Bradley Stinkbrain, 73, is in the prime of his life. . . and having the time of his life. Now, you can too! Thanks to the amazing, new “anti-aging” discoveries, enclosed. . .
Not long ago, someone in our community passed along to me a magazine pitch she’d received in the mail. On the front of the oversize envelope, a headline announced—blue type on a bright green background—”Old Age Isn’t Natural.”
And there, bursting with good health, shone Living Proof, our man Bradley, strong, relaxed, his smile radiant, his hair a rich grey crown, his tan body popping out of its little red swimsuit, studio lights shining off well-oiled 73-year-old muscles a man could envy at thirty.
And across the envelope, poised lightly, brightly, sprightly on a chair, sat Penny Pinkchip, 52, slim, young, smiling, and healthy, ready at any moment for a round of tennis, a dip in the pool, an afternoon of canoeing, a quick jog around the park. . .
Was I going to break open the envelope for my FREE Guide to 101 Ways to Reversing the Aging Process?
Of course! And inside, there were Bradley and Penny and their friends—strong, vibrant, energetic people, people in track shoes and T-shirts and swimsuits and leotards, people in their fifties and sixties, biking, hiking, and LIVING life to its FULLEST.
“I thought 50 would be depressing,” says Penny. “But I’ve never felt better! ‘Old age’ is a myth.”
And that’s the myth the magazine they’re pitching will dispell—with Energy Remedies. . . Nutrition Remedies. . . Stress Remedies. . . Fitness Remedies. . . Health Remedies. . . Weight Remedies. . . Pain Remedies. . . Age Remedies. . .
“ALL those symptoms and problems can be prevented or remedied. EASILY. This is MY life—and I plan to live it to the FULLEST!”
Well, bully for you.
But we think it’s all foolishness and your magazine’s full of beans.
Old age is for real. It’s as real and natural and sad and depressing as—should we say it in the face of all those smiling, healthy, strong, relaxed, vibrant young people in their fifties and sixties? As real as death.
We saw it in New Orleans on a bumper sticker: Eat right. Stay fit. Die anyway.
Old age is a gift, all right: it’s your warning that the next thing to hit you will be death. And what are you going to do about death, Bradley—wish it away?
Forget the Weight Remedy, Stress Remedy, Age Remedy, Pain Remedy, What you need, fella, is some Illusion Remedy.
Better than trying to make a picnic out of old age is to face what it is—a drag. A collosal, irreversible, incurable drag. And so is disease. And death.
And that’s a powerful reason to get serious and try to understand what these Cosmic Drags are all about. We should ask ourselves, “Why do I have to get old? Why diseased? Why die?”
These are the real issues in life, and these are the questions to which an intelligent person must address himself. If we fail to ask ourselves these questions, we may think we’re living life to the fullest, but our brains are running sadly close to empty.
I have a comment and a question. I also find it amusing that the older a karmi gets, the younger s(he) tries to act. The fight against birth, death, old age and disease is very distressing and is ultimately self-defeating. But my question is this: should one continue taking medication, seeing a doctor regularly, etc., when necessary and for continued ailments such as diabetes, glaucoma, mental illness and so on? If one has the choice between blindness and sight (and sometimes we do have a choice) should one not opt for health, if one is on the path of self-realization and one is trying to please Krishna?
Bruce Matthew
Dear Bruce,
Your question–a very good one–is answered in the Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.2.10). The Bhagavatam says,
kamasya nendriya-pritir
labho jiveta yavata
jivasya tattva-jijnasa
nartho yas ceha karmabhih
The meaning is that since human life is meant for self-realization we should not waste our time trying to gratify our senses. On the contrary, we should desire to stay fit and healthy only so that we can accomplish the higher purpose of life: to inquire about spiritual realization and ultimately achieve realization of Krishna, the Supreme. That alone should be the purpose for which we work.
Accordingly, we should take care of our health. The body, after all, is a kind of a machine. And since we want to use that machine in service to spiritual realization and in service to Krishna, we should do our best to keep the machinery in good working order.
Of course, like any machine, the body as it gets older gets more troublesome, and eventually it just stops working. In that sense the body is a bad bargain. But as long as we’ve got it we should make the best use of it by using it for spiritual realization.
The mistake of the karmi (materialist) is to misidentify with the machine–to mistake the machine for the self. Under that misconception, we try to get pleasure from the machinery, or give pleasure to the machinery, neglecting the real self within.
To have the gift of a human body, fit for spiritual realization, but to grow old trying to stay young instead of trying to attain spiritual realization is absurd but tragic. Let us live for a higher purpose–the highest purpose, Krishna consciousness.