Tuesdays With Morrie Death Quotes
Living Through a Process of Death
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time” ― (Mark Twain). Humanity lives a blind life; in order to live fully, one must face with death, to truly live alive. (Kahlsa 1) This concept is easily expressed throughout the novel Tuesdays With Morrie, written by Mitch Albom. Mitch Albom, portrayed as the protagonist, proves to be the perfect example to how society and its people conform to a painted image of what appears to be happiness, however later Mitch realizes that painted image fades away and the true colors of happiness shine through. Mitch learns this and many more lessons every Tuesday with an old professor from his former college, Morrie Schwartz. …show more content…
On a personal level, Morrie goes through the process of death, realizing that once face with death, that is when the ideas of life and living can be understood to the fullest; that is when he is able to achieve true happiness. To understand life, Morrie tells Mitch he must also learn to forgive, for without forgiveness, regret easily follows. Beyond that, forgiveness leads into acceptance and learning to accept what people can and can’t do, including self acceptance. (Buddhism 1) Many of these lessons are often lessons Buddhist follow, a religion, with others, practiced by Morrie. Morrie hopes that Mitch will learn from his lessons. Society leads humanity to believe that there is a set path to follow, however, if man chooses to conform to society’s beliefs, man will never experience eternal bliss, instead he will follow a road to falsehood.
Only when faced with death does man truly understand the ideas of life; that is when they live life to the fullest.
(Kahlsa 1) Morrie learned to not just accept death, but understand why, he as a person, goes through the process of dying, then that is when he would benefit from life more than ever. That is one of many lessons Morrie taught Mitch on those Tuesday afternoons. Morrie was able to realize that “ most of us all walk around as if we’re sleepwalking, [that] we really don’t experience the world fully, because we’re half-doing things we automatically think we have to do” (Albom 83). Morrie Schwartz, diagnosed with ALS, a illness trapping his body, but never his mind, helped him to truly understand and capture the ideas behind life and death. Morrie passes on his knowledge to Mitch Albom, a former student of his at Brandeis who he sees more so as a son, that people take life for granted, living life with the concept that there will be a tomorrow to fix things or to try harder the next day, however forgetting that life is a gift not to be foolishly toyed with. In one of Morrie’s lessons with Mitch, he proposes that Mitch reject society’s interpretation of modern take on popular culture, instead that he should follow self interest; rather the aim to follow someone’s else hopes of interest. Morrie expresses his opinion on popular cultural fathoms to be focused solely off of superficial concepts of greed and selfishness, characteristics that will never lead people to true happiness; just an image of what appears to be happiness. Cultural fathoms in society creates a false image of happiness which Mitch first blindly chosen to follow; “naked [is how Mitch] came from [his] mother’s womb, naked [is how he] shall return” (McHugh 8). If Mitch, coming into the world empty, chooses to not to live and not learn from his life’s actions, he will in return leave life - empty. Following the common path of popular culture does not lead to understand the ideas of life and
it’s gifts, only when faced with life turning events, does life become more understandable, as Morrie suggests through his process of death.
Understanding death also leads into forgiveness; because without forgiving people for their mistakes, humans then tend to hold back from living. Learning to forgive people for their mistakes is an exponentially important belief practiced by the Buddhist to promote healthy living. Buddhism, a religion indigenous to the subcontinent of India, promotes healthy living beyond just life but also through the afterlife. Eternal bliss, a more common term to express a healthy life beyond just life, eventually is the ultimate goal to a Buddhist follower. (Buddhism 2) In order to achieve that goal, “there 's a better approach. To know you 're going to die, and to be prepared for it at any time. That 's better. That way, you can actually be more involved in your life while you 're living it” (Albom 78). Once a person is prepared to die, they are more appreciative to live. The process in order to live life fully relates to forgiveness, understanding death and forgiveness are hand in hand. If Morrie had not chosen to forgive Mitch for not keeping in touch over the years, Morrie then would understand that he would lead his life regretting past choices. “Learn to forgive yourself and others, [never] assume it’s too late to get involved {...}”, (McHugh 7) for life is short, there is no time to regret and solemn over bad choices, move on and learn from them. Morrie passes on his knowledge to Mitch in hopes he learns from his own mistake, benefits from it, accepts, forgives, and moves on. If people do not forgive, they can not move on in life, only to repeat past experiences.
Beyond forgiving other people’s mistake, acceptance; aside from accepting other’s mistakes, acceptance through building a relationship with oneself and their personal abilities helps to lead life healthier and more honest as taught by the Buddhist. (Buddhism 2) As Morrie believes, this will in return allow happiness to become one with the soul and body. However, “everyone knows they 're going to die but nobody believes it, [nobody understands it]. If [they] did, [they] would do things differently” (Albom 81). Things such as acceptance. As simple as the concept of dying is, nobody truly understands the process of death until they are faced with the lessons that follows it. If people really understood death, people would live life through a more open mind and would therefore be more accepting and understanding of other’s actions; personal ones too. This idea of acceptance was what Morrie aimed to pass onto Mitch in order for Mitch to consummate happiness in his career. Mitch believed he was to be a journalist because he was skillful in journalism, however later Mitch learns to “devote [himself] to creating something that gives [him] purpose and meaning” - music and “accepting what [he is] able to do and what [he is] not able to do” (McHugh 7). Mitch comes to understand the lesson of acceptance when he faces with his past failures and learns that though journalism is a strong suit for him, it is not what he truly wants to pursue. Sometimes it’s easier to learn to accept that some things are not always achievable and learning to realize that instead of always chasing after a false hope can help lead to true happiness rather than an image of happiness.
Buddhist teachings not only express the ideas of forgiving and accepting; they question life and it’s lessons in order to learn the most and better their lifestyle, they also use these practices to reach the ultimate goal of eternal bliss. Leading back to the simple yet complicated concept that “everyone knows they 're going to die, but nobody believes it.... So we kid ourselves about death.... But there 's a better approach. To know you 're going to die, and to be prepared for it at any time....Do what the Buddhists do...ask, Is today the day? Am I ready? Am I doing all I need to do? Am I being the person I want to be?” (Albom 81) Morrie exploits that man knows he will die, but he does not truly postulate the true meaning of death until death is right before his eyes. Buddhist set their life on faith and karma to guide them to their end destination; eternal bliss. Buddhism encourages people to question life rather than just openly accepting everything in a simple fashion. This religion aims to question life’s meaning and learn from past experiences in order to venture forward into the quest for answers and understanding more to satisfy their concept of ultimate happiness. (Buddhism 1) “Does it matter? Morrie, after all, died the way he lived. He was jovial and spirited; he hung in there; he lives on in the minds of his friends” (McHugh 7). McHugh explains Morrie’s death is a respectable death because he chose not to grieve over his illness, yet to learn and “do what the Buddhist do...” (Albom 81) don’t worry so much on the bigger picture, sometimes its better to live less serious and more in the now moment, forgetting to live the little moments in life, for those are the best. (Kahlsa 1)
The pressure to achieve greatness has never been more emphasized than in today’s society. Due to human and human nature blindly focused on achieving that perfect image; only to satisfy everyone else’s desires but themselves, proves to show that man will never achieve happiness before death if he follows a path meant for someone else. (Kahlsa 1) All throughout life Mitch followed someone else’s path, until he met with Morrie and Morrie’s struggle with ALS. Morrie taught everything he knew about the meaning of life and how to live life fully. Although Mitch was not experiencing all the physical hardships of ALS and the process of death, Mitch certainly experienced all the mental hardships with Morrie and learned to use them in a positive and beneficial manner, choosing learn and live life - truly happy. Mitch was guided by Morrie, and instead of following another man’s path, he paved a path of his own that only he could follow.
Work Cited
Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life 's Greatest Lesson.
New York: Doubleday, 1997. Print.
Buddhism Beliefs. Pagetopia, 2008. Web 19 May 2013
Kahlsa, Shanti. Death and Dying in the Concept of Consciousness. Sikh Net, 2004. Web 20
May 2013
McHugh, Paul R. "Dying Made Easy." Literary Reference Center. Ebscohost, n.d. Web. 19 May
2013. .
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time” ― (Mark Twain). Humanity lives a blind life; in order to live fully, one must face with death, to truly live alive. (Kahlsa 1) This concept is easily expressed throughout the novel Tuesdays With Morrie, written by Mitch Albom. Mitch Albom, portrayed as the protagonist, proves to be the perfect example to how society and its people conform to a painted image of what appears to be happiness, however later Mitch realizes that painted image fades away and the true colors of happiness shine through. Mitch learns this and many more lessons every Tuesday with an old professor from his former college, Morrie Schwartz. …show more content…
On a personal level, Morrie goes through the process of death, realizing that once face with death, that is when the ideas of life and living can be understood to the fullest; that is when he is able to achieve true happiness. To understand life, Morrie tells Mitch he must also learn to forgive, for without forgiveness, regret easily follows. Beyond that, forgiveness leads into acceptance and learning to accept what people can and can’t do, including self acceptance. (Buddhism 1) Many of these lessons are often lessons Buddhist follow, a religion, with others, practiced by Morrie. Morrie hopes that Mitch will learn from his lessons. Society leads humanity to believe that there is a set path to follow, however, if man chooses to conform to society’s beliefs, man will never experience eternal bliss, instead he will follow a road to falsehood.
Only when faced with death does man truly understand the ideas of life; that is when they live life to the fullest.
(Kahlsa 1) Morrie learned to not just accept death, but understand why, he as a person, goes through the process of dying, then that is when he would benefit from life more than ever. That is one of many lessons Morrie taught Mitch on those Tuesday afternoons. Morrie was able to realize that “ most of us all walk around as if we’re sleepwalking, [that] we really don’t experience the world fully, because we’re half-doing things we automatically think we have to do” (Albom 83). Morrie Schwartz, diagnosed with ALS, a illness trapping his body, but never his mind, helped him to truly understand and capture the ideas behind life and death. Morrie passes on his knowledge to Mitch Albom, a former student of his at Brandeis who he sees more so as a son, that people take life for granted, living life with the concept that there will be a tomorrow to fix things or to try harder the next day, however forgetting that life is a gift not to be foolishly toyed with. In one of Morrie’s lessons with Mitch, he proposes that Mitch reject society’s interpretation of modern take on popular culture, instead that he should follow self interest; rather the aim to follow someone’s else hopes of interest. Morrie expresses his opinion on popular cultural fathoms to be focused solely off of superficial concepts of greed and selfishness, characteristics that will never lead people to true happiness; just an image of what appears to be happiness. Cultural fathoms in society creates a false image of happiness which Mitch first blindly chosen to follow; “naked [is how Mitch] came from [his] mother’s womb, naked [is how he] shall return” (McHugh 8). If Mitch, coming into the world empty, chooses to not to live and not learn from his life’s actions, he will in return leave life - empty. Following the common path of popular culture does not lead to understand the ideas of life and
it’s gifts, only when faced with life turning events, does life become more understandable, as Morrie suggests through his process of death.
Understanding death also leads into forgiveness; because without forgiving people for their mistakes, humans then tend to hold back from living. Learning to forgive people for their mistakes is an exponentially important belief practiced by the Buddhist to promote healthy living. Buddhism, a religion indigenous to the subcontinent of India, promotes healthy living beyond just life but also through the afterlife. Eternal bliss, a more common term to express a healthy life beyond just life, eventually is the ultimate goal to a Buddhist follower. (Buddhism 2) In order to achieve that goal, “there 's a better approach. To know you 're going to die, and to be prepared for it at any time. That 's better. That way, you can actually be more involved in your life while you 're living it” (Albom 78). Once a person is prepared to die, they are more appreciative to live. The process in order to live life fully relates to forgiveness, understanding death and forgiveness are hand in hand. If Morrie had not chosen to forgive Mitch for not keeping in touch over the years, Morrie then would understand that he would lead his life regretting past choices. “Learn to forgive yourself and others, [never] assume it’s too late to get involved {...}”, (McHugh 7) for life is short, there is no time to regret and solemn over bad choices, move on and learn from them. Morrie passes on his knowledge to Mitch in hopes he learns from his own mistake, benefits from it, accepts, forgives, and moves on. If people do not forgive, they can not move on in life, only to repeat past experiences.
Beyond forgiving other people’s mistake, acceptance; aside from accepting other’s mistakes, acceptance through building a relationship with oneself and their personal abilities helps to lead life healthier and more honest as taught by the Buddhist. (Buddhism 2) As Morrie believes, this will in return allow happiness to become one with the soul and body. However, “everyone knows they 're going to die but nobody believes it, [nobody understands it]. If [they] did, [they] would do things differently” (Albom 81). Things such as acceptance. As simple as the concept of dying is, nobody truly understands the process of death until they are faced with the lessons that follows it. If people really understood death, people would live life through a more open mind and would therefore be more accepting and understanding of other’s actions; personal ones too. This idea of acceptance was what Morrie aimed to pass onto Mitch in order for Mitch to consummate happiness in his career. Mitch believed he was to be a journalist because he was skillful in journalism, however later Mitch learns to “devote [himself] to creating something that gives [him] purpose and meaning” - music and “accepting what [he is] able to do and what [he is] not able to do” (McHugh 7). Mitch comes to understand the lesson of acceptance when he faces with his past failures and learns that though journalism is a strong suit for him, it is not what he truly wants to pursue. Sometimes it’s easier to learn to accept that some things are not always achievable and learning to realize that instead of always chasing after a false hope can help lead to true happiness rather than an image of happiness.
Buddhist teachings not only express the ideas of forgiving and accepting; they question life and it’s lessons in order to learn the most and better their lifestyle, they also use these practices to reach the ultimate goal of eternal bliss. Leading back to the simple yet complicated concept that “everyone knows they 're going to die, but nobody believes it.... So we kid ourselves about death.... But there 's a better approach. To know you 're going to die, and to be prepared for it at any time....Do what the Buddhists do...ask, Is today the day? Am I ready? Am I doing all I need to do? Am I being the person I want to be?” (Albom 81) Morrie exploits that man knows he will die, but he does not truly postulate the true meaning of death until death is right before his eyes. Buddhist set their life on faith and karma to guide them to their end destination; eternal bliss. Buddhism encourages people to question life rather than just openly accepting everything in a simple fashion. This religion aims to question life’s meaning and learn from past experiences in order to venture forward into the quest for answers and understanding more to satisfy their concept of ultimate happiness. (Buddhism 1) “Does it matter? Morrie, after all, died the way he lived. He was jovial and spirited; he hung in there; he lives on in the minds of his friends” (McHugh 7). McHugh explains Morrie’s death is a respectable death because he chose not to grieve over his illness, yet to learn and “do what the Buddhist do...” (Albom 81) don’t worry so much on the bigger picture, sometimes its better to live less serious and more in the now moment, forgetting to live the little moments in life, for those are the best. (Kahlsa 1)
The pressure to achieve greatness has never been more emphasized than in today’s society. Due to human and human nature blindly focused on achieving that perfect image; only to satisfy everyone else’s desires but themselves, proves to show that man will never achieve happiness before death if he follows a path meant for someone else. (Kahlsa 1) All throughout life Mitch followed someone else’s path, until he met with Morrie and Morrie’s struggle with ALS. Morrie taught everything he knew about the meaning of life and how to live life fully. Although Mitch was not experiencing all the physical hardships of ALS and the process of death, Mitch certainly experienced all the mental hardships with Morrie and learned to use them in a positive and beneficial manner, choosing learn and live life - truly happy. Mitch was guided by Morrie, and instead of following another man’s path, he paved a path of his own that only he could follow.
Work Cited
Albom, Mitch. Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life 's Greatest Lesson.
New York: Doubleday, 1997. Print.
Buddhism Beliefs. Pagetopia, 2008. Web 19 May 2013
Kahlsa, Shanti. Death and Dying in the Concept of Consciousness. Sikh Net, 2004. Web 20
May 2013
McHugh, Paul R. "Dying Made Easy." Literary Reference Center. Ebscohost, n.d. Web. 19 May
2013. .