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Fans and fellow footballers have paid their tributes to the late World Cup star. In its social media post, FIFA wrote, "Once a World Cup hero, Always a World Cup hero."
The nation, as well as the international football scene, gripped by sadness from the loss of the footballer has reminded me of a recent thought-provoking YouTube talk show featuring the renowned physician Jung Hyun-chae who has given lectures about "dying well" over the past 15 years.
The physician defied a common belief that death is the absolute end of existence. Instead, he argued, when people die, they are ushered into another world, citing the 2010 book, titled "The Guidelines for Dying Well" published by the Korean Association of Death Studies.
"There's a part in the book which reads, 'Believing that there is another world after death, we need to prepare for our own death.' I think the expression 'believing' needs to be replaced with 'trusting scientifically proven knowledge.' So it should be alternatively written, 'Trusting scientifically proven knowledge that there is another world after death…" he said in a video uploaded on the medical channel tentatively titled "After Rain."
When Hong Hye-geol, a doctor-turned-talk show host, asked him in disbelief to confirm if he truly believes there's such a thing as life after death, Jung answered he certainly believes so. He shared the findings of several research works conducted by internationally renowned experts in the field of near-death experiences to support his claims.
The medical definition of death is "the cessation of all vital functions of the body, including the heartbeat, brain activity and breathing."
Jung quoted some people having experienced death, albeit briefly, as saying they found their souls were separated from their bodies and were able to look at themselves as well as others surrounding them and their reactions before they were revived.
In Korea (and maybe in many other countries, too), dying and near-death experiences have long been a taboo for open discussion, maybe because of our widespread fear of death.
Jung pointed to Confucian belief, which had long dominated Korean society since the 1392-1910 Joseon Kingdom, as a main stumbling block that delayed academic research on dying.
Unlike other religions, he said, Confucianism doesn't mention what happens when we die. "We're taught that Confucius himself refused to comment when he was asked if there's life after death. I wonder what if he had said, 'I don't know whether there's another world after death or not. Why don't we do some research about it?' If he had reacted like that, I think there would have been a lot of changes in death studies," he said with a laugh.
Some religions, such as Buddhism, have teachings about life after death. Christianity also tells the story of life after death with detailed descriptions of two opposing worlds ― Heaven and Hell.
Despite the discourse about another world after death among religious people, speaking about life after death has been widely regarded as an unscientific, or inappropriate topic for open discussion for the general public.
Jung said there has been a positive change over the past decade in Korea's societal reaction to dying as a topic for open discussion.
"In the past, whenever I talked about near-death experiences or matters related to life after death, I would be scorned by fellow doctors. Some even said I was insane or might have some mental health problems. But now, few people react like that, because people have begun to research death and dying," he said.
His observation about dying has intrigued me.
We all die. Despite this, oddly enough, few of us think seriously about dying. Without being properly prepared, we often find ourselves gripped by uncontrollable outbursts of sadness when we or our loved ones are seriously ill or forced to face death against our will. Many of us fear death. That fear may come from our limited understanding of death or our unpreparedness for the end of our lives in this world. I think we would be better off if we were prepared for death.
