The atmosphere of festivity, continued Rabbi Kamenetzky, demonstrated that those present had no understanding of the value of this deceased European woman and did not appreciate the impact of her death on their lives. We learn from this the proper Torah attitude towards the death of a member of one's family - especially parents. Death is not merely the termination of the experience of life, rather it has a meaning of its own. In order to clarify this concept we will compare the life process of a human being with that of an animal. Upon birth, an animal is almost completely developed with most of his potential faculties and powers operating at nearly full strength.
Most animals are able to fend for themselves relatively soon after birth.
Man, by contrast, is born helpless, and only after many years of being cared for and tended, is he able to fend for himself. In addition, the concept of intellectual and spiritual growth has no relation to animals whereas man grows continually in these areas until death. Animals have no spiritual development. Their species do not advance or grow in intellect. As animals were thousands of years ago, so they are today.