Grief as Testimony to Worth

Mirabai's overwhelming, sometimes excessive devotion—her abandonment of everything for love—was not a flaw to be corrected but a testament to Krishna's reality and worth. Similarly, the depth of collective grief we experience for certain public figures is itself evidence of what they meant in the world. When millions mourn someone's death, that grief is not weakness or unhealthy attachment; it is testimony. It is our culture saying: this person mattered. Their existence altered the fabric of life. Their absence leaves a hole that cannot simply be patched. In moments when we might feel embarrassed by the intensity of our collective mourning—wondering if we are overreacting, being sentimental—we can draw on Mirabai's example and understand instead that our grief honors reality. The more deeply someone touched us, the more profound our grief. Rather than suppressing this expression, we can offer it as testimony: this person was real, was good, was needed, and the world is genuinely diminished by their loss.