Staring at the Sun: Overcoming the Terror of Death

In the opening chapter of Staring at the Sun, Irvin D. Yalom establishes death anxiety as a fundamental aspect of human experience that profoundly shapes psychological well-being throughout life. Yalom begins by invoking the ancient Mesopotamian epic of Gilgamesh, specifically the hero’s anguished response to his friend Enkidu’s death, to demonstrate how mortality has troubled humanity across millennia.

Yalom argues that self-awareness is humanity’s greatest gift, but that it carries an inevitable burden: the knowledge of one’s mortality. He describes this awareness as creating the “wound of mortality” that shadows all human existence (1). Drawing from his experience as a psychotherapist, Yalom explains that death anxiety manifests differently across individuals: Some experience direct, conscious fear; others encounter generalized unrest or anxiety that masks deeper concerns about mortality; and still others face paralyzing terror that undermines all life satisfaction.

The author positions ancient Greek philosophy, particularly the teachings of Epicurus, as more relevant to therapeutic practice than traditional psychiatric approaches. Yalom explains that Epicurus, who lived from 341 to 270 BCE, practiced what he terms “medical philosophy”—treating psychological suffering the same way physicians treat physical ailments. Contrary to popular misconceptions about epicurean pleasure-seeking, Epicurus actually focused on achieving tranquility by addressing what he considered the root of human misery: fear of death.