"Memento Mori"

"You could leave life right now. Let that determine what you do and say and think.”

(Marcus Aurelius)

Memento Mori  Coin  

Ambulance roars have been heard more frequently these days. Sad news of the eternal passing of friends and relatives keep coming through the timeline every day. Death feels closer in times of a pandemic. We are reminded of that incessantly. And, like a passenger on a ship being hit by a storm in the middle of the ocean, we try to hold on the edge with all our might. In the lottery of fate, we don't know who will fall, who will survive until the storm passes and coming out safe from its rage.

Regardless of the pandemic, the distance of death actually has never been further or closer. We just often ignore, forget, or avoid to talk about it. We know that no prediction of fate is more certain than death. The absolute certainty of death has made it a subject in philosophy, religion and the traditions of all humanity for a long time and has inspired many works of art, architecture, music, and literature. It shows that remembering death should be put in an important position in the mind. Not to make fear or show that everything will end in vain, but instead to drive to a more vibrant life.

 

Philippe de Champaigne's Vanitas (c. 1671) - Web Gallery of Art.  Public Domain

The term memento mori—Latin for "remember that you [must] die"—is believed to have originated in ancient Roman tradition. It is said that upon returning from a victory on the battlefield, military generals used to parade on the streets to the cheers of the masses. The parade can go on all day long. The general stood on a chariot pulled by four horses, hailed and regarded as a god by his soldiers and subjects.

On the same chariot, just behind the revered general, stood a servant. The servant's only job throughout the parade was to keep whispering in the general's ear, “Respice post te. Hominem te esse memento. Memento mori! "

“Look behind. Remember thou art mortal. Remember you must die!”

Imagine, what an ironic joke, the general who was celebrating the victory, was being glorified by the crowd, at that moment he was also reminded of himself as a human. At that moment in his ear the certainty of his fate is whispered. He must not be arrogant and forget that he is a mere mortal. And indeed death often comes when someone is at the peak of glory.

The term in the same sense can be found in other traditions. In the spiritual realm of Islam, the term tadzkiratul maut is known, which means "remembering death", as a reminder that we increase our righteous deeds as provisions in the afterlife. Some Sufis are even given the nickname ahl al-kubur because they have a habit of visiting the grave to reflect on and constantly remind them of the transience of life.

In Buddhism, there is a practice of meditating on death called maraṇasati, a combination of two Pali words: maraṇa "death" and sati "consciousness". Tibetan Buddhism has the Citipati mask as a reminder of the transience of life and the eternal cycle of life and death.

In Japan, Zen Buddhism's meditation on death exerts influence on culture, as described in the classic treatise on samurai ethics, "Hagakure". This classic treatise states that the Samurai Way from day to day demands that one imagine the most sightly way of dying, and to instill in one's mind firmly the thought of death. 

In the Japanese tradition of practicing hanami (viewing cherry blossoms in early spring) and momijigari (viewing the leaves of momiji trees in early autumn), there is the samurai philosophy that everything is most splendid just before their fall, and they set a goal to live and die a similar way. 

Remembering death prompted 16th and 17th century European artists to create “memento mori” art. Inspired by the verse in Ecclesiastes, "vanity of vanity, all is vanity", this art genre is called vanita's art. The art of vanita conveys human mortality and the decay that is inevitable over time.

Vanita paintings usually feature collections of various symbolic objects such as human skulls, melted candles, withered flowers, soap bubbles, watches, butterflies and hourglass. The core message of these works of art is not to evoke despair, but to help people use thoughts of death to focus on priorities that really matter.

 

Frans Snyders, Game and fruit on a table (1625) via Wikimedia Commons 

Everyone must have had experienced a moment of memento mori. Not just in news of the passing away of a relative or friend, far or near, which is becoming more frequent during this epidemic, but also in the events of everyday life and from observing one's own changes.

I experience moments of memento mori, for example, when reading — myopic without glasses; when looking in the mirror — facial wrinkles that are more pronounced; when climbing the stairs to my desk on the second floor of the office — the first step up the stair now often creates a painful shock in the knee joint.

Also recently, when I nearly fainted while hiking in the Cikored hills of North Bandung. Short of breath, because I didn't expect my stamina to be that bad to go through the up and down track that used to feel insignificant.

Seeing the children grow as adults too is sure to be a great reminder of the fast-paced times and the diminishing remaining life span.

Increasing age and decreasing optimal function of ailing body are of course only small variables, merely markers of the vulnerability of a limited life. But it also holds a hidden message about the time to ripen, when we suppose to be ready to give sweet fruit, and let go of our tight grip on the world.

As Rumi's poem reminds us:

This world is like a tree,
and we are the half-ripe fruit upon it.
Unripe fruit clings tight to the branch
because, immature, it’s not ready for the palace.
When fruits become ripe, sweet and juicy,
then biting their lips, they loosen their hold.
When the mouth has been sweetened by felicity,
the kingdom of the world loses its appeal.

There are a variety of ways that people do to keep making themselves aware of this matter, so as not to waste time on trivial and useless things, and not underestimate the time we have. Some keep things such as memento mori coins in their pockets, put plastic skull ornaments on the table, or put vanita paintings on the walls of their house.

Only what is truly valuable is worth taking up our limited time. With that said, I want to appreciate people who give their time for me, and the time I give is my tribute to those who receive it.

Well now, let's embark upon things that really matter, fill our lives according to our true talents and interests, in whatever precious moments that we may have left before any sudden incident unexpectedly stops our time.

Indonesia version