A short glorious life or a long mediocre one

A short glorious life or a long mediocre one

In the Greek epic, Iliad, which is based on the Trojan War, the hero, Achilles, seeks a short but glorious life, which accounts for his wild and stubborn spirit. My way, or no way, he declares. He refuses to bow to the commander Agamemnon, and refuses to fight for the Greeks, when Agamemnon claims his concubine. Achilles dies in the Trojan War when an arrow hits him on his most vulnerable part, his heel.

If Iliad is located in the Trojan War, the other Greek epic, Odyssey, is located on events that follow on the journey of hope. It focuses on the 10-year-long journey home of the cunning but cursed Odysseus, after the 10-year Trojan War. During his adventures, Odysseus, like many Greek heroes, makes the voyage to Hades, the land of the dead, and there, encounters ghosts of fallen warriors, both Trojan and Greek. He even encounters the ghost of Achilles. And he is shocked to hear what Achilles has to say. While during his short life, Achilles wanted a short but glorious life, in his death, he mourns his choice: he would have rather lived a long life as a landless labourer with barely anything to eat, than die young, a hero! The two heroes of the Trojan War, the mighty Achilles and the wily Odysseus, who have lived life very differently and made very different choices, are confronted with the meaning of life. Is life about glory? Is life about living? How much does fame matter? Does family matter more?

Achilles dies alone, without wife or child beside him. His only son is Pyrrhus, born unknown to him, from a youthful engagement. Odysseus reunites with his faithful wife Penelope and lives a long life.

So is life about length or quality?

Given a choice what would we prefer: a short, successful life or a long, mediocre one? A similar theme is found in Hindu mythology.

In the story of Markandeya, Shiva asks a young couple if they want an intelligent child who will die young or a dull child who will live long. And the parents choose the intelligent child. When faced with the imminent death of their child, they do not know what to do. The son prays to Shiva who then comes to his rescue by defeating Yama, the god of death.

Likewise, as per the legend of Adi Shankaracharya (legend is based on some historical facts, while myth is indifferent to history completely), he was due to die at the age of eight, until he promised Vyasa that he would retrieve the lost Vedic knowledge. So his lifespan was doubled to 16. At 16, he promised Vyasa that he would spread Vedic knowledge to every corner of India. And so his lifespan was doubled once again, till 32. Having spent 16 years spreading Vedic wisdom everywhere, Adi Shankaracharya took samadhi, voluntarily abandoning his body.

Let's ask ourselves what kind of life we want to live ¬ do we want a short, meaningful life like Achilles or a long life, full of struggles, but with family, like Odysseus? Does quality matter or quantity? Perhaps a short, meaningful life makes sense to old, suffering souls and a long, meaningless life makes sense to youth facing imminent death.