I'd be interested to know your theories, if you have any, on life after death.
Plus, if you do 'believe' in the mostly monotheistic idea of heaven and hell (for example), do you have any reasons for this except for a blind faith?
I'm not seeking to pick apart anyone's belief systems, only ascertain the motives behind them. Also, I love hearing other theories on an 'afterlife', which contain a more scientific viewpoint.
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Mes deux cents:
When we're talking about life after death, we're really questioning the idea of existence. Physically, the atoms that once made up our bodies will always exist* (and the energy we contained in our bodies will never be destroyed), but because we will not be consciously aware of this, we don't generally consider it to be a continuation of life.
However, and I know this will sound like a I-dodge-the-brutal-truth-by-making-things-sound-poetic spiel, but isn't our persona (our soul?) merely a collection of our memories, inherent characteristics and the thoughts we form with them?
Therefore, if this is recorded, our persona will still exist. In not only our diaries, letters, photographs and videos, but in the memories of others?
Or, do we have a spirit, which exists within us, but also dies when we do?
Essentially, I believe in no afterlife, and think that many ideas surrounding one spout from a fear of the unknown. However, I still feel like I am being very closed minded, and would love to be persuaded to believe, or at least brought to appreciate, other points of view.
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* I once read somewhere that about 98% of the atoms that make up our bodies are exchanged every 5-10 years. So, based on that, we are quite literally a completely different person to the one we were 15 years ago.
Plus, if you do 'believe' in the mostly monotheistic idea of heaven and hell (for example), do you have any reasons for this except for a blind faith?
I'm not seeking to pick apart anyone's belief systems, only ascertain the motives behind them. Also, I love hearing other theories on an 'afterlife', which contain a more scientific viewpoint.
-----------
Mes deux cents:
When we're talking about life after death, we're really questioning the idea of existence. Physically, the atoms that once made up our bodies will always exist* (and the energy we contained in our bodies will never be destroyed), but because we will not be consciously aware of this, we don't generally consider it to be a continuation of life.
However, and I know this will sound like a I-dodge-the-brutal-truth-by-making-things-sound-poetic spiel, but isn't our persona (our soul?) merely a collection of our memories, inherent characteristics and the thoughts we form with them?
Therefore, if this is recorded, our persona will still exist. In not only our diaries, letters, photographs and videos, but in the memories of others?
Or, do we have a spirit, which exists within us, but also dies when we do?
Essentially, I believe in no afterlife, and think that many ideas surrounding one spout from a fear of the unknown. However, I still feel like I am being very closed minded, and would love to be persuaded to believe, or at least brought to appreciate, other points of view.
---------
* I once read somewhere that about 98% of the atoms that make up our bodies are exchanged every 5-10 years. So, based on that, we are quite literally a completely different person to the one we were 15 years ago.