Do animals know about death?
Man is of course a miserable creature for he knows in advance that he will die, and the death he will come up to after a long time span is faced now. He builds monumental buildings, accumulates masses of possessions, expands his territories, loves, marries, sets up a family and faces a break in the wedlock, educates himself and learns, explores mysteries of the universe, mulls over things, follow religions, runs to temples and churches and do all this and that. While indulging these countless activities, one after another in a series he becomes unmindful of the fact that he will die. None the less the tinge of death is always there, and this torments him immensely. He takes everything easily and unsurprisingly, but when it comes to the question of death he sees it differently, inexplicably and of course inquisitively. He can explain what birth is, and he can analyze it biologically, religiously, sociologically, philosophically and indeed in his explanation there is an air of authenticity and even proof, but speaking of death he remains in a medley of ideas, and at times conflicting ideas. Treatises are written, discussed, pondered respecting death, but little of it is explored or no convincing accounts are found in any statements notwithstanding the fact that innumerable books are written centering on this issue.
I wonder animals know it, have a presentiment of death or foresee it in their day today activities. What strikes me time and again is a question whether or not the lack of the knowledge of death gets them a feeling that is richer than us. The thought of death always harrows us and whatever we do the very thinking of it that we will die, or all what we do are subject to destruction is painful.
Knowledge renders us in both states, in a state of raptures and in a state of ruptures. Raptures for instance come when the knowledge of our promotion is there and ruptures, when we hear it is not so. Even before we get it, the very knowledge of it makes us happy. And what if we rise above both states, or remain apathetic? Maybe in spirituality both states, the state of joys and sorrows are deemed false and fleeting. Or the very knowledge that certain things gives us joys or sorrows is misleading for nothing gives or sets us in a state that transcends time and space. In so long as we are time and space bound we will be hemmed in an endless eddy of worldly wax and wane, ups and downs.
Even small children are blissful, for they are innocent and ignorant. The very idea of death does not distress them. Not to digress from the original question that the ignorance of the coming of death is blissful to animals and that we are accursed or doomed to know the arrival of death are some of the questions that are very germane to us.
There are fears, and innumerable fears in the wilderness, a fear of attacks, and every time they have to evade the attack of their enemies in every step. Aside from this, do they know they will die?
