Thousand-Year-Old Turtle Wisdom

Life is the journey from having nothing back to having nothing.

I heard this life view from a 1000-year-old turtle in a Chinese fantasy drama I watched. That wise old turtle made me reflect on attachments and what is useful and necessary.

Having nothing when we are born is not strictly true. Most of us have our family and what they own, including their emotional baggage. We are born with our bodies. Our minds develop, as do our emotions. Are we also born with experiences and memories from other lives or something beyond our physical body, such as a soul? The answer remains unknowable and ultimately shaped by what we believe.

As we journey through life, we collect experiences, memories, knowledge, and material things we want or think we need for our daily lives.

What happens when we reach the end of our lives?

What happens when we die?

We certainly do not take along our material possessions. We cannot even be certain if we take our memories, experiences, and knowledge, as death also remains unknowable.

Yet many of us strive continuously to accumulate wealth and material possessions. Even if we believe in being born again, will we be born back with all of it? Is it worth it?

Yes, we can claim that we accumulate all these things to pass down to our children. Still, with today’s economy and ageing population, achieving that is becoming increasingly difficult, which causes many of us stress.

Although memories are attached to my house’s contents, I often feel they bind me. My mother and grandmother left many things to me, and I have felt a sense of obligation to keep them, even though I rarely, if ever, use or look at them. While they remind me of the women in my life, they are only a small fragment of their story. I cannot take all these items I’ve collected with me when I die, and I doubt my son will want them.

I don’t have the answer to the broader global issue of ageing and the financial pressure, as I am also grappling with this. I can only ask myself, “How close to having ‘nothing’ do I wish to be when I die? What is essential to keep, and what is best to discard?”

I’m referring not solely to material possessions but also to beliefs. I am well aware that there are still many debilitating beliefs floating around in my head.

What about you?

What do you think about the wisdom of the turtle? 🐢