Is the desire for eternal life – a form of self gratification?
Self realisation should not be confused with self gratification in the context of your question, the material corporeal body is destined to be vanquished sooner or later, the material body is constantly changing, it is in a constant state of flux and perpetual motion, empirical science has proven that ever seven years, every cell in the body changes, so the body you were driving around seven years ago, is different to the one you have now. Although the material body is subject to change, the living entity inside the body is eternal, the subtle mind in a conditioned state is also subject to change and modification, however when the mind is purified, the spirit soul can be perceived. So it is not a matter of what we want, or creating a fictitious elaborate doctrine or philosophy to deal with the fear of death, the fact we are eternal spirit souls and not these temporary material bodies is the absolute truth, which is something anyone can discover using an open minded attitude as the firs
