Vanity of vanities; all is vanity (Ecclesiastes 1:2). St John of Damaskos says the same thing: ‘All human affairs, all that does not exist after death, are vanity. Riches vanish, glory leaves us. When death comes, all such things disappear.’ And again, ‘Truly all things are vanity; life is but a shadow and a dream, and every man born of the earth troubles himself in vain, as the Scriptures say (Psalm 39:6).’
‘By the time we have gained the whole world we shall be in the grave, where king and pauper are one.’
~St Peter of Damaskos
Prayerful Life 