Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Decorating the Dead

Few days ago i came across a video posted on msn. Decorating the Dead. I realized i have heard this phrase before and i remembered that Srila Prabhupada use to quote a lot. Decorating the dead.. ppl are interested only in decorating the dead body not the soul... so looked up in the vedabase for the keyword "decorating the dead"

So this material civilization is just like decorating the dead body. This body is dead. That is a fact. So long the soul is there, it is working, it is moving. Just like your coat. It is dead. But so long it is on your body, it appears the coat is moving. The coat is moving. But if somebody is very much astonished, "Oh, how nice the coat is moving!" (laughter) He does not know the coat cannot move. The coat is dead. But because the man is there who is putting on the coat, therefore the coat is moving, the pant is moving, the shoe is moving, the hat is moving. Similarly, this body is dead. It is numbered: this dead body will remain for such and such time. That is called duration of life. But people are interested with this dead body exactly like the cobbler class or these decorating men. So decoration of the dead body. Apräëasyeva... Apräëasya means dead. Apräëasyeva mandanam loka-ranjanam. Loka-ranjanam: "It is very pleasing to the relatives." That's all. Similarly, to get liberation, niranjanam-niranjanam means to get out of this so-called decoration of the dead body—one requires to acquire knowledge.

and here is the video "A cosmetic lift before your funeral"