INTRODUCTION
I have written severally on the Ephemerality of Power, but never have I written on the correlation of the ephemerality of power and the vanity of life, which I now do.
Power, Life, Life and Power. One depends on the other. But, not necessarily the other way round. At least, not literally. Yes, you need life (as in, to be alive) to be in a position to exercise power. But, strangely, you can exercise power (not merely influence) even after death. This shows the sheer depth and breadth of this topic. Both concepts have fascinated philosophers and engaged the greatest thinkers throughout history, some of whom have concluded (not without reason) that, by reason of death being the Great Leveler (it is no respecter of persons) the pursuit of material possessions and status is pointless. In other words, it is sheer vanity. Kings (and Queens) have come and gone. Empires and Dynasties have crumbled and been replaced by others – including different forms of State. It makes you wonder: why do men (and women) still persist in the vainglorious pursuit of the things of this world? Why are they prepared to shed blood, risk life and limb (and everything else) knowing that they will inevitably leave it all behind? That they would be separated from it all by that silent sentinel, the Grim Reaper? Are those exertions worth the effort?
History is replete with example of great historic men who held sway over large swathes of the earth: Julius Caesar (the Roman Empire); Kamal Ataturk (the Ottoman Empire); Napoleon Bonaparte (the French Empire); the Mongols; Adolf Hitler (Nazi Germany); King Bismarch (the Austro-Hungarian Empire); a Succession of British Sovereigns (the British Empire); Imperial Japan; The Raj (Pre-Colonial India); the Incas of Peru and the Tsars of Russia. Closer to home, we had the likes of Benin Empire, Kanem-Borno Empire, Ghana Empire, Songhai Empire, Mali Empire, Oyo Empire and the Sokoto Caliphate. Virtually all of them have either completely disappeared (along with their ruling classes/royal dynasties) or (like the British and similar Royal Families – especially in Europe) greatly diminished in power and influence – if not quite in stature. Some tyrants, despots and dictators fell from power – from grace to grass – kissing the canvas. Remember Idi Amin of Uganda; Saddam Hussein; Joseph Stalin; Pol Pot; Genghis Khan; Mao Zedong; Ivan the Terrible; Leopold II and Vlad the Impaler. They were reputed to have killed hundreds of thousands of people, mostly their citizens.
Today, only very few absolute monarchies remain, such as that of Brunei, Vatican City, Eswatini, UAE, Thailand, Swaziland, and Saudi Arabia. The passage of the immediate past British monarch (Queen Elizabeth II) who died on September 8, 2022, at 96, brought the transience (or ephemerality) of power and life itself – not to mention the sheer vanity of it all – into sharp focus. One by one, her revered symbols of power (crown, scepter, jewels etc.) were taken off her casket and she was buried with not a single one of them. For good measure, the Officiating Minister simply addressed her as “our sister, Elizabeth”. He added that she was being buried as a ‘simple Christian’. Nothing more. This calls for some detailed insight into both phenomena starting with ‘ephemerality’.
This word ‘ephemeral’ has been defined as either lasting a very short time or lasting only one day. Accordingly, ‘ephemerality’ is the quality of state of lasting for a very short time; and a thing that lasts only for a short time. Some scholars have argued that, as with all things, context matters and that what is considered ‘a very short time’ varies; and therefore, it is best to think of ephemerality as a spectrum. In one particular context, social media platforms increasingly give users the option of ephemerality through settings that delete or hide posted content after a set period of time. However, in terms of the bigger picture, there is none bigger than our very lives – on a very personal level. We are born and (for the vast majority of us), our exits (i.e. our deaths) are mysteries in terms of the precise time and manner of their occurrence. What is clear, however, is the fleetingness of time. How often we hear the expression (or we exclaim ourselves) ‘How time flies!’, ‘time is short’ and ‘time waits for no one’. All of them convey the ephemerality of our lives. There is never enough time. Is it not it a mystery, then, why people still waste time on inanities, frivolities and simply idling away? You would think that the universality of the acceptance of the ephemerality of life would manifest in the urgency of its optimization. No second should be wasted. Our lives should be purposeful and meaningful. Alas, the reality has been anything but. Many still drift through life either trying to make sense of it all or suffering from the illusion that they have the luxury of time – that time is on their side. Needless to say, reality invariably sets in and gives such people its unique chastening: they’ve been sleep-walking through life and now it is too late. Tardiness never pays. One should always make hay while the sun shines and always strike when the iron is hot. Opportunities – when lost – are seldom regained.
Ephemerality of Life Nuggets
The transience of life has inspired many pith and cerebral quotes from sages and philosophers over the years. While they are, in the nature of things, broad and general in terms, their breadth and profundity, are nevertheless striking, and sometimes moving. Here is a selection:
“Life is short, and it’s up to you to make it sweet.” –Sarah Louise Delany
“Life is too short to stuff a mushroom.” –Jasmin Morin
“Life is a first impression. You get one shot at it. Make it everlasting.” –J.R. Rim
“With life as short as a half-taken breath, don’t play anything but love.” –Rumi
“Life lies in the blink of an eye.” –Mike Skinner
“Life is too short for unreality and you don’t owe anybody anything – especially your time, energy, and attention.” –Oli Anderson
“Distractions make life seem way shorter than it is.” – Mokokoma Mokhonoana
“Life goes by fast. Enjoy it. Calm down. It’s all funny.” – Joan Rivers
“Yes, life is short, the roads are very difficult, but our love for life is greater than all these negativities!” – Mehmet Murat ildan
“Time flies, whether you’re wasting it or not.” – Crystal Wood
“Life is too short not to start something stupid.” – Richie Norton.
“At some point your candle will go out, so make use of the light.” – Shaun Hick
“Life is short; love is longer.” – Kamand Kojouri
“Life is so short, transient, and beautiful that there is not enough time to get old.” – Debasish Mridha
The list is endless, (paradoxical given the subject) and the following are additional expressions of our fascination with things ephemeral: “A dress is a piece of ephemeral architecture, designed to enhance the proportions of the female body”. – Christian Dior
“Once music ceases to be ephemeral – always disappearing – and becomes instead material… it leaves the condition of traditional music and enters the condition of painting. It becomes a painting, existing as material in space, not immaterial in time”. – Brian Eno
“I like the ephemeral thing about theatre, every performance is like a ghost – it’s there and then it’s gone”. – Maggie Smith
“Substance is enduring, form is ephemeral”. – Dee Hock
“Fashion is something which is non-lasting; it’s ephemeral”. – Lapo Elkann
“I think probably the thing I’m worst at is the most ephemeral stuff, like blogs. I find it really hard to write. And I’m often been asked to write columns for papers in Peru. And I can’t. I would die. There’s no way I could write a column”. – Daniel Alarcon
“Television is ephemeral, a fact that some will find reassuring. But earthlings will continue to pump the kilowatts into the ether. And eventually, when those signals have washed over a few hundred thousand star systems, someone may notice” – Seth Sostak
“Perhaps summer’s ephemeral nature is what inspires us to embrace the beach read. We tell ourselves that these twisted plots and wild characters are literary ice cream sundaes – extravagant treats that aren’t as calorie-laden when we’re wearing flip flops”. – Sarah MacLean
Vanity
Vanity has been defined, inter alia, as anything that is vain, empty or valueless. This meaning is arguably best known for its Biblical expression (Ecclesiastes 1:2): “Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” The message is clear! Everything is meaningless without a proper focus on God; it underscores the importance of the fear of God in a confusing and frustrating world.
According to a Bible scholar: “Everything is transitory and therefore of no lasting value. People are caught in the trap of the absurd and pursue empty pleasures.”
King Solomon in Ecclesiastes 1:2-3 was forced to conclude, “Vanity of vanites … Vanity of vanities, all is vanity. What profit has a man from all his labours in which he toils under the sun?”. This view tallies with a passage in another part of the Bible, (1 John 2:16-17).
“For everything in the world – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life – comes not from the Father, but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.”
This passage, in the opinion of Duane Garrett, speaks to the short-lived (or ephemeral) nature of the passions of the world. According to him:
“Many people run after pleasure thinking it will bring satisfaction (but they soon realize) that the pleasure of the moments is fleeting. It felt good while they were doing it, but after it was over, they were left unfulfilled. For most, the answer is to pursue greater pleasures, but they soon recognize they come to the same conclusion. When this happens, pleasure becomes vanity.”
I cannot agree more.
The same message is contained in the Qur’an, several of whose verses emphasize the emptiness of life. For instance, in the last line in Chapter 57 (Surat Al Hadid or Iron), Verse 20, the Qur’an says that:
“The present life is but the joy of delusion” (“Wa maal-hayatud-dunyaaa ila mataa-ul- gurur”).
Another instance is Chapter 47, Verse 36, where the following passage occurs: “Innamal-hayaatud-dunyaa a-ibun-wa lahw” (“This present life is but a sport and a diversion”).
However, the full rendition of Chapter 57, Verse 20, (part of which is quoted above), drives home the point more succinctly: “Know that the present life is but a sport and a diversion, an adornment and a cause for boasting among you, and a rivalry in wealth and children, it is as a rain whose vegetation pleases the unbelievers, then it withers, and then seest it turning yellow, then it becomes broken orts”
