Air India Dreamliner crash reminds us how life is uncertain in this world

Life is so uncertain. Anything can happen at any moment. Yesterday we heard the tragic news of Air India Dreamliner crashing in Ahmedabad in which 250 people died. The plane crashed into BJ Medical Collegehostel killing some of the students who were having lunch in hostel mess.

The passengers in the plane would have never imagined that they are boarding a plane which will ultimately end their life. Neither do the students who were having their meal in the hostel.

It is such a tragic incident. The only thing what you and I can do is to say prayers to the departed souls. We can chant one round of Hare Krishna Mahamantra for them and their family members.

Although its moment of anger and anguish, it’s also a time for introspection.

The government and the aviation industry will try to find the root cause of the crash and will try to work on it so that such incidents do not happen in future. And we should hope that they be successful in their endeavour.

But simultaneously, we should also try to ask ourselves that why do tragedies happen again and again in this material world. Why people have to die?

Anyone who is born in this world has to die. No one knows how death is going to come. And dying is a painful experience.

Any solution to death?

So, is there any solution to death? Can we have a death free life?

Scriptures say, “Yes.” In this material world where we are living death is a certainty but if we go to the spiritual world then we will become free from death. This is what Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita 8.15.

In this material world people die and are again reborn. But those who die actually do not die, because as souls we are eternal. The body die but we continue to live.

So, those who died in the plane crash will get a new body based on their karma and will continue to live. Even though the soul continues to get new body in this world but the process of dying and getting new body is extremely painful.

This is why scriptures, and the reverent sages say that we should do our best to free ourselves from the repeated cycle of birth and death. And for this we should pray to the Lord.

punarapi jananaṃ punarapi maraṇaṃ
punarapi jananī jaṭhare śayanam
iha saṃsāre bahu dustāre
kṛpayā’pāre pāhi murāre

So, let us use this human life to get a life which is free from the misery of death. This becomes possible when Krishna will award us a spiritual body and take us back to the spiritual world. In Krishna’s abode, no one dies, no one gets any disease. It is free from all the sufferings and there the devotees enjoy continuously with Krishna.

We will get such a supreme destination when we will engage our life in practicing devotion to Krishna and not waste our life in material sense gratification of eating, sleeping, mating and defending.

Pray for the departed souls

Once when Prabhupada saw that young boys and girls dancing to loud music, drinking liquor, eating non vegetarian food then Prabhupada had tears in his eyes. His disciples who were with him were confused because they thought that these people are enjoying. But Prabhupada said that they are suffering, and they do not know that they are suffering.

Human life provides us an opportunity to practice devotion to Krishna but if like animals we are obsessed with eating food and enjoying with opposite sex then what is the use of this human life.

We should carefully plan our life so that every moment we move one step closer to Krishna. Let us pray to Krishna to give us determination to practice devotion to him.

Prayers are powerful. So let us pray for the departed souls in the plane crash so that in their next life they get an opportunity to practice devotion to Krishna so that they can return back to the spiritual kingdom.

And we should also become serious in our spiritual endeavour because life is uncertain and we do not know how much time is there for us to live in this world.

So, never give up chanting the Hare Krishna Mahamantra which pleases Krishna and connects us to Krishna.

Three Reflections:

Air India Dreamliner crash reminds us how life is uncertain in this world.
Even though soul continues to get a new body but the process of dying is painful.
When we return to Krishna’s kingdom in spiritual body, we will be free from death.