Contemplate Death, Be Happy!

In Liber XV The Gnostic Mass, the penultimate and ultimate Collects are:

DeathAll stand, Head erect, Eyes open.

The DEACON: Term of all that liveth, whose name is inscrutable, be favourable unto us in thine hour.

The PEOPLE: So mote it be.

The EndThe DEACON: Unto them from whose eyes the veil of life hath fallen may there be granted the accomplishment of their true Wills; whether they will absorption in the Infinite, or to be united with their chosen and preferred, or to be in contemplation, or to be at peace, or to achieve the labour and heroism of incarnation on this planet or another, or in any Star, or aught else, unto them may there be granted the accomplishment of their wills; yea, the accomplishment of their wills.

AUMGN. AUMGN. AUMGN.

The PEOPLE: So mote it be.

It’s to be noted that in this ritual, Death is confronted directly, and without trepidation – the congregation stands, “Head erect, Eyes open.”

Meanwhile the Buddhist citizens of Bhutan, in the Himalayas, make a point of likewise contemplating death – in their case, five times daily. As one inhabitant explained:

“Rich people in the West, they have not touched dead bodies, fresh wounds, rotten things. This is a problem. This is the human condition. We have to be ready for the moment we cease to exist.”

Oddly enough, it’s noted that the Bhutanese are among the happiest people on Earth.

Read it, and …DON’T weep.

http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20150408-bhutans-dark-secret-to-happiness

Thanks to Soror Hypatia for the tip!