Life is a companion of death, death is the beginning of life

        Chinese attitudes towards creation and death are much different that what we are familiar with. “One theme that emerges in this text is that answers to death-related questions are often found in a culture’s creation stories” (Kramer, 1988). In American culture you either believe that God created us or that we evolved from monkeys. For the Chinese culture there are many versions of creation. One is as follows: “There was something formless yet complete, that existed before heaven and earth; without sound, without substance, dependent on nothing, unchanging, all pervading, unfailing. One may think of it as the mother of all things under heaven. Its true name we don’t know; “way” is the by-name that we give it” (Kramer, 1988).
        The Chinese culture believe in the way (Tao) and its virtue (Te). The Chinese believe the Tao is formless yet formed, silent and void, and can also be called the mother of all things. It is so interesting for me to read about other cultures and what they believe, compared to what we believe. The book states “Many images have been given to depict the Tao, the way, that which generates  itself, mother of the universe, the nature of nature. Over and over again, it is referred to as the flowing of water which subtly, non-aggressively, rhythmically, streams around all obstacles. Ultimately, the Tao is a mirror in which one discovers one’s own, original harmonious nature”. What I get from this quote is that the Chinese are extremely intuitive to nature and discovering one’s self through exploration.
        The book goes on to talk about the relationship between Yang and Yin. “Creation occurs at the moment of the separation of being into Yang and Yin: In the beginning there was the unity of Yang-Yi (light-darkness, heat-cold, dry-moist). when the subtle went upward, and the gross downward, when heavens formed from the subtle , and earth from the gross, then there was and is now Yang and Yin (active and receptive, male and female). From the harmonious interaction of Yang and Yin come the seasons and all of earth’s products. Yang produces fire whose subtlest parts formed the sun; Yin produced water whose subtlest parts formed the moon. The sun’s interaction with the moon produced the stars which fill heaven, just as rivers and dust fill earth. When Yang combines with Yin, all creatures are produced. In these two is the All ( Tai Chi)” (Kramer,1988). I found this story particularly interesting because I have seen the Yin-Yang symbol many times and never really knew what  it meant. To read that it is a version of creation for the Chinese is so interesting to me. I went on to read that the Yin and the Yang each have many different meanings. For instance the Yang is male and the Yin is female, also the Yang is life and the Yin is death.
        “Life is the companion of death, death is the beginning of life. Who understands their workings? Man’s life is a coming together of breath. If it comes together, there is life; if it scatters, there is death. And if life and death are companions to each other, then what is there for us to be anxious about?” (Kramer, 1988) I found this quote to explain the Chinese and their attitudes towards life and death. I think that people are so scared of death that they forget to live. If you spend your whole life worrying about death and what happens after you leave the earth then you will miss out on life itself.


References:
Kramer, K. (1988) The Sacred Art Of Dying. Paulist Press, New York.