The desire to commit suicide, however, has at its base a belief that life cannot or will not improve. Although that may be the case in some instances, it is not true in all instances. Death, however, rules out hope in all instances. We do not have any data indicating that people who are dead lead better lives.

Meaning: Death is named as a certainty against which other expectations seem less secure. The saying invites perspective on finite life, but it gives no information about anyone’s timing or circumstances and should not dismiss fear, grief or the value of present care.

Meaning: Death is possible at any age, while old age makes the end of life impossible to ignore. The contrast is a reminder of mortality.

Meaning: The saying makes everyone eat a measure of ashes before death. Its grim image can suggest that unpleasant experiences are imagined as part of living.

Meaning: The saying imagines a predetermined death by hanging preventing death by drowning. It turns one danger into an apparent escape through a claim of fixed destiny.