A departing soul

There are certain practices in Jainism with which I do not agree entirely. One of them is Santhara or Sallekhana. In this, a soul pledges to gradually renunciate all the material and bodily pleasures and depart for the heavenly abode. A saint administers santhara or sallekhana to the departing soul whose time on the earth nears the end. Generally, a hardcore practitioner takes a sallekhana of seven to ten days. But even a common man who is nearing his end of life could be administered santhara. It is considered highest form of passage to the next life.

However, there is a little caveat. How would one know that hs or she is nearing the death? Most of the time, death is sudden. Even when death is gradual like in the case of prolonged illness, it is near impossible to tell the precise time of the death. That's where the lies the whole debate over whether santhara is a motivated suicide or forced administration of death or is it willing acceptance of holy renunciation of the body.

Mostly it is a peaceful process. In the case of common man, it is administered when doctors give up and ask the family members to prepare for the last moment. In the case of saints, they themselves find out their designated time of death using their super powers and sit on santhara. But there are times when both forms of prediction fail. The departing soul suffers, it asks for water and other things but it is denied due to religious strictures. The living body flutters, pants, and welters. Maybe it says that don't push me to death. It is as if the body is saying that maybe I was near death on the hospital bed but now suddenly I am fine. I wish to live. People wait for the death to come but life does not go. It remains there. Maybe because eros is always more than Thanatos. Even in such situation, religion finds its own way of explaining things.

It is essential that person's will is counted whether they would like to be placed on Santhara in the event of medical emergency and doctors failure. Otherwise, the case is out in open for others to consider it as a forced death or motivated suicide.