Life Is Shorter Than You Think: The Araka Sutta’s Timeless Truth
Most of us wake up every morning and think we have plenty of time left in life. Some days feel endless, some weeks drag on, and we often say, “Life is too long and tiring.” But in truth, the Buddha explained that our lifespan is unbelievably short, like a flash of lightning. This teaching is beautifully presented in the Araka Sutta, where the Buddha referred to a teacher of the past named Araka, who explained the brevity of life in ways that we could see, feel, and truly understand.
In this article, we’ll dive deep into the message of the Araka Sutta, explore the striking metaphors used to describe our short lives, and discover why realizing this truth pushes us toward urgency in practicing the Four Noble Truths. By the end, you’ll clearly see that life is far too short to waste and the time to live wisely is right now.
The Story Behind the Araka Sutta
Who Was Araka?
Before the time of the Buddha we know today, there lived a teacher named Araka. He had deep insight into the truth of existence. His teachings about impermanence and the fleeting nature of life were preserved and later repeated by the Buddha. The Buddha praised these words because they carried great wisdom and perfectly reflected reality.
Why Did the Buddha Share Araka’s Words?
The Buddha often used examples from the past to explain the Dhamma in ways people could grasp. By quoting Araka, he showed that the truth about the shortness of life was not new it was recognized by wise teachers long before. But through the Buddha’s compassion and wisdom, these words gained fresh life and timeless value.
The Powerful Teachings of the Araka Sutta
In this discourse, the Buddha recites the vivid comparisons used by Araka to describe how quickly life passes. Each metaphor makes us pause and reflect deeply. Here are the striking images:
Life Is Short Like Dewdrops on Grass
Araka compared human life to drops of dew resting on grass in the morning. As soon as the sun rises, those dewdrops vanish instantly. Likewise, our life seems fresh in the morning of youth but disappears quickly with the rising heat of time.
Life Is Like a Bubble on Water
Think about bubbles that form on the surface of a stream. They appear for a moment and vanish the next. Our lives are exactly like that fragile, temporary, and gone in an instant.
Life Is Like a Line Drawn on Water
When you draw a line with your finger in water, it vanishes instantly. This metaphor beautifully shows how human existence cannot be held or prolonged it is gone before we even realize.
Life Is Like Spit on the Ground
When someone spits on the ground, it dries up almost immediately. Similarly, our lifespan dries away faster than we imagine.
Life Is Like Meat Thrown on a Hot Pan
If you place a small piece of meat on a hot iron plate, it burns and shrinks quickly. That is exactly how our lives burn away in the heat of time.
Life Is Like a Mountain River
A mountain stream rushes down with great force, never stopping even for a second. Life, too, flows constantly toward death, unstoppable, unpausing, always moving forward.
Anguttara Nikāya AN 7.74
Araka Sutta
The Teacher Araka
“Once upon a time, monks, there was a teacher called Araka. He started his own religion and was free of sensual desire. He had many hundreds of disciples, and he taught them like this: ‘Brahmins, life as a human is short, brief, and goes by quickly, full of pain and suffering. Think about this and wake up! Do what’s good and live the spiritual life, for no-one born can escape death.
The Similes
“‘Life’s like a drop of dew on the tip of a blade of grass. When the sun comes up it quickly disappears and doesn’t last long. In the same way, life as a human is like a dewdrop. It’s short, brief, and goes by quickly, full of pain and suffering. Think about this and wake up! Do what’s good and live the spiritual life, for no-one born can escape death.
“‘Life’s like when the rain falls heavily. The bubbles quickly disappear and don’t last long. In the same way, life as a human is like a bubble. It’s short, brief, and goes by quickly, full of pain and suffering. …
“‘Life’s like a line drawn in water. It disappears quickly and doesn’t last long. In the same way, life as a human is like a line drawn in water. It’s short, brief, and goes by quickly, full of pain and suffering. …
“‘Life’s like a mountain river travelling far, flowing fast, carrying all kinds of things with it. It doesn’t turn back—not for a moment, a second, an instant but runs, rolls, and flows on. In the same way, life as a human is like a mountain river. It’s short, brief, and goes by quickly, full of pain and suffering. …
“‘Life’s like a strong man who has formed a glob of spit on the tip of his tongue. He could easily spit it out. In the same way, life as a human is like a glob of spit. It’s short, brief, and goes by quickly, full of pain and suffering. …
“‘Suppose there was a huge iron pot that had been heated all day. If you tossed a piece of meat in, it would quickly disappear and not last long. In the same way, life as a human is like a piece of meat. It’s short, brief, and goes by quickly, full of pain and suffering. …
“‘Life’s like a cow being led to the slaughterhouse. With every step she comes closer to the butcher, closer to death. In the same way, life as a human is like a cow being led to the slaughterhouse. It’s short, brief, and goes by quickly, full of pain and suffering. Think about this and wake up! Do what’s good and live the spiritual life, for no-one born can escape death.’
“Now, monks, at that time humans lived for 60,000 years. Girls could be married at 500 years of age. And humans only had six kinds of sickness: cold, heat, hunger, thirst, and the need to defecate and urinate. But even though humans were so long lived with so few sicknesses, the teacher Araka still taught in this way: ‘Life as a human is short, brief, and goes by quickly, full of pain and suffering. Think about this and wake up! Do what’s good and live the spiritual life, for no-one born can escape death.’
Our days are numbered…
“Monks, these days it would be right to say: ‘Life as a human is short, brief, and goes by quickly, full of pain and suffering. Think about this and wake up! Do what’s good and live the spiritual life, for no-one born can escape death.’ Because, monks, these days a long life is a hundred years or a little more. Living for 100 years, there are just 300 seasons, a hundred each of the winter, summer, and rains. Living for 300 seasons, there are just 1,200 months, 400 in each of the winter, summer, and rains. Living for 1,200 months, there are just 2,400 half-months, eight hundred in each of the winter, summer, and rains. Living for 2,400 half-months, there are just 36,000 days, 12,000 in each of the summer, winter, and rains. Living for 36,000 days, you just eat 72,000 meals, 24,000 in each of the summer, winter, and rains, including when you’re sucking milk at your mother’s breast, and when you’re kept from eating.
“Things that keep you from eating include anger, pain, sickness, observing the fast,1 or being unable to get food. So monks, for a human being with a hundred years life span I have counted the life span, the limit of the life span, the seasons, the years, the months, the half-months, the nights, the days, the meals, and the things that keep one from eating. Out of compassion, I’ve done what a Compassionate One should do for the benefit of his disciples. Monks, here are these roots of trees, and here are these empty huts. Practice meditation, monks! Don’t be negligent! Don’t regret it later! This is my instruction to you.”
Why Do We Fail to See Life’s Brevity?
Despite these powerful truths, most of us live as though we have endless time. Why?
-
We are distracted by routine – work, family, social media, entertainment.
-
We think in years, not moments – when in reality, life is slipping away breath by breath.
-
We fear facing mortality – so we ignore it.
-
We assume youth means longevity – forgetting death can arrive at any age.
This ignorance makes us careless, delaying practice, kindness, and wisdom for “later.” But as Araka and the Buddha remind us, later might never come.
The Call to Urgency
The Araka Sutta is not meant to make us hopeless it is meant to wake us up. Once we see life as fragile as a dew drop, we naturally feel urgency to use our time wisely. This urgency in Buddhism is called saṃvega a sense of spiritual urgency that drives us to seek liberation.
Connecting to the Four Noble Truths
The Buddha taught that recognizing impermanence should lead us to understand the Four Noble Truths, the foundation of his teaching.
1. The Truth of Suffering (Dukkha)
Life is full of unsatisfactoriness aging, illness, separation, death. By realizing life is short, we understand suffering cannot be avoided.
2. The Cause of Suffering (Samudaya)
Craving and clinging are the causes. We waste our short life chasing pleasures that vanish like bubbles.
3. The End of Suffering (Nirodha)
Freedom from suffering is possible. We don’t have to waste this precious short life in endless cycles of craving.
4. The Path to the End of Suffering (Magga)
The Noble Eightfold Path right view, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration is the practical way to use our limited time wisely.
How to Apply the Araka Sutta in Daily Life
Practice Mindfulness
Stay present. Don’t waste today worrying about tomorrow. Every mindful breath is a treasure.
Live with Compassion
If life is short, why waste it with anger, jealousy, or hate? Use each day to spread kindness.
Simplify Your Lifestyle
Don’t waste energy chasing endless possessions. Remember: you can’t carry anything with you when the bubble bursts.
Prioritize Wisdom
Study, reflect, and meditate on the Dhamma. Make it your compass in this short journey.
Realizing the Urgency of Practice
When we truly grasp that life is as brief as dew on grass, we stop postponing what really matters. We stop saying, “I’ll meditate tomorrow” or “I’ll start practicing later.” Instead, we realize the only time to live with wisdom, compassion, and awareness is right now.
A Gentle Reminder
Think about your day today. Hours have already passed. Did you use them wisely? Or did they slip away like a line on water? The Araka Sutta gently reminds us that every second counts. If you had only a few days left, what would you prioritize? That’s exactly how you should live even now.
Conclusion
The Araka Sutta is a wake-up call. Life is not as long as we think. It is fragile, fleeting, and shorter than we imagine. The Buddha, through the words of Araka, urges us to live wisely, practice the Dhamma, and awaken before time runs out.
We cannot stop death, but we can choose how to live before it arrives. And the wisest way is to use this brief span to realize the Four Noble Truths and follow the path of liberation. Life is short but in that shortness lies the chance for eternal freedom.
FAQs
Namo Buddhaya!
0 Comments