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by Juliate 2828 days ago
Iliad, book 9, Achilles speaking:

  My fates long since by Thetis were disclosed,
  And each alternate, life or fame, proposed:
  Here if I stay, before the Trojan town,
  Short is my date, but deathless my renown;
  If I return, I quit immortal praise
  For years on years, and long-extended days.
  Convinced, though late, I find my fond mistake,
  And warn the Greeks the wiser choice to make;
  To quit these shores, their native seats enjoy,
  Nor hope the fall of heaven-defended Troy.
2 comments

Good example. This has concerned people throughout the ages. And if you reject Heaven and reincarnation, it may be the only path to eternal "life".
Which did he choose in the end?
Achilles is mortally wounded in Troy by an arrow through his heel.
His renown lasts until this day, 3000 years later. The answer is in the quoted text.