Today as I was driving home from the hospital, (I had some blood drawn), this question popped into my mind: “What is life?”. I saw some patients there, which appeared on the verge of death. I thought of my own mortality, we are born, live for sometime, and eventually die. So what is this life?
Just for fun I asked Google this question ‘what is life’ and got this ridiculous answer: “Life is the quality or condition that distinguishes living organisms (plants, animals, humans, and microorganisms) from inorganic matter and dead bodies. (Google search) I almost laughed out loud. Oh ya, that really tells me everything.
Then I remembered a book “Life comes from Life” that was published by the BBT back in 1979, based on morning walks by Srila Prabhupada.
“…This book is based on taped morning-walk conversations that Śrīla Prabhupāda had with some of his disciples during 1973, in the Los Angeles area. On those mornings when he focused on science, Śrīla Prabhupāda spoke mainly with his disciple Thoudam D. Singh, Ph.D. An organic chemist, Dr. Singh had directed the Bhaktivedanta Institute, an international center for advanced study and research in science, philosophy and theology.” (from forward)
I never really read that book, because my mind was not scientifically inclined. But from the Bhagavad-gita I learned these verses:
As the embodied soul continually passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. The self-realized soul is not bewildered by such a change. (Bg. 2.13)
For the soul there is never birth nor death. Nor, having once been, does he ever cease to be. He is unborn, eternal, ever-existing, undying and primeval. He is not slain when the body is slain. (Bg. 2.20)
I you would be interested in reading this small book the link is: http://prabhupada.io/books/lcfl
We have included in today’s post the forward from this important book.
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