Is death as dreadful as we fear?
Is death as terrible as we fear? Do we have much conscious awareness when we die? Is the brain like a computer that shuts down near death, so we don’t have much awareness or suffering at that time?
I think there are three different aspects here to consider:
- The phenomenon of death as understood by contemporary science, which treats consciousness largely as a physical process.
- The emotional experience of death.
- The spiritual perspective on death.
Physical Perspective
From a physical point of view, the body experiences shock and pain whenever it encounters injury, breakdown, or any threat to its survival or functioning. When pain becomes intense, one defense mechanism is for the body to switch off consciousness to protect itself.
Some people suffer prolonged illnesses lasting weeks, months, or even years, living bedridden before they die. Others may have a sudden event like a heart attack that quickly ends life. Those final moments in sudden death can be intensely painful because the body is shutting down abruptly.
In general, a prolonged illness may involve more physical pain than a sudden death. But physical experience is only part of the story.
Emotional Perspective
We are spiritual beings, so beyond the physical, there is emotional trauma at the time of death. This trauma includes:
- Fear of losing everything we have held dear, everything we have lived for.
- Fear of the unknown future—whether it is a terrible existence, nonexistence, or something else.
Uncertainty about what happens next often causes anxiety.
To understand this better, consider how we react to losing a small amount of money—we feel agitated and upset. Now imagine losing all possessions and everything we hold dear at once; the pain would be overwhelming. This reflects the fear of loss from the past.
Similarly, if suddenly told to embark on a journey, we feel anxiety and prepare ourselves. But if told to go on a journey with no possessions and no knowledge of the destination, the anxiety deepens. This illustrates fear of the unknown future.
Spiritual Perspective
Even if brain activity ceases and physical consciousness ends, consciousness itself is not limited to the brain.
Philosophically, what we call unconsciousness is not the absence of consciousness, but a different state of consciousness.
There are broadly four states of consciousness:
- Jagruti (waking state): Consciousness manifests through the subtle body to the gross physical body and the external world.
- Swapna (dream state): Consciousness primarily manifests to the subtle body.
- Sushupti (deep sleep): Consciousness is withdrawn and hardly manifests in the subtle or gross body.
- Turiya (spiritual absorption or Samadhi): Consciousness manifests at a spiritual level.
Even in deep coma or sleep, consciousness continues to exist at subtle levels, though it may not manifest strongly in the physical brain.
The waking state itself has many degrees—from full awareness to absent-mindedness—showing that consciousness is not binary but a spectrum.
Thus, even when the brain stops functioning, consciousness continues.
Death and Consciousness
A peaceful physical death—like dying in one’s sleep—does not necessarily mean the death experience was free of emotional trauma.
The degree of trauma depends largely on how attached the soul is to the body. This attachment is rooted in the mind.
At the spiritual level, the soul itself remains unaffected by death or material events. However, the soul’s experience depends on the level at which consciousness is present.
If a person’s consciousness is attached to material things, then despite the soul’s indestructibility, the person experiences pain and trauma during death, much like how we experience pain and pleasure in life.
For spiritually realized persons, death is more an inconvenience than a disaster—they understand that their bodily vehicle has broken down and they must move on to another.
Near-Death Experiences and Their Meaning
Many who have had near-death experiences (NDEs) report feeling an unprecedented peace and serenity.
However, it is important to note that a near-death experience is not the same as actual death. It is more like being very close to a car crash versus actually having one.
The peace experienced in NDEs often comes from relief at surviving a close encounter with death.
In some cases, people with positive spiritual karma may have transformative experiences during these times. Their consciousness may temporarily leave the body and perceive other realities or beings, which explains the peacefulness some report.
Yet, not everyone has such experiences, and some reported phenomena could be hallucinations.
Conclusion
Is death as dreadful as we fear? It depends on how much we fear and dread it.
The key is not to live in fear of death, but to recognize it as an inevitable and significant transformation—a transition that can be traumatic.
Physical absence of awareness at death doesn’t guarantee an absence of trauma; emotional attachment plays a large role.
Pain at death is sometimes likened to thousands of scorpion bites—an analogy used to indicate extreme suffering, though pain is ultimately difficult to quantify.
How painful death will be depends on our attachments. If we have managed to regulate attachments and redirect them toward Krishna (or a higher spiritual focus), the experience of death will not be as dreadful as we fear.