In Yoke

“Each day is a little life; every waking and rising a little birth; every fresh morning a little youth; every going to rest and sleep a little death.”   – Arthur Schopenhauer Easwaran tells the story of his grandmother who was his spiritual teacher. Her lesson one day was that the pain we associate with the great change of life called death arises from our innumerable selfish attachments. This can be illustrated in a simple way—EE continues, “she began by asking me to sit in a chair and hold tight to the arms. Then she tried to pull me out of the chair. She tugged and pulled at me, and I held on tight. It was painful. She was a strong person, and even though I held on with all my strength, she pulled me out.” “Then she told me to sit down again, but this time not to hold on anywhere, just to get up and come to her when she called. With ease I got out of the chair and went to her. This, she told me, is how to overcome the fear and pain of death. When we hold onto things – ho