*some facts are based on the book, "The Romeo Error"
Did you know that each day some of us die so that the rest of us might live?
Ok, don't think everything on earth is as mortal as you are; bacteria is virtually immortal. No wonder they thrive in every habitat , even inside Beyonce's body. Binary fission makes their immortality possible.
The traditional definition of a life cycle is "a progressive series of changes undergone by an organism from fertilization to death".
After death, rigor motis starts from the intestine and ends in the heart. Note that it doesn't start immediately after clinical death.
During clinical death, specialized organs like the brain die first.
Did you know that according to the research conducted by Elizabeth Kubler-Ross in 1974, people with terminal illness express five distinct behavior in reaction to their inevitable death:
The very first reaction to the news of a terminal illness is usually "No, not me, it cannot be true". They accuse the doctor of being incompetent. However, some might act as if they were never told.
As soon as the patient admits that it must be true, denial is followed by anger and frustration. They also envy other.
The person asks "why me, when I still have so much to do? Or this stage in some cases may be replaced by bargaining in which patients make promises to themselves or others in return for extra time. Some at this stage, believe in God's miracles, and make huge promises to Him to gain His grace.
Then when the full implication of the illness are realized, comes a time of fear and depression.
The final stage comes when terminal patients have had enough time or been given enough of the right kind of help, to conquer their fears and accept the inevitability of dying, they often experience feelings of peace and contentment.
Terrifying isn't it? Now let's see how different tribes treat their dead.
WAYS OF DEALING WITH THE DEAD BY DIFFERENT TRIBES.
The Ashanti tribe of west Africa bury their dead below the ground surface lying on the left side with hands beneath the head in special burial grounds
The Ibos wrapp their dead in bamboo mats and bury them under the ground.
The Aboriginal Tiwi of north Australia bury their dead above the ground covered with huge mmounds of soil stamped into place by funeral dance.
The Jews bury in family tombs usually carved out of rocks.
The Bevenda in South Africa shut up their dead in their own houses and leave. But some build special death houses.
The Angolan Orimbundu tribe pute their dead in caves.
The santee sioux sew their dead in deer or buffalo skin an leave them in the top of tall trees.
Tibet practise air burial which involves cutting up the body, separating the flesh, grinding the bones into small pieces, mixing all with barley and feeding this to the birds specially summoned too the feast by horn.
Some people prefer to eat their dead themselves, they believe it is good to rest in tthe stomach of a friend than in the cold ground.
New south Wales roast their dead.
The Vikings either bury of burn their dead in their longships, along with their everyday possessions. They believe that these possessions are going to be needed in their afterlife.
Like the Vikings, the Egyptians bury their dead in tombs filled with things they might need in their next life.
The Bali burn their dead entirely.
So, throughout all these various ways of dealing with the dead, runs a central theme. Implicit in every funeral practice, there is an assumption that death marks a kind of transition and not the end.
We should know that death is inside each and everyone of us. The excessive concern with accidental death seems to mask an insufficient concern with natural death. Nelson and Nelson (1973) wrote that highly religious individuals experience the least fear of death. Nonreligious individuals experience moderate levels of anxiety about death, whereas religious people who do not consistently practice their faith experience the greatest fear of dying.
Rich people are generally anxious about death, unlike poor and old people who in most times think about death. Where I live for instance,the rich go a long way in fortifying, with the hope of enjoying their wealth to the fullest. Whereas, the poor take hold of whatever life brings. Old people in my hometown invariably talk about death, planning and contemplating it. There has been issues of dead people coming back to life either hours, days or even weeks after being clinically pronounced dead. I haven't seen though, but I have read books containing such stories. For instance, Lyall Watson in his book told about a man named John Macintyre who in 1824 was certified dead and properly buried. But entrepreneurs who stole dead bodies dug it up and sold it to a surgeon company. He woke up in the dissecting table at a London medical school as the instructor's knife pierced through his chest. Another one like it happened in 1964 when the post-mortem operation at a New York mortuary was disrupted just as the first cut was being made, when the patient leaped up and siezed the surgeon by the throat. This doctor paid for the error with his life--- he died of shock.
What happen when one dies? My father, in one of his numerous stories told me about something most people might presume to be untrue, and could sound unbelievable to some religious individuals. He told me a story of how the oldest person in a village communicates with spirits. The aged man spend most of his time indoors discussing with the spirits such that anyone (the wife inclusive) who approaches the room is expected to make some noise to allow the spirits to varnish before entering. Some people don't actually believe in ghosts or spirits of the dead. Some believe that what most people assume to be spirits are actually demons. In some cultures, troubled spirits are often believed to roam around and are often prevented by witchcraft. Some religions especially the Christian religion believe that the dead go to their creator where they are judged; the good enter into eternal rest, while the bad are condemned into eternal damnation! Some traditions pray to their ancestors, believing that they are gods, and can protect them. This calls for unending sacrifices.
In summary, science cannot actually explain why we die. The issue of death has caught the attention of people of all ages especially the elderly. Humans want to be immortal and live forever. Some Biologists believe that it is as a result of the death and weakness of the numerous body cells, which some belive it is genetic. New body cells are produced by the specialized organs and are supposed to replace the dead ones, so, we start aging when there is a short fall in production. After this, death follow closely which justifies the words of L. Watson that "death is in every one of us". Death is apparently not the end of any human. So, I advice, take care of your self and live your life in the best way possible.
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