Life not so trivial to throw away

Centuries ago, the great Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote: ‘’To run away from trouble is a form of cowardice and while it is true that suicide braves death, he does it not for some noble object but to escape some ill.’’ And centuries later, American psychiatrist Karl A. Menninger wrote that ‘Hope is a necessity for normal life and the major weapon against the suicide impulse.’’ Any psychiatrist or counsellor you approach in a troubled state of mind would try to convince you that there is always hope and light at the end of the tunnel.

Life is too precious to call for an abrupt end and yet, why do so many people - young and old and the rich and poor across the spectrum, decide to kill themselves? Suicide is a troubling phenomenon in the 21st century no doubt. In India, it has emerged as a worrisome health issue with 171,000 suicides recorded in 2022, which was 27% higher compared to 2018. The rate of suicide per 100,000 population has increased to 12.4 in 2022 which is no comforting thought. Countless lives are lost for the most trivial or not so trivial reasons with the victims giving up hope and deciding to end it all at the end of a rope - or maybe by slashing a wrist or gulping down poison.

Most such incidents are attributed to personal problems -broken marriages and relationship issues, poverty and job related worries and so on. It is widely recognised that unless people are driven to the brink, they do not dare to take their lives knowing how precious it is. A feeling of worthlessness, depression, guilt, chronic pain, rage or grief - there could be umpteen reasons which drive a person to the conclusion that life has become an empty shell. Can we bring down these spiralling numbers of those who end their lives often on the spur of the moment? Deciphering the warning signs and identifying those who are in urgent need of help, are extremely important, say experts. Most people who commit suicide would have let out some signals that they are considering the extreme act. They may speak frequently about the problems they face. Family members or friends are the first ones at the receiving end of such signals and if they do not act in time, it could well be too late to save a life.

To quote Aristotle again, ‘it is during our darkest moments that we must focus to see the light.’ Could there be something more powerful than this to deter those souls who feel all hope has ended and only pain and hopelessness lies ahead of them? Life is too beautiful and precious to be thrown away in this manner - something anyone entertaining suicidal thoughts should remember. Two suicides in Bengaluru in the recent past have served to throw light on the pressing need for intervention in the case of those prone to suicidal thoughts. One was the case of the techie who ended his life blaming it on a marital dispute and putting out a tell-all video explaining how he had been pushed to the wall. The other was the case of a Bengaluru cop who chose to kill himself by jumping before a train with a marital row again suspected.

Help lines galore, counselling centres and regular sessions, national and global campaigns –and yet the number of those who kill themselves early, is rising with every passing day. The beauty of life should have stopped most of the suicide –prone but yet, they do not seem to be convinced enough “To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance,” wrote novelist Oscar Wilde and what better words than these to deter all those entertaining suicidal thought at the back of their minds?