Alexis cecena
Huma 1100
Death Theme Writing Assignment
03/27/2015
Sherab- Buddhist Lama
William- Roman Catholic bishop
Alexander- Epicurean
Frank- bar tender
Alexander: (walks in to the bar)… Hey frank ill have a whiskey…
Frank: You bet Alex…
William: (walks in the bar) Hey Alex how are things going?
Alexander: well, not to great William, I’m having a hard time with things right now.
William: why is that Alex? What’s bothering you?
Alexander: Will… I haven’t been feeling true happiness…And I’ve been thinking we’re getting
old and death is facing us…
William: Hey frank…Can I get a whiskey…
Frank: here you go Will…
William: what exactly do you mean Alex?
Alex: well… I was taught to believe that there is nothing after death or anything before birth…
it’s just like a dreamless sleep…so should I be scared to die?
William: well I’m scared of dying sometimes.. But I confess for my sins, so as long as I do that
and have god in my heart I will be sent to heaven…hey Alex you know you can go to
confession…?
Alexander: will… you know I’m not catholic.
William: yes Alex, I know but it makes everyone feel better after…
Alexander: that doesn’t make me feel better…What is supposed to make me feel better is
happiness... To not feel guilty about having a good life, I’m supposed to be close to friends take
time off and reflect on my worries and stresses and analyze so I can be stress free I’m supposed
to be self-sufficient and I feel like I haven’t accomplished any of those…
William: Life isn’t all about chasing after happiness Alex…It’s about getting close to people
and about accomplishing what you need to in order to not spend centuries in purgatory until your
soul is cleansed..
Alexander: but I don’t think that exists Will… I believe that life is based on true happiness I
believe once we die that is it… when I was younger my father used to tell stories to the older
kids and he would teach that we shouldn’t wish to be dead, but death releases the soul…death is
like a dreamless sleep kingdom where you see the lives of the mortals and see what they made of
their lives and that is the end. There isn’t anything after that.
William: but that is wrong…Jesus sacrificed his life on the cross so all members receive
absolution of their sins… we Catholics believe that there is a state of grace after death, or a state
of purging that prepares us for heaven.
Alex: but Epicurus believes god does not concern himself with any human being…
(Bar Door opens…)
(Sharab walks in)
Sherab: Hello Will, Alex, how are things?
William: things are okay, we are just having a discussion about death…Alex told me that he
does not believe there is an afterlife… that we die and after death there is nothing…
Sherab: what a strange thing to talk about… Alex what makes you think there isn’t an afterlife?
Alex: I was taught by Epicurus that god doesn’t concern himself with a human, gods are
immortal and blessed and they do not punish the bad or reward the good.
Sherab: but afterlives are truly real…there are Tulkus those are the reincarnation lamas… they
have reincarnated and have been found true lamas from the previous life.
Alex: I don’t know if I believe that Sherab…have you ever seen one before?
Sherab: yes Alex I have seen one Tulkus, and the Dhali lama was a Tulkus…
William: well Alex, I believe there is a heaven we go to… we confess for our sins and we stay
close to god and we will be sent to heaven…
Sherab: Alex you should not fear death…Death will come…in order to have a good life and die
happy you will need to collect your thought and reach complete peace of mind..
Alex: what will that do for me Sherab?
Sherab: Alex it will make it so you’re able to go through rebirth and have good karma and teach
those around you…
William: Sherab that is not the best thing for Alex to do to prepare for death… he should
confess and get close to god before you die so you will be let into heaven
Alex: but I don’t believe there is anything after this life… it’s like before you are born you do
not wish to be born.. So why would I wish to have a good after life if there is nothing after life?
Sherab: Alex your wrong there is an afterlife… I have seen it for many years through the other
lamas…
Alex: but I don’t know if there is an afterlife I can remember anything before life so how can I
remember anything after life?
Sherab: you have to believe there is something greater than just a god. You have to prepare
yourself for death by seeing something greater in yourself Alex.
William: Alex, this is wrong in order to prepare for death you need to confess to your sins get
close to god and you will no longer have eternal consequences.
Sherab: wrong, we Buddhist believe that after death you have a subtle mind, pure
consciousness, you’re a clear life that never dies, the body and personality, you are in a bardo
dream like state, to prepare for death Alex you need to attain Buddhahood.
Alex: but I am not Buddhist that would be going against everything I was taught.. should I not
be scared of death? Or should I just prepare myself for it?
Sherab: Yes, Alex see that is what I’ve been trying to tell you, in order to prepare for death you
must reach complete peace of mind, we must attain Buddhahood and you will be reborn and you
will be able to come back and teach the suffering. That will be your vow.
Alex: but what if that is not what I want my vow to be? I don’t want to vow that I will come back
for eternity to teach the suffering…
William: you can prepare for death by confessing your sins Alex and getting close to god
making a relationship with him and god will send you to heaven, but we will need to cleanse
you.
Sherab: Alex, we all have our own religions, if you don’t believe yours attempt Buddhism, we
believe in greater good, peace and karma.
Alex: great karma that is just what I need…
William: Alex, I think you should try being catholic I think you would understand it just like
your own religion, I don’t think you would like Buddhism
Alex: you both are very persuasive but I think I will just stick to my own, have a nice night
guys..