At the age of about 40, if we are fortunate to have lived that long, we all contract a terminal disease, and our body starts to die at a cellular level. In the West, we try to deny that this is happening, pretending that plastic flowers are something to aspire to and that we can become plastic, too.
Much of human civilization is ultimately an elaborate, symbolic defense mechanism against the knowledge of our mortality. I don't think that trying to 'outlive' death through legacy is a bad thing, and death as a motivator can be effective. However, this turns into insanity if the quest for legacy overshadows the acceptance of death's reality.
The internalization of a culture that prioritizes denial—of death, of vulnerability, of any form of perceived weakness—leads to a disconnection between individuals and their natural experiences, thoughts, and emotions, fuelling mental health problems on an individual and global scale.
“ Where we learn to value even ourselves through the eyes of the world.“ So sad, so true for so many.
Gosh ...so heartwarming
At the age of about 40, if we are fortunate to have lived that long, we all contract a terminal disease, and our body starts to die at a cellular level. In the West, we try to deny that this is happening, pretending that plastic flowers are something to aspire to and that we can become plastic, too.
Much of human civilization is ultimately an elaborate, symbolic defense mechanism against the knowledge of our mortality. I don't think that trying to 'outlive' death through legacy is a bad thing, and death as a motivator can be effective. However, this turns into insanity if the quest for legacy overshadows the acceptance of death's reality.
The internalization of a culture that prioritizes denial—of death, of vulnerability, of any form of perceived weakness—leads to a disconnection between individuals and their natural experiences, thoughts, and emotions, fuelling mental health problems on an individual and global scale.