The afterlife, what do you think happens?

[Discordian 6,015]

Your just dead as much I know I wouldn't know death cause I never died. Then again we can either go to heaven or hell which ever your beliefs in different religions have in stored for you

All of a sudden this post reminds me of something an atheist once told me. Bear with me here:

 

A simple, yet logical, approach to the death and what happens is that before we live, we were nothing. We saw nothing, experienced nothing, there was not a THING for us to know the difference between a something and a nothing. Then we appeared and slowly eased into a life where we became conscious of our surroundings and how to interact with it. So then....when we die, we return to that nothing because it's where we began. Many mathematical systems would have you believe that what goes around, comes around.

 

Thus, if not proof, at least it's a logical conclusion as to what might happen when we die and what we will experience: Nothing.

[Kitty Cat Moonshire 629]

First the skin crystallizes, softens, and turns a bright shade of pink. The body morphs into that of a fun addicted, pink, fluffy haired pony  on a sugar high. Then you step out of the mirror pool.

That's right, pinkie pies doubles were actually late human beings.

Deal with it x3 

[SkyDream 315]

So the denizens of this topic seem to be divided between "What happens to the body when we die" and "what happens to our consciousness when we die." 

 

Nobody needs religion to tell us that we have a body and we have a consciousness.  Bring religion into it if it's truly desired, or if felt necessary.  I just feel uncomfortable with the seeming myriad of potential paths for the more-metaphorical-than-not soul to take at that point. 

 

When someone thinks of the concept of nothingness, we have to consider that it has an opposite:  "Something."   Either here there is something, or there is nothing;  an absence of a something.  It's physically impossible for a something to be a nothing;  its atomic structure just disbands and/or moves elsewhere, transforming a nothing into a something and a something into a nothing, in whichever order you prefer.  It just depends on the point in space that's being focused on.

 

Because this whole example exists within a certain paradigm consisting of "our reality."   We can only operate via the information that the senses of our bodies provide for us.  We are only able to experience -THIS- reality as it exists now.  We have absolutely no awareness, nor ability to be personally aware (with certain exceptions...)  of anything other than the reality in which we find ourselves at this very moment.

 

Logically speaking, it would be fair to say that our current level of consciousness is locked to this reality, yes?  Whether or not something higher or lower exists or not, we aren't aware of it if it does.  It can either exist or not exist.

 

So essentially, it's not that a "nothingness" will be experienced after death;  but a lack of duality, should our consciousness somehow cease to be.  It's not something and a lack of something, AKA nothing, but ... ... well, who knows.  There are no opposites at that point to compare it to.  That's something. 

 

 

 

 

O_O I had no idea that thing even existed. I think I need to watch the rest of this guy's videos. Seems like it's gonna be one hell of an eye opener.

Happy that you enjoyed it.  Video #10, the Math of God, is especially tantalizing, and quite revealing.  It's far less arbitrary than some of the other unreasonable videos out there.

[Starlighty 971]

I am a Christian so I believe In heaven and Hell..... You either go to one or the other  

 

Also idk why but this got me thinking about this video xD (and sorry he gets off a lot but it actually a pretty good video 

 

 

[Discordian 6,015]

So the denizens of this topic seem to be divided between "What happens to the body when we die" and "what happens to our consciousness when we die." 

 

Nobody needs religion to tell us that we have a body and we have a consciousness.  Bring religion into it if it's truly desired, or if felt necessary.  I just feel uncomfortable with the seeming myriad of potential paths for the more-metaphorical-than-not soul to take at that point. 

 

When someone thinks of the concept of nothingness, we have to consider that it has an opposite:  "Something."   Either here there is something, or there is nothing;  an absence of a something.  It's physically impossible for a something to be a nothing;  its atomic structure just disbands and/or moves elsewhere, transforming a nothing into a something and a something into a nothing, in whichever order you prefer.  It just depends on the point in space that's being focused on.

 

Because this whole example exists within a certain paradigm consisting of "our reality."   We can only operate via the information that the senses of our bodies provide for us.  We are only able to experience -THIS- reality as it exists now.  We have absolutely no awareness, nor ability to be personally aware (with certain exceptions...)  of anything other than the reality in which we find ourselves at this very moment.

 

Logically speaking, it would be fair to say that our current level of consciousness is locked to this reality, yes?  Whether or not something higher or lower exists or not, we aren't aware of it if it does.  It can either exist or not exist.

 

So essentially, it's not that a "nothingness" will be experienced after death;  but a lack of duality, should our consciousness somehow cease to be.  It's not something and a lack of something, AKA nothing, but ... ... well, who knows.  There are no opposites at that point to compare it to.  That's something. 

 

 

 

 

Happy that you enjoyed it.  Video #10, the Math of God, is especially tantalizing, and quite revealing.  It's far less arbitrary than some of the other unreasonable videos out there.

While reading this I came across a thought that can be defined and exemplified in many ways and we can word it however we want but generally it all means the same thing: Thinking outside the box.

 

If there is a something and it's opposite, a nothing, then what about the rest? I think it's highly likely that there's more to reality than opposites. If everything existed between opposites that would imply a linearity that is easily measured which leads to logical thinking of "If this can happen, then this won't" but as I am the type to defy all types of logic as much as possible consider this: If opposites is a straight line (or even a wave) then what happens when you branch it?

 

Is it possible that there is a third realm beyond opposites? A noumenon that we cannot see, feel or even understand? Think about it: When you imagine these opposites and a third branch the best we can visualize is drawing a line and another line that extends from any random point. This more or less ties in with the concept of the third dimension: Depth.

 

We cannot understand a fourth dimension, one that defies our physical understanding of how long, how wide and how deep. A fourth measurement.

 

Maybe I'm rambling at this point. As much as I loved math in school I never got to the higher levels of it to fully understand some of the more advanced concepts so I couldn't even properly explain it even if I can see what I'm trying to say in my mind.

[FoxyCryptid 4,330]

I like to think there's something else out there. That there's more to a human than flesh and blood, a part that lives on in some way and finds some final home. I can just feel something, like there's someone watching over with a protective gaze and it gives me that kind of hope.

 

Every time I laugh or cry, I feel like it's more than just a biological response, like these emotions are a gift that comes from some deep part of my soul beyond the chemical reactions happening in my brain. That something reaches out and tells me it's going to be okay no matter what happens.

 

I pray that when I'm a old man, fading way into the night. That someone comes for me, to take me home and I get to see my sister and everyone else I've lost once again, and we all stay together for good this time.  

[SkyDream 315]

While reading this I came across a thought that can be defined and exemplified in many ways and we can word it however we want but generally it all means the same thing: Thinking outside the box.

 

If there is a something and it's opposite, a nothing, then what about the rest? I think it's highly likely that there's more to reality than opposites. If everything existed between opposites that would imply a linearity that is easily measured which leads to logical thinking of "If this can happen, then this won't" but as I am the type to defy all types of logic as much as possible consider this: If opposites is a straight line (or even a wave) then what happens when you branch it?

 

Is it possible that there is a third realm beyond opposites? A noumenon that we cannot see, feel or even understand? Think about it: When you imagine these opposites and a third branch the best we can visualize is drawing a line and another line that extends from any random point. This more or less ties in with the concept of the third dimension: Depth.

 

We cannot understand a fourth dimension, one that defies our physical understanding of how long, how wide and how deep. A fourth measurement.

 

Maybe I'm rambling at this point. As much as I loved math in school I never got to the higher levels of it to fully understand some of the more advanced concepts so I couldn't even properly explain it even if I can see what I'm trying to say in my mind.

 

Sounds like you need to see the movie Flatland.  It doesn't sound all that related, yet it sort of is.  It relates to this very thought quite nicely.   -  The expansion of one's contemplative paradigm to something that we exist within, but cannot see due to us being within it, like how we could literally not see outside the boundaries of a large metal box we are encased in, even though that box is within another box, yet we can look inside a metal box that is in the box with us, and a box within that box is visible as well if we can open it.

 

It's just easier to look inside something we can access, as compared to realizing that we are in a box in a box in a box.

 

... just like we won't know if we're in a dream in a dream in a dream.

 

Oh yes.  I went there.

[hawkflame 3,310]

What happens?  We just cease to be.  I know that's a scary and incomprehensible thought to many people out there, but it's the only one that makes any logical sense.  We can't comprehend "not existing", but then what were we before we were born?

[Discordian 6,015]

Sounds like you need to see the movie Flatland.  It doesn't sound all that related, yet it sort of is.  It relates to this very thought quite nicely.   -  The expansion of one's contemplative paradigm to something that we exist within, but cannot see due to us being within it, like how we could literally not see outside the boundaries of a large metal box we are encased in, even though that box is within another box, yet we can look inside a metal box that is in the box with us, and a box within that box is visible as well if we can open it.

 

It's just easier to look inside something we can access, as compared to realizing that we are in a box in a box in a box.

 

... just like we won't know if we're in a dream in a dream in a dream.

 

Oh yes.  I went there.

I don't watch movies often. You have my interest.

 

I am always up for expanding my perception of everything. Like right now I'm watching the Spirit Science videos from the start and while part of me wants to think it's a bunch of mumbo-jumbo another part of me also rejects this. It's the way I work because in the act of rejecting such a philosophy I'm only closing my mind to potential truths.

 

"Just because one cannot see it (whether through the physical eye or the mind's eye) doesn't mean it doesn't exist."

 

In fact, many theologies specifically define higher beings such as God to be beyond the understanding of mankind and only in ascension to the after life will we have the ability to understand more, if not all, of the universe that these higher beings tread in.

 

Seeing a pattern here? I think there's a reason many theologies and philosophy sound very much the same even if they converge in some way.

 

I work under the thought that no matter how bullshitty something sounds, it is still a potential truth even if it's proven otherwise. All it takes is one tiiiiiiiiiiiiny bit of evidence to change our entire perception of everything. A missed pattern in pi, a missing number on Fibonacci, all it takes is one to set off a host of changes in our every form of logical thinking. I just finished the video about Indigo Children and Super Psychics and there seems to be some form of coinciding thought patterns between that, many of my previous assumptions and even that of existing and established religions.

 

What happens?  We just cease to be.  I know that's a scary and incomprehensible thought to many people out there, but it's the only one that makes any logical sense.  We can't comprehend "not existing", but then what were we before we were born?

This is exactly the type of thinking I was describing before. It's logical, yes, but only if you accept existing logic as the be-all, end-all truth and whether you do or don't is entirely up to you. You control how you see things and how you express those views to others, not how others interpret it.

 

Although I would like to point out that if nothingness is all there is then there is no reason to fear death at all. If there is nothing after life than we will neither remember nor experience any sort of pain when we die. We just cease to be all things and we won't even have the ability to observe this lack of everything we knew before death.

[Iron Shield 88]

I spiritually believe in some sort of "afterlife". My own vision of a beautiful place.

 

It's a fun "hypothesis" of mine that when we die we go to a kind of place that we would cherish, as it's somewhere in the back of our brains before we die, and just before we die something "triggers" something so that we continue to exist in a different way that is beyond our knowledge.

 

It's something that can't be proven and sounds ridiculous, I'm however willing to have faith in the idea, and if I have enough faith in the idea then, well, you never know. It's something nice to believe in.

[Discordian 6,015]

I spiritually believe in some sort of "afterlife". My own vision of a beautiful place.

 

It's a fun "hypothesis" of mine that when we die we go to a kind of place that we would cherish, as it's somewhere in the back of our brains before we die, and just before we die something "triggers" something so that we continue to exist in a different way that is beyond our knowledge.

 

It's something that can't be proven and sounds ridiculous, I'm however willing to have faith in the idea, and if I have enough faith in the idea then, well, you never know. It's something nice to believe in.

Is that not the very definition of faith? The belief in something that is not entirely provable but seems real, in any sense of the word, to the one who holds such faith?

 

I like to believe in a paradise where anything I want is granted upon my every wish. Wishful thinking? Perhaps. But wishful thinking combined with the faith that things will happen this way is what philosophy of any kind is made of.

[Super Derpy 535]

I have no idea. I hope there is a afterlife. A good afterlife. But there is no proof that the afterlife exists but if it does exist it would be totally awesome if it was Equestria (just saying).

[Discordian 6,015]

I have no idea. I hope there is a afterlife. A good afterlife. But there is no proof that the afterlife exists but if it does exist it would be totally awesome if it was Equestria (just saying).

A thought: At what point does proof become what it is? How much do you need to have proof? Some believe that what they experience inside of a church or witness with their own eyes is proof enough. If it's proven to them, why does that not prove it to you?

 

Not trying to challenge your beliefs or anything (I'd certainly have to be challenging my own! Though I like doing that. ) but it's food for thought.

[Circadian 1,273]

Well, if the universe is truly infinite then you'd restart your life over again from the beginning. Think about it, in an infinite universe, certain patterns are bound to emerge, one of those patterns being you. As soon as your consciousness ends, the universe will keep going forever until circumstances once again lead to your birth, and you'd "pick up" right from there. You'd have no knowledge that it happened, just as you've had no knowledge of the infinite number of times it has happened in the past. 

 

Source: Multiverse Theory

Edited August 9, 2013 by Circadian

[hawkflame 3,310]

This is exactly the type of thinking I was describing before. It's logical, yes, but only if you accept existing logic as the be-all, end-all truth and whether you do or don't is entirely up to you. You control how you see things and how you express those views to others, not how others interpret it.

 

Although I would like to point out that if nothingness is all there is then there is no reason to fear death at all. If there is nothing after life than we will neither remember nor experience any sort of pain when we die. We just cease to be all things and we won't even have the ability to observe this lack of everything we knew before death.

 

I don't have to accept current logic as the "be-all, end-all" truth in order to to believe that the only logical explanation is nothingness after death.  Logic is simply following the facts of the information we have at hand.  With that comes the understanding that there's a chance that we *don't* have all the information, but we can't make presumptions based on hypotheticals. 

 

And there is still reason to fear death.  That lack of feeling itself is what scares the bejeezus out of me.  And we also fear death because of the hole left in the hearts of the people who love us.  To say that how your family feels about your death doesn't matter because you won't be around to experience the pain is just callous. 

[Super Derpy 535]

A thought: At what point does proof become what it is? How much do you need to have proof? Some believe that what they experience inside of a church or witness with their own eyes is proof enough. If it's proven to them, why does that not prove it to you?

 

Not trying to challenge your beliefs or anything (I'd certainly have to be challenging my own! Though I like doing that. ) but it's food for thought.

It doesn't prove it to me because there is no hardcore evidence that the afterlife exists. It has not been proven that the afterlife exists and probably never will. So I will need evidence that proves without a doubt that there is an afterlife. But that's just what I believe.

[Discordian 6,015]

hawkflame, on 08 Aug 2013 - 6:03 PM, said:

I don't have to accept current logic as the "be-all, end-all" truth in order to to believe that the only logical explanation is nothingness after death. Logic is simply following the facts of the information we have at hand. With that comes the understanding that there's a chance that we *don't* have all the information, but we can't make presumptions based on hypotheticals.

 

And there is still reason to fear death. That lack of feeling itself is what scares the bejeezus out of me. And we also fear death because of the hole left in the hearts of the people who love us. To say that how your family feels about your death doesn't matter because you won't be around to experience the pain is just callous.

Perish the thought. You believe what you do through the reasoning you've bestowed upon what you know. Some prefer to stay grounded in reality so hypothetical situations mean little to them. Others such as myself prefer the fantastical side of things we cannot see or fully understand so we lean more towards it. We're both on the same fence, just leaning to different sides of it.

 

I still find that little reason to be fearful though personally. You won't feel anything, you won't even feel the sensation of lacking feeling. The holes in peoples' hearts won't be felt by you either. To each their own but I find there's far more important things to fear than a death where there is no consequence regardless of your actions in life. It's when we are potentially held responsible for the things we do that things get a little scary.

Super Derpy, on 08 Aug 2013 - 6:07 PM, said:

It doesn't prove it to me because there is no hardcore evidence that the afterlife exists. It has not been proven that the afterlife exists and probably never will. So I will need evidence that proves without a doubt that there is an afterlife. But that's just what I believe.

I ask again: What defines "hardcore" proof? Something without a doubt that you can show to everyone? If that's the case, do you feel the need to prove who you are to everyone or do you prefer just the people closest to you? Perhaps if there is a God that he only feels the need to prove himself to those willing to accept him.

 

I guess what I'm saying is: There is every bit of evidence already present that certain religions exist. It's up to you to accept it or not. Whichever one, if any, turns out to be true then we were given due warning and all the proof we needed beforehand. If it takes Rapture to prove that God exists to mankind then it will be too late and you will have not accepted the one piece of proof that DID exist.

 

And I'm sorry if I'm being obnoxious today. I don't usually get this involved. Something seems to have stirred within me.

Edited August 9, 2013 by Discordian

[Super Derpy 535]

I ask again: What defines "hardcore" proof? Something without a doubt that you can show to everyone? If that's the case, do you feel the need to prove who you are to everyone or do you prefer just the people closest to you? Perhaps if there is a God that he only feels the need to prove himself to those willing to accept him.

I would say something that without a doubt proves that the afterlife exists, and yes it would be something you can show to everyone. And I would feel the need to prove it to everyone.

[Discordian 6,015]

I would say something that without a doubt proves that the afterlife exists, and yes it would be something you can show to everyone. And I would feel the need to prove it to everyone.

Edited my post but internet connection dropped for a second so don't know if you saw it but I added to what I said.

 

The proof is already there in many cases, it's up to you to accept it as that proof as actual proof.

[ReverseFaller 2,483]

Well considering the fact that many family members and myself have had weird supernatural experiences, I'm positive death isn't the end. I've seen orbs, my grandma has too. I've felt what Christians call the "holy spirit" on the internet. One cousin of mine has seen angels. The other saw a friendly ghost. Some WEIRD stuff has happened, in other words. Like when I was 3 and just starting to talk I randomly walked up to my mom when she was crying and was all like "Your grandma says it'll be okay." Her grandma had been dead for like 15 years, and I never even knew about her. Interesting...

 

Anyways, my point is I really don't believe Death is the end. If it is, I won't know. It'll just be an eternal sleep, like before we were born right. I won't even know, what's to be scared of. I'm much, much more afraid of being reincarnated back to Earth then sleeping forever. I got really lucky. I was born into a nice, safe place. I may not be so lucky next time. I don't want to come back.

 

Anyways, I was watching a very interesting video about some Scientist talking about numbers, and that us existing goes against the numbers. Also, everything just seems so perfect doesn't it. Also, if we really are here randomly, for no reason, against all odds then...wow. We live.Then the candle fades, and it's over. That's just too damn sad. I'd like to believe we are more than that.

Edited August 9, 2013 by ReverseFaller

[Arretez 225]

As a Christian, I believe that we either go to Heaven or Hell. However, I do believe that we leave an imprint upon the world that many people know as "ghosts." When we die, we are remembered by our friends, family and loved ones. In a way, we live on in their memories. Over time, however, those memories fade, and so does our imprint. People of higher status, I.E. presidents, kings, queens, etc..., live on in the memories of a much larger crowd. Because of their importance, the tales of these people were passed on to children, who then added these people into their memories. I believe that if enough people remember someone who has died, they come back as a visible imprint, or a ghost. This imprint is often seen repeating a specific task, such as writing or walking through a hallway. This imprint, or memory, is forced to repeat these tasks until, finally, the memory of their life fades away completely. So, yeah. That's kinda what I believe happens when we die.

[Envy 6,169]

I have seen absolutely nothing that indicates that anything happens after we die in regard to our consciousness. The consciousness is chemicals interacting in the brain, when the brain ceases to function, so does our consciousness.

 

Actually that's kind of nice... Heaven and Hell both sound like Hell to me. Reincarnation would be cool, though. But none of them are feasible in reality.

[Cobalt Thunder 32]

I want to give everyone here something to think about. Scientifically speaking everything must be created and since with our knowledge we can not possibly create or destroy matter so where did the universe come from.

[ReGen 1,466]

Strike off the Heaven/Hell thing for me. The most logical explanation is that after you die, that's it. You're dead, so is your conscious and all it is is nothingness.

 

Well, that's what it's gonna be like for you guys. I'm being rebuilt as a cyborg when I die. 

[Cobalt Thunder 32]

Oh another thing I want yaw to think about is if we are just flesh and blood put together through science why can we feel and think in ways that no other being known to man can do why are we special. If we are nothing but more science then doesn't that mean we are insignificant. That we are nothing but another creature going through everyday life waiting to die. Sounds pretty sad doesn't it. If you truly believe that there is nothing special about the human race then that truly means that we are nothing better then a bug. The whole idea that we have no soul all we have is a consciousness and an awareness of our surrounding seems like a pretty sad existence. If there is no higher being (I believe in the trinity), no God; then that means that we have no purpose. We have no point and we all are just a waste of space.

 

I do not believe this I believe we have a purpose and that is to glorify God and bring everyone to the happiness that he is and we are not here to judge we are here to spread love, tolerance, and kindness of God with his morale limitations and rules.