The Existential Crisis

when there comes a tragedy or we face some inconceivable adversity that shakes our grounding , then we start questioning our real identity. I would call them preferably as existential questions, such as ; who i am? what is life? what is my real nature or identity? what is the purpose of life? what is death? what will happen after death? We then feel the desire to think about our own existence. Such questions almost always remain unanswered, and cast us in a real time ‘existential crisis’. It is not wrong to say that every one of us at certain point in our lives passes though this crisis of life and of death. Myriad of questions come in minds, remain undisclosed and we just move on with ignorance….just like mechanical robots bound to move on meaninglessly.

Though, it sounds quite logical that what is the point of living when all of us have to suddenly just leave everything behind, whatever have been accumulated in terms of material and commodities; all the relationships that have been built delicately and cherished all life long; all the ambitions that have been pursued passionately, and just with a tiny hiccup we move on to the destination theoretically and mysteriously unknown. what will happen after death is another matter as we can not inquire on something which is not known..

‘Death’ for sure is another facet of life just like a portal to another world, another reality. or we can say death is a continuum of what we call “life” here , but life in different reality where the time and space is conceptually nonexistent, and where atoms and molecules are probably not together in any type of chemical bonding, where matter has almost entirely different composition, where gravity doesn’t bother, where emotions such as love ,hate, envy, and betray, have no subsistence, where relationships are not legally and ethically binding.

So just to maintain the balance of our sanity, this would suffice to understand that ; the day after dying in the ‘other world’ resembles just another tomorrow of the life in this world, where we are already hamstrung and are completely unaware about what is going to happen next.

The life of unknown always has two aspects , one is the ‘fear’ and the other is ‘magical charm’ ….. there is always an immense beauty in what is unknown. This arcane charm of ‘afterlife’, though is alluring yet untouchable while we are still alive and beyond human approach for any kind of authenticity, hence conundrum of death will remain unresolved forever and ever.

In this enigmatic chaos,we then tried to solve the riddles of life at present at the very least ,like, who we are? what is life and what is our purpose till death ? surprisingly it became crystal clear , that this is even more arduous to find out than to decipher the mysteries of death.

I think the people who will be able to find the answers about their own-selves and their purpose of life, they would definitely be able to solve the mystery of death and afterlife also. But no one in the human history has ever claimed to cognize anything about life and death in the fundamental sense. This is manifested even in all the world acclaimed thinker’s writing scriptures; such as in Bhullay Shah’s words, “کیہہ جاناں میں کون؟”, or “in search unsearchable”, in Rumi’s words, or in Iqbal’s poetry;

Dhoondta phirta hoon aye Iqbal apne aapko
Aap hi goya musafir, aap hi manzil hun main

I keep looking, oh Iqbal, for myself,
As if I’m the traveler as well as the destination.”

or in John Newton’s lines ; “I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God I am what I am”.

I remembered Khalil Jibran , a magician with words, saying in “The Prophet” ;
“Then Almitra spoke, saying, We would ask now of Death. And he said: You would know the secret of death. But how shall you find it unless you seek it in the heart of life? The owl whose night-bound eyes are blind unto the day cannot unveil the mystery of light. If you would indeed behold the spirit of death, open your heart wide unto the body of life. For life and death are one, even as the river and the sea are one”.

The man’s struggle to know himself, his limits, his maximum potential for using his brain power, is continuous and it has no ending. At the same time it is quite obvious that we are actually , in a real sense, “nothing”, helpless… tiny… feeble… ignorant and what not…. we tried to conquer the visible world, the earth, the sky, the mountains, the water, yet we couldn’t decipher who we are? what is life in essence and what is death?.

“K Yaqeen main Badle Mera Guman ……….. Meri zaat Zarra -e- be nishan”

This is the reality ….. the existential crisis … of not knowing our very own existence. Though this is not common for the people to face this crisis. But when the potential seriousness of this matter is taken it even leads to existential depression, and existential anxiety.

Albeit this post has made you a bit low in mood but remember there is always a positive aspect even at the core of pessimism. Take notes of few positive outcomes …..👇

🔹️we should admit this dilemma by the core of our heart that though we are everything but in the meantime we are “nothing”.

🔹️we all are same by default, same in mechanical composition, from in and from out.

🔹️ we all have to go at the same destination ultimately, same place with empty hands. There is no point of being in fear of death. Fear of living is far more bigger than of death. For me death is a numeric in between 0 and 1… can never be sorted out…

🔹️with these facts in mind there is no place left to consider pride and arrogance in our lives. Any difference in rank, status, commodity, and belonging just doesn’t make any sensible logic for human egos and prides. Staying humble and down to earth is the only choice we have.

May we be able to find ourselves…… May we be able to unveil the mysteries of life and of death…..

Happy Reading 🌻🌻🌻