we really have no idea whatsoever what will become of us after death. absolutely nothing. we have some reports of what people experienced near death, but that simply tells us what it’s like to be near death.
for all we know, our consciousness could get transposed into another realm, and we all become flying space hippos who drain star power to live. or whatever.
why is there such a small mainstream list of possibilites for after death?
that death is just a door opening.
I also happen to believe this is true.
The only way I’ve been able to make some sense of this life is that it is not just ONE life, but a whole series of lives. Yes, I feel re-incarnation is true. But let me continue.
Each life is suppose to teach us something. What that lesson is suppose to be is up to the individual to find. I’ve found it helpful to look around and find what’s been repeating itself at you. That’s usually the first clue.
Here’s where it gets corny. Remember a movie a few years back, starring Alan Brooks and Meryl Streep, Judging your Life? After you die, you go to this Other Place where you aren’t judged, but you review your life and figure out what you did wrong, what you did right and how to improve it. Believe it or not, that’s pretty much how I feel the Afterlife is. And, after resting and organizing your notes, you’re sent back to THIS world to give it another go.
Despite how closely this movie mirrors my own belief, I don’t think there’s any JUDGING that goes on in this Other Place. Oh, the God(s) help you sort out your life, figure where you went wrong, what you did right. There’s no punishment or reward, there is, however, UNDERSTANDING, which I feel is the most important thing. Understanding what you did, why you did it and how it effects the world around you.
And this continues 'til… well, that’s a good question. The best I’ve been able to figure out is that after a certain point, you’ve gained enough experience that your willpower is able to sustain your soul or spirit without the aid of a physical body. You essentially graduate to the next level, that of a non-corporal being. After that? Damned if I know. Having spoken with other Pagans, I know this belief is shared by others. Maybe not exactly in the same way, but it follows the same pattern.
One more thing. I have not a bit of evidence to back this up. Only personal experience and personal revelation that has been shared with me and others have told me. I just know in my heart it’s right.
I imagine for the same reason there is such a small mainstream list of what god is like.
most of the major religions have a pretty similar description of god.
But I think the easiest answer is simplicity. Why would anyone come up with a hypothesis of becoming a flying space hipo or giant death clam or whatever. It’s much easier to explain that life continues after death, but in a somewhat altered state.
Some cultures dictate that you keep doing what you’ve always been doing for eternity, some dictate that you don’t change much (except you get punished or rewarded based on your life), some that you will repeat life over again. These are all based on peoples material experience. They think, this is what I’m doing now, this is probably what I’ll do when I die.
Yes, jb, we have no idea. In fact, all we have are beliefs or lack of beliefs, faith or lack of faith. Some believe they will go on to better things. Others see no reason to believe in such a thing. < shrug >
I have no idea what, if anything, comes after death. If I was going to set odds, I’d make oblivion the favorite, but I have no way of knowing for sure.
Since I don’t know, I don’t worry about it. I’ll find out for myself soon enough, as will we all.
Well, DavidB beat me to it, so I can only echo what he said.
Oh, and Freyr, it’s Albert Brooks, nee Einstein. And I enjoyed the hell outta that movie.
Waste
Flick Lives!
The ancient Egyptians had an interesting belief in the afterlife. According to a recent documentary I saw on the History Channel, the heiroglyphs depict the Egyptians in the afterlife doing much the same thing they did while alive- e.g., farming, laboring, serving Pharaoh, etc. But they are depicted as being happy. They are dressed nicely and are not dirty or sweaty even though they are shown tilling the fields or whatever the case may be. Not sure if I’d want to do my job forever and ever, even if I was all happy and such, but I guess it’s better than strumming a harp continuously, or that warm alternative that gets mentioned once in a while 
let us assume that: (A) the universe will go on forever (i.e. after the universe spreads out and suffers death due to thermal equilibrium, there will be a new “big bang”-that starts the whole thing rolling again)
(B) the laws of physics in the universes to follow will stay the same
THEN-we are home free!
Given infinite amounts of time-each one of us will live again - with possibly huge intervals of time intervening! This really doesn’t bother me-it is like switching a computer off at night-and turning it on again-whether the machine is off for a few hours, or a few milleniums-it makes no difference to the CPU! Of course, if you can’t remember your previous life, it is just like dying anyway.
My question on reincarnation would be, does it seem like people are any wiser now than they were in the past? I would figure that after countless eons of repeating the same mistakes, you’d see some sort of trend of increasing enlightenment, a greater number of saintly people in each generation, just about to head off into Nirvana on the next go-round.
I can’t prove that the distribution of people along the a-hole/saint continuum has been constant over time, but that seems more in keeping with our experience than an upswing in enlightened souls. And, the absolute number of people has been increasing. So, either a huge number of living spirits have just been unable to put their reincarnation experience to practical use, or there’s something fishy about the whole idea.
Of course, I might change my mind in my next life.
My personal views are probably too scientific for most people to accept, but I have to say nothing. Going through a long process of logic, which I will describe only if people ask, is that dieing is just going to sleep and not waking up. If you fell into a dreamless sleep and didn’t wake up, would you know? Of course not.
“Our conciousness” is nothing more than several billion nerve cells. It has a physical embodiment. I don’t see how it could be transported. Except, its pattern could be transmitted genetically. A certain pattern of nerve cells might determine who we are, and by passing on our genetic material we may pass on a bit of ourselves.
That has nothing to do with death though. So, in short, after death is nothing we would be able to experience. I mean, do you have any memories of a past life? I don’t.
Hmm…sorry to be so literal on this one, but I couldn’t explain anythnig else this time.
Think of it this way.
If you bet on God and are right, you go to Heaven eternally.
If you bet on God and lose, you have no afterlife.
If you bet against God and win, you have no afterlife.
If you bet against God and you lose, you go to Hell eternally.
It doesn’t take a genious to figure out that the first scenario is the best.
So all you will lose is an hour a week and a couple of prayers.
Then again, you could bet on a different God than the Christian one and get something else entirely. All you will lose is a closed mind.
Also, for some reason, I don’t think that just going to a building once a week and repeating some words someone told you once is going to get you to that happy-ever-after Heaven place. I think it has something to do with actually believing.
Gee, this is, what, the ten trillionth iteration of Pascal’s Wager posted by somebody who doesn’t recognize the faulty assumptions on which it lies? A word of wisdom to you, my friend: Do not bet against Odin. :rolleyes:
Hey, maybe next we can have another poster send in a unit from the Army of Not Reading Previous Posts, Division of Straw Men, to describe how all Christians are Bible-pounding literalists. That would be original and exciting!
The very worst thing about Pascal’s Wager is its presentation of God as a lottery prize.
[… running off to vomit …]
I’ll agree with you on that Lib. Also, I would think that God would be smart enough that anyone who worship’s him just because of the “odds”, wouldn’t actually get into heaven.
LOL
Really? What religion is that?? Sign me up!
Well, as I pointed out on another thread, Pascal was here last spring. After several months of research, we told him how to invest for maximum market penetration. The answer is, of course, proprietary, a trade secret.
But I will comment that not even in parodies have I ever seen God represented as plumbing supplies.
Lay off Griffey, you damned atheistic bastards. Religion as game theory is just another path, although a slightly calculated one.
Keenan wrote:
Good points. One thing, it’s not necessarily wisdom that increases, but willpower, the strength of will to keep your soul/spirit from dissolving, for lack of a better term. Wisdom is just another prize thrown into the mix. Are there wiser people around than in the past? Hard to say. How do you define wise? Also, there are LOTS more people, incarnate, on the planet than there’s ever been in recorded history. Some souls are certainly older than others. Wiser? How do you judge?
kgriffey79 wrote:
KG79, the problem with this “bet” is it falls apart when you work in a polytheistic system, which I do. Now, within a polytheistic system, are you still willing to make that wager? Are you ready to prove that monotheism is the correct answer? Or are you of the many “hit and run” witnesssing people that toss out a msg. then scurry away, afraid of what answers might turn up?
mipsman wrote:
I’m not damned nor an atheist nor a bastard. Watch your language! If KG79 throws out a false assumption like Pascal’s wager, he also needs to know that people are going to call him on it. If he can’t deal with that, he’s on the wrong msg. board.