Katha Upanishad 2.6
intermediate
न साम्परायः प्रतिभाति बालं प्रमाद्यन्तं वित्तमोहेन मूढम्। अयं लोको नास्ति पर इति मानी पुनः पुनर्वशमापद्यते मे॥
na sāmparāyaḥ pratibhāti bālaṃ pramādyantaṃ vittamohena mūḍham | ayaṃ loko nāsti para iti mānī punaḥ punarvaśamāpadyate me ||
""The hereafter does not shine forth to the careless child, deluded by the glamour of wealth. Thinking 'This world alone exists, there is no other,' he falls again and again into my power.""
What This Means:
Yama reveals why people fear death: distracted by wealth, they never consider the afterlife. Thinking only this world matters, they die and return again and again.
Going Deeper:
The materialist view - "only this world is real" - keeps one trapped in the cycle of rebirth. Death claims such people repeatedly.
How To Apply This:
Do you live as if only this material world exists? What would change if you truly considered the hereafter?
#materialism#rebirth#death