The Art of Dying
Actually, the concept of memento mori itself is a philosophical thought about death. It means “remember that we must die,” and it serves as a reminder slogan against the pride and arrogance that exist in all human beings. On the other hand, memento mori is a medieval Latin theory. In essence, it explains that the life of all matter and life in the world is only temporary. In the end, everyone must die too. The concept is also related to Ars Moriendi, or The Art of Dying. The theory of death first appeared in the classical era of Socrates and Plato, through the European Middle Ages and the golden age of Victoria.
Many philosophers use it to remind people of death. Images of graves, death, and skulls are images that people often use as a powerful way to remind other humans that life is short. Unlike carpe diem, or “seize the day,” it doesn’t look at the pleasures that humans get in just one day. However, it is rather a look from the other side. On the other hand, humans are always happy for a day, a year, or even decades. Humans will die anyway. If in carpe diem, humans spend time looking for as much satisfaction as possible, memento mori invites humans to reflect and think about death.
Meaningful Life
The Stoic philosopher used the principle of reminiscence to remind himself of the importance of living a meaningful life. In life affirmation, they see everyday life as something precious that they are mortal. The fact that all humans must die serves as a constant reminder not to waste the most precious thing in life, which is time. The most important thing is to focus time on priorities that serve an authentic purpose in life.
The goals are to serve others, truth, and wisdom, to learn and teach, to be true to oneself and one’s nature, and to live in acceptance of the natural world. How do humans respond to everything they encounter and not waste time on things they have no control over? How do they behave in the face of aging and death? Memento mori is an acknowledgment that the fact of death can save lives. Such a death teaches everyone the best way to live, that in creating life, humans must create a life that ends.
Humans must also proceed in the creative process of life and must be informed of the reality and limitations of death. Broadly speaking, humans should pursue a meaningful life as they pursue a meaningful death. For the most part, life is preparation for how to die. According to Seneca, humans must prepare their minds as if they were to come to the end of life. On the counter concept of vanity mementos, people need to remember that humans have to live and live each day with urgency because everyone will die.
The Concept of Death in Society
Humans live in a culture of death denial, acting as a death phobia and permeating the culture of death. Apparently, it is an innate biological response of the human central nervous system to the threat of extinction. Early cultures were all primarily religious and all provided literal or metaphorical solutions to the problem of death, namely that death is not the end of consciousness or existence. Logically, death is not the end but the beginning of a more important existence in heaven.
It is not the end, but the beginning of a series of rebirths, and it is not the end of consciousness. However, consciousness continues to exist after death. If consciousness exists beyond death, then there is life beyond death and it is not really the end. The truth of the powerful awakening of universal human consciousness into many mystical experiences that induce psychedelic adequacy in alleviating death anxiety.
As the Stoic philosophers emphasized, the path to balance is to live a life guided by a guided understanding of what is under the control of the individual. The individual’s wisdom to spend energy and time is under the control of the individual as well. In reality, it is under human control. In fact, all that is under human control is how they think about circumstances and events. Although individuals can eat healthily or exercise, at the end of the day, it is not a guarantee not to get other diseases. In the best use of equipment, the archer loses all control over the arrow. The Stoics urged people not to be tied to the result but to the process.
The Death of Socrates
For centuries, artists have produced memento mori, reminding people of death. Usually, it features an hourglass or a skull. The point of such works is not to discourage people, but to help them use the thought of death to focus on their real priorities. Vivid reminders of the transient nature of life and death create an obsession in ordinary individuals who question. When the finality of death and the true unimportance of human worries are emphasized, it provides an opportunity to feel a little more courageous about what they really feel and want.
When it comes to nature, there are many grains of sand on Earth. In certain strands of Buddhism, sages train themselves to be content to stare for hours at a mere grain of sand. It became a symbol of their capacity to notice the magic of neglected existence. Man must also be content to look at the grain with humility and recognize that an adequate perspective is no more important than such a grain, but no less interesting or complex because of it.
Democritus trained himself to be alone, frequenting the graves. The death of Socrates introduced the idea that the proper practice of philosophy is about anything but death. The Stoics of classical antiquity were prominent in their use of such a discipline. In full, Epictetus tells his disciples that when kissing people, they must remind themselves that they are mortal. In stories of Roman victories, a public slave would stand behind or near the victorious general during the procession.
Mainstream Death
Death has always been at the center of a wave of mainstream interest, as evidenced by the proliferation of death salons and cafes and the emergence of death doulas available for the end of life. The phenomenon of death-related travel, which many know as illicit tourism, highlights man’s voyeuristic fascination with death. Experiencing the cultural representation of the death of a significant other, a person of any level of fame, helps to mediate one’s own relationship with death.
With the death of the entertainment world packed for the sake of pop culture, such a moment of death makes people informally contemplate death itself. Despite the trend of death, it remains unpopular. In Western society, people treat, cleanse, and bury the dead. In modernist society, death acts as a medical transaction rather than a natural experience. However, humans should be clear about modern death sentiments while they try to study them.
People visit death cafes because they are panicked but attracted by the idea of death, not out of boredom. In a historical shift, a sexually significant post-Victorian society suppressed a general openness to death. Theoretical models help people understand how they perceive death, expressing existential concerns about the human condition. The theory also leads to denial and self-annihilation, positioning the contemplation of death as a vehicle for radical transformation. Theorists also see death as a threat to their ability to live meaningful lives.
Rationalism
Broadly speaking, memento mori is an ancient practice of reflection on human death that goes back to Socrates. It says proper philosophical practice about anything other than death. Basically, Aurelius wrote that an individual can leave life right now. He said that individuals should allow death to determine what they think, say, and do.
By being a personal reminder of continuing to live a life of virtue, contemplating death is only depressing if they miss the point. However, it is actually a tool for creating meaning and priorities. It’s a tool that generations of people have used to create real urgency and perspective. Death does not make life useless; it has a purpose. Humans don’t have to be near death to take advantage of such a simple reminder.
A simple reminder can bring each individual closer to living the life they want. It doesn’t matter who they are or how many things are left for them to do. If a car could hit an individual at an intersection, it could all be over. It could be tomorrow or in the future. Although the Stoics found such thoughts demeaning and refreshing, it is not surprising that Seneca urges each individual to inform himself individually. Like Epictetus, he will never have a rationale.
Bibliography
- Breitbart, W. (2019). Memento Mori, Amor Fati. Palliative & supportive care, 17(3), 251-252.
- Cook, F. H., Badham, P., & Hick, J. (1989). Memento mori: the Buddhist thinks about death. In Death and afterlife (pp. 154-182). Palgrave Macmillan, London.
- Wellman, J. (2020). Memento Mori: Reflecting on Mortality to Inspire Vitality and Meaning in Life.
