time. But others are still too busy.

So the question comes up because there is an inner struggle. Maybe you are not 100% aware of the struggle, but here and there it touches you. So now, the more intelligent question for you would be: How do I get beyond this struggling state? If you ask how, I have a way. If you ask why, then I have to tell you a story. One day, Shiva had nothing to do and he was playing marbles all by himself. And one marble fell this way and it became planet Earth.

Another one shot up and it became the Sun; I can go on like this. Now you won't believe this ridiculous story. But if I make the story more elaborate, and if the story is not told today, but was said 1,000 years ago, you would believe it. You have a problem about this, isn't it? You don't believe anything that happens today, but you will believe it after 1,000 years. It doesn't matter what it is.

So, if it was said 1,000 years ago... you would believe the story. But stories don't liberate you. Stories just equip you to speak with some sense of authority at the next dinner party you are invited to. But it won't liberate you in any way. So when it comes to existence, don't waste your life asking the question, "Why?"

Because if you sit here for the rest of your life and go on thinking why, or consult every other man on this planet, all you will get is more and more fairy tales; you will not get a solution.

Different cultures will tell different stories; different religions will tell different stories; every individual can create his own story. Stories will not liberate you. But if you ask "How", then we open up the Path, we give you the method. Don't ask "Why?"

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See also: Life and Death, Life and Beyond, Death and Dying, Body Mind and Soul)