Gita 13.9

Sadhak: "Guru ji, contemplating death and disease sounds depressing. How is this helpful?"

Guru: "Is facing reality depressing, or is it ignoring reality and being shocked later that's truly depressing? The wise contemplates death daily—not to become morbid but to live fully. Knowing this body will end, you stop postponing what matters."

Sadhak: "But if I constantly think about death, won't I become fearful?"

Guru: "Fear comes from unexpected confrontation with mortality. When you make friends with the fact of death, fear transforms into urgency. Not frantic urgency, but the clarity of knowing: 'I have limited time. Let me not waste it on trivialities.'"

Sadhak: "What about dispassion towards sense objects? Should I avoid all pleasure?"

Guru: "Vairagya isn't about avoidance but about not being enslaved. Enjoy what life offers but don't cling. A guest at a feast enjoys the meal without worrying about taking the plates home. You're a guest in this world."

Sadhak: "And absence of ego—how is that even possible while still functioning in the world?"

Guru: "The conventional ego-sense remains for practical purposes. But beneath it, there's knowing: 'This I-sense is a useful fiction, not my true identity.' It's like an actor playing a role—fully engaged, yet knowing he's not the character."