Death

“What is this, Channa?” asked Siddhartha. “He is dead,” replied Channa.

“Dead! Channa, does everyone die?”

“Yes, my dear prince, all living things must die some day. No one can stop death from coming,” replied Channa.

The prince was so shocked he did not say anything more. He thought that it was terrible that such a thing called death should come to everybody, even kings and queens. Was there no way to stop it? After his return to the palace, he reflected with penetrative urgency: “Oh, birth is detestable indeed! To whoever birth has become evident, to him old age is bound to become evident, illness is bound to become evident, death is bound to become evident.” Having reflected thus, he became cheerless and dejected.