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What do you call a med school student who graduates with the absolute lowest score in his class?
Doctor.
I believe in reincarnation. Here’s why.
"You want a physicist to speak at your funeral. You want the physicist to talk to your grieving family about the conservation of energy, so they will understand that your energy has not died. You want the physicist to remind your sobbing mother about the first law of thermodynamics; that no energy gets created in the univers, and none is destroyed. You want your mother to know that ll your energy, every vibration, every BTU of heat, every wave of every particle that was her beloved child remains with her in this world. You want the physicist to tell your weeping father that amid the energies of the cosmos, you gave as good as you’ve got.
And at one point you’d hope that the physicist would step down from the pulpit and walk to your brokenhearted spouse there in the pew and tell him that all the photons that ever bounced off your face, all the particles whose pahts were interrupted by your smile, by the touch of your hair, hundreds of trillions of particles, have raced off like children, their ways forever changed by you. And as your widow rocks in the arms of a loving family, may the physicist let her know that all the photons that bounced from you were gathered in the particle detectors that are her eyes, that those photons created with her constellations of electromagneticaly charged neurons whose energy will go on forever.
And the physicist will remind the congregation of how much of all of our energy is given off as heat. There may be a few fanning themselveswith their programs as he says. And he will tell them that the warmth that flowed through you in life is still here, still part of all that we are, even as we who mourn continue the heat of our own lives
And you’ll want the physicist to explain to those who loved you that they need not have faith; indeed, they should not have faith. Let them know that they can measure, that scientists have measured precisely the conservation of energy and found it accurate, verifiable, and consistent across space and time. You can hope your family will examine the evidence and satisfy themselves that the science is sound and that they’ll be comforted to know your energy’s still around. According to the law of conservation of energy, not a bit of you is gone; you’re just less orderly. Amen" - Aaron Freeman
When I think about this, and look at all the living beings across the world and universe, it seems evident to me that we pass from life to life.
P.S. sorry for the typos.
Your matter and heat continuing on after your death isn’t anywhere near the same thing as your consciousness and memories passing on.
That has nothing to do with reincarnation, though. It’s more of a physics-based metaphor for what we’ve done in life and how our impact on the world continues after we die. It’s a little like answering the question “Is there life after death?” by saying “Sure, everyone else is still alive after you die.*” It’s true, but it doesn’t address the issue.
*I, however, am taking the rest of you bastards with me.
I can admit that this doesn’t adequately explain or make a case for reincarnation. But it’s a general feeling that I get. No one really knows or will ever know, so I feel I’m entitled to it.
But it seems to me that every living being has some type of animating quality to it. Call it a soul if you like, but it’s obvious that their is energy flowing through that being.
The law of conservation states that energy can neither be created or destroyed. So in my opinion, animals and living beings alike, aren’t born with new energy, or a new soul. They simply recycle the already existing energy, or existing soul.
Nobody’s arguing you aren’t entitled to your opinion. Claiming it’s supported by facts is another matter.
We know there is energy inside us. There are electrical signals in our bodies and we take in energy by eating. We don’t need a soul to explain this, when people say it’s obvious there is some other thing animating living beings, I don’t know how they can be that sure. In fact not only is a soul not obvious, it’s extraneous.
It could also lead to the belief that one should do as good as they can, so that they can lead another good life.
We know that all living beings utilize energy in order to survive. We also know that energy is neither created nor destroyed and is always contained within the universe. I think it follows that energy simply flows from one being to the next.
How else can you explain the “animating” factor present in living beings?
Where does the energy from a flashlight battery go? If you are proposing another kind of energy, how is it measured?
The energy from the flashlight battery goes back into the universe somewhere. In a similar way, we create new batteries with the right composition of energy.
But this is different because the battery is not alive. So does that suggest that there is a “different” type of energy that we are unaware of?
Ill admit that there is no way to measure it or prove this. Why are you asking questions that you know I can’t answer properly? I feel like it’s sandbagging the discussion.
Possibly as originating from the biological parents and having nothing to do with other beings that died many years ago and continents away.
Sure, if you like to look at it in a black and white, matter of fact way. But we don’t live in that world. The entire universe is a mystery whose origin will never be understood (IMHO). I prefer to have vision of what could be.
When I don’t know the answer to a question I answer “I don’t know” instead of throwing out baseless speculation.
No, there are four fundamental forces and W = FD.
Yeah, but were talking about the etiology of existence of which there will never be an answer. Mere speculation is about the best we can do. If you prefer to simply say, “I don’t know” that’s fine and I think it’s respectable. I like to think about things like this and reincarnation is a satisfying explanation to me.
I don’t consider it necessarily baseless. The law of conservation of energy states that energy is neither created or destroyed. Living beings quite obviously utilize this energy in order to live.
You say that people die and that’s it. But I am questioning where this energy went. See, I’m sort of a pantheist. I think that every single impression you make on the earth, and the energy that is inside of you constitutes your soul. My soul right now is having an effect on you and whoever else might read this. IMO, a part of me is living now through you and the universe itself, effectively indicating reincarnation and immortality. Is this not having some kind of effect on you?
With that being said, it’s difficult to explain why we have consciousness at all. You can say that it is our brain and bodies alone but I don’t think that’s satisfying. It’s akin to a machine. But we know that machines don’t have feelings. What is the animating force? Energy. I believe it’s recycled across space and time again and again.
These are my reasons for reincarnation and I think they’re valid.
Perish the thought! What’s the fun of looking at things as matters of fact?
If you’re using etiology correctly, then of course we know exactly what it was. We had a naked singularity that exploded into our universe. Seems pretty cut and dry.
And this is why a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. When I lift a book off the ground, kinetic energy is converted into gravitational potential energy. That doesn’t mean that the energy in a living creature in any way, shape, or form ‘lives on’ in the same pattern. Any more than the food you eat remains the same after you’re done digesting it.
What’s the question? It’s fairly simple. The energy flashing around your synapses is no different, at all, than the energy in a battery. If you need some sort of comfort for the fact that we really do all die, and that’s that? Ah well.
No, it isn’t. We’re self-referential thinking machines; the Strange Loop is the basis of consciousness.
I don’t see why reincarnation should exist but if there existed a case for it in my life it is, since childhood, a fascination and affinity for all things Mexican. The first time I set foot there I had the oddest sensation of coming home . The language, food and culture is a perfect fit for me.
So, with a willingness to be open to possibilities, like any good scientist, I’m waiting for the definitive word on whether times is linear. Once our scientists figure that out. . .
This is the part where someone says, “Don’t be so open-minded that your brain falls out.” Right?
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Couldn’t you do both? Say “I don’t know”, then think of some hypotheses and try to figure out how they might answer that question?