After life?

[jonny jeez]

I'm a hardcore atheist. I believe the mind and soul are just electro impulses in the brain organ. When the brain dies it's like a candel flame been blown out for eternity. Although I believe infinity within the universe there's a chance that somewhere else we could live our lives all over again in a parallel universe.
Who thinks there's some kind of afterlife?

Purely spiritual versions of reincarnation...kinda backing up the soul into a hard drive and reinstalling it into a slug or such like seem like nonsense to me...worse, they seem like a distracting false hope.

But...technological reincarnation could perhaps be viable one day. Perhaps the Egyptians knew something we didn't as they seemed quite preoccupied with removing and storing brains and other major organs upon death. Perhaps DNA tech will one day allow us to recreate an entire person, soul and all from a hair or drop of dried snot.

 

[jonny jeez]

D'ya remember life before you were born? No? That's what being dead will be like.

But messier..
And a bit more smelly

 

[ColinJ]

I am pondering a more fundamental question ... "Is there life after birth?"

If you speak to people who are heading for the exit door, you sometimes get a different response to the one they would have given when they were young and fit.

In 2012, I was lying near-death on my bathroom floor. I felt my life ebbing away and my thoughts turned to life's great questions:

• Why did I never learn to play the guitar or the piano?
• Why did I never cycle in the Alps, Pyrenees, or Dolomites?
• Why did I not have more sex when I had the chance!
• Why do people turn to religion at times like this?

And then it all went black.

Well, I did eventually come round, and crawl to a phone to summon help. I survived, but (despite promises to myself at the time) I still don't play a musical instrument, I haven't ridden up any big mountains, I spend my time alone, and I am still an atheist!

 

[MontyVeda]

Yes but we won't know until we die.

at which point, you/we/I won't be capable of knowing anything, so we won't know. (edit... TMN to someone)

I'd be dang pissed off if I 'woke' after death to realise that i have to continue thinking and feeling for another lifetime or an eternity... I get no comfort from that notion.

 

[numbnuts]

My post was deliberately flippant and I expected such a response.

The reality is that I'm disinclined to impose my views on my children; they have brains and so I want them to decide for themselves whether they believe in this or not. In the meantime I've been assisting the church using my professional and hobbyist skills for the last 4 years and so believe this to be a fair trade off.

Well done, I suppose it is a lot better that an old git that goes to church and does sod all else except moan

 

[Sixmile]

As a Christian I believe in a new heaven and a new earth as described in the New Testament. I'm not saying I have the 'afterlife' bit all sussed out and have many a struggle with the 'eternity' part as I just can't comprehend infinity but I don't hold the position that we're an accident, a random collection of worthless cells with no reason or purpose of breathing or existing. Many do though and I don't lose the plot or get angry with them.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

As a Christian I believe in a new heaven and a new earth as described in the New Testament. I'm not saying I have the 'afterlife' bit all sussed out and have many a struggle with the 'eternity' part as I just can't comprehend infinity but I don't hold the position that we're an accident, a random collection of worthless cells with no reason or purpose of breathing or existing. Many do though and I don't lose the plot or get angry with them.

That's kind of you.

 

[Sixmile]

That's kind of you.

If only it worked the other way round too.

 

[grumpyoldwoman]

I'm a Pagan and believe in reincarnation myself. We're all different and have different beliefs which are right for US. Not after an argument or abuse. My beliefs are mine and I won't force them on anyone else,interesting to see others points of view though.

 

[Slick]

I am pondering a more fundamental question ... "Is there life after birth?"


In 2012, I was lying near-death on my bathroom floor. I felt my life ebbing away and my thoughts turned to life's great questions:

• Why did I never learn to play the guitar or the piano?
• Why did I never cycle in the Alps, Pyrenees, or Dolomites?
• Why did I not have more sex when I had the chance!
• Why do people turn to religion at times like this?

And then it all went black.

Well, I did eventually come round, and crawl to a phone to summon help. I survived, but (despite promises to myself at the time) I still don't play a musical instrument, I haven't ridden up any big mountains, I spend my time alone, and I am still an atheist!

You weren't when you were lying there apparently dying.

 

[MontyVeda]

If only it worked the other way round too.

It can. I'm an atheist who has respect for people with faith. It only gets tricky when I'm asked 'why' I'm an atheist.

 

[derrick]

It can. I'm an atheist who has respect for people with faith. It only gets tricky when I'm asked 'why' I'm an atheist.

Why are you an atheist?

 

[cubey]

Buddhist here, when I am gone.............I shall be back.

 

[smutchin]

Eternity is a bloody long time. Even if it is all milk and honey.

I don't even like milk.

My atheism is exceeded only by my hypocrisy. We (occasionally) attend the local church to ensure our children meet the entry criteria for the fabulous local church school.

That's like a secular version of Pascal's Wager - why wait for the afterlife to get the rewards for your faith, eh?

I spend my time alone

But are you having any more sex?

 

[ColinJ]

You weren't when you were lying there apparently dying.

It did make me realise that I would rather be alive than dead. Mind you, as others have pointed out - once dead you would hardly be thinking what a shame it was that it had happened. Worrying about death is for the living!

The first year of recovery was so bad that I found myself thinking that I would never recover to have what I considered a reasonable quality of life but I have done enough good bike rides since then, laughed enough times, and so on, that I no longer ask myself if it had been worth surviving - it has been. I think that I will probably die early because of the damage done to my body, but I am looking at whatever good things happen between now and then as a bonus.