-Vesolü Vero
Prelude
‘Death be not proud’ – John Donne
The poem “Death, Be Not Proud” is one that I deeply love because death, being the epitome of all fears that reside within us, is ridiculed by the poet, and he refuses to hush or hide at the mere mention of it.
Our society shuns talking about death. “Künyi ho” is what we would say in our Chakhesang dialect, or “don’t jinx it,” or the immediate “God forbid” that follows. I believe the ultimate reason boils down to one thing: fear.
Fear of the unknown? Fear of the unseen?
All too often, as is part of life, we hear of or experience loved ones passing. But eventually, the pain, loss, regret, and all that death brings slowly—if not completely—wane, because life has to go on.
“So then, what really is beyond this life?” was what a dear friend and I pondered many years ago at a funeral we attended. “Reincarnation” into something else in a “supposed” next life seems debatable and, to me, improbable, while a “Neverland” for the dead is simply absurd and mythical. The only logical conclusion for me is this:
that there is something beyond and greater than us.
Something we may never be able to fully fathom.
Something that created our very consciousness—our soul.
This, by all means, was not by chance.
A number of years ago, as a young, naïve teen, I questioned the reason for our very existence, what follows after death, and whether there really was a God at all, because science in my textbooks seemed to disprove it.
But today, I find God Almighty to be the more logical explanation for everything. Some see evolution as the answer. Others see God as the reason, and frankly, I find the latter to require less faith. But I digress. The poem “Death, Be Not Proud” is, to me, an analogy of the finished work of Christ on the cross and echoes the line from the Bible: “O Death! Where is your sting?”
For loved ones who have passed on, and for all of us reading this today who share this simple belief that God our Father is real, death is but a short sleep from which we will awaken to join in celebration with our Father in Heaven. So then, why must we fear death or live in prolonged mourning for a loved one when we know what awaits us beyond this world?
May the poem by John Donne and this humble write-up of mine bring you comfort if you have experienced the loss of a loved one. And certainly, when the day comes that the ship sails onto our shore, we can be reassured of this fact: that we are going home to rest in our heavenly abode.
This is the one and only true comfort I find: that when my earthly body has perished, it will be death’s turn to die. At least, that is my belief. What about you?
The hymn that was sung by the youths at the funeral that day still rings in my head—the reason behind the birth of this write-up. The song goes:
“Kijü Kevi, rüna sünu we tsala salho.”
There is a good land,
A land where we’ll never grow old.
CONTRIBUTOR SPOTLIGHT
Vesolü Vero is currently pursuing her postgraduate studies at Lovely Professional University. She enjoys writing whenever inspiration or an idea strikes and loves listening to people’s stories. She is also currently working as a presenter at All India Radio, Kohima.
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