The Indian Scriptures give us the example of a saint who lived in the Golden Age. It is said that during the Golden Age people lived for hundreds of years. This saint led a very strict life of self-denial; he had no house, no hut, no shelter. He built only a small grass cover measuring two by one meter. When it rained, he set up a grass curtain to keep him dry, and on sunny days he did the same to keep him cool in the shade. He lived this way for 800 years. One day a man came to him and asked:
“Why don’t you finally make yourself a little grass hut so you can live in peace?”
“If there is a solution to one problem,” he said, “then I will be ready to build a hut.”
The man asked:
- What's the problem?
“Listen,” said the saint, “building a hut would take at least a week or ten days.” What happens if I have to leave my body during or after building the hut? This would mean that I would devote one or two days, or perhaps even more, to building my hut, instead of devoting that time to meditation. Therefore, my time is wasted. The hut is useless because then I wouldn't be able to use it. There is no guarantee that I will live. There is always uncertainty about death; no one can predict how long he will have to live. It could be two days or a few minutes. Another may live even a hundred years, but it cannot be said that I will live. Isn't it true?
The man had nothing to answer to this. This is how the saint continued to lead his life.
Human life is very fragile. The body can die at any moment. It always lives on the brink of death. And if you managed to live another hour, then this is just an unexpected chance given to you by nature. If you happen to live at least one more day, you can consider yourself lucky. From conception, we live on borrowed time.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru