Life after Death

[Lilacwine1]

I was discussing with my son what happens when you die. He said it would be good, if there was an afterlife, as we would all be together again. AIBU to hope there is life after death, but in reality I think of all the complications of meeting loved ones. What if a loved one dies before you, and then doesn't like the older you when you meet. My baby daughter died, will I know her. What do MNs think? I apologise now if this has been discussed before.

[Professionalminefield]

I don't think there is any form of life after death.

How could consciousness survive the deaths of our brains?

We weren't conscious before we were born and we won't be after.

And I'm fine with that. Just think how boring an eternal afterlife would be. Everything that I enjoy - a good book, good food, good company - is finite. It's good because it comes to an end. If I had it all the time it would be boring and monotonous.

[FloppyWollop]

I don't believe in the afterlife, but my ds does. I talk to him about loved ones that have passed away as though they are somewhere looking over us. I think the whole idea of it is problematic, wouldn't it be overcrowded? What do you do in the afterlife? If you were widowed young and then remarried, wouldn't that be awkward with your new husband and old husband together? Presumably you'd want to be with both. Is it that existence for ever, just waiting for more loved ones to join you? If you stay there forever it would be so boring. If you only stay as long as you have people you know around then surely you'd never leave, otherwise there would still be the idea of permanent loss. I've thought about this... LOADS!

[Vitalogy]

I believe in reincarnation.

[Gammeldragz]

Reincarnation makes more sense... Some very convincing personal accounts out there.
I think of there were an afterlife it wouldn't fit with what we experience as life now, so the issues of time and emotions wouldn't apply.

[Imbluedabadee]

Something I have always wondered about is if there is a heaven and hell and you've been a good person and you go to heaven but someone you love goes to hell will you still have eternal happiness? I can't see how I could ever deal with the knowledge that my loved one was burning and being tortured for all eternity, therefore how can it truly be paradise? I love the idea of reincarnation but I don't see how that can be true either

[CatLadyToddlerMother]

I believe in Life After Death, but I think that we only stay in that state until everyone on earth that we had a connection with (so not just acquaintances or whatever but actual family and friends) has passed over and then we're all together and pass into "death" together where there is nothing.

[mimibunz]

I believe in life after death. I don’t know if I believe that you meet up with loved ones from the life you just had but I don’t care. There is something there!

[TheHulksPurplePanties]

I tell my children that I believe in Quantum Physics. Our fundamental being is energy, and energy cannot die it can simply be transferred. We don't know what happens when we die until we die, but it's nothing to be scared of.

[Awwlookatmybabyspider]

I'm often think of that Blue.

I do believe there is definitely something.
However what that is i don't know. Apparently the consciousness can survive
after death but for how long we don't know

I had a dream about my mum holding a baby and the next day my sister said "Spider, guess what". I said oh I know you're pregnant. My mum told me in a dream
My sister went white..
So do I believe our loved ones communicate with after they have passed.

[annandale]

I don't believe in an afterlife. I always wondered if I would change my views when I lost someone close to me, but no. I have had absolutely no indication that my dh is 'still with me', no white feathers, no signs, no special rays of sunlight. I haven't even dreamed of him as far as I know, though my ds says he has.

But is that just because I hate the idea of an afterlife so much? I can't imagine being myself and being in an afterlife. No books, no sex, no food or drink, no hot baths, no movies, no desires for anything? Surely we won't be speaking English, so what will I be speaking - Aramaic, Arabic, Ancient Greek, Sanskrit? A whole eternity devoid of in-jokes, unable to say 'bollocks to that' or 'here's one I made earlier' or 'Razors pain you, nooses give, gas smells awful, you might as well live'? I fear hell as well, after a long childhood reading Victorian children's books and going to church. Hell always described in immense detail, heaven hardly mentioned. It's noticeable how so many films made by atheists focus on hell too - for e.g. Team America: World Police. Satan is real to people in a way that God isn't.

I suppose in heaven my dh might be completely healthy and the man he was always meant to be if he'd never been ill. That's the way CS Lewis put it. But let's be honest, if DH had been healthy all his life, he'd have been an absolute stone cold catch and he wouldn't have been single when he met me, he'd have been long married with at least two children. His illness was actually part of what made him, much though we both hated the idea. The idea of him, being ill, living forever is simply torture, whereas him, not being ill, is not him.

[BettyBaggins]

I dont believe in heaven or hell after death, I think both exist right here, right now on this planet. I dont believe in 'life' after death unless a maggot eats me. I do believe there is some kind of electrical/unseen/connection/dna transference thing between family members alive or dead on occasional strange occurrences.

And I believe in telepathy to some degree. I think that we are all connected in some manner that science will learn to explain. DNA transference might have something to do with reincarnation but my brain hurts a bit now considering the possibilties!

[WittyJack]

Any faint beliefs I might have had died when I saw one of the most important people to me in a coma for a week before dying. That was so clearly a biological machine grinding to a halt; there was no room for any thoughts about souls or afterlife

It would have been comforting if there had been.

[Racecardriver]

I doubt it works that way. I find reincarnation or some other kind of metamorphic afterlife more believable. But if it does work that way then there is probably some kind of system that the dead people have put in place to help new arrivals find long dead family etc.

[Storminateapot]

I do believe, but I don't think there's a carbon copy of earth somewhere where we carry on living a similar existence with deceased loved ones. I don't really know what I expect, but I do think there is something.

[Caribou58]

No such thing. We're higher functioning animals and when our brain shuts down forever, we're gone forever.

The concept of an afterlife exists only because humans are capable of fearing eternal nothingness. Heaven and Hell only exist because people couldn't get their heads round the likes of Hitler getting the same afterlife as everyone who hadn't committed genocide.

[Sparklesocks]

I wish there was, but I’m quite pessimistic and believe there isn’t - so we should enjoy the time we have.

Have you ever seen ‘what dreams may come’ - I love how it’s depicted there, you create your own heaven so the character builds his wife’s beautiful paintings and sprints through the landscape and reunites with his loved ones - I wish it was like that!

[Queenoftheblitz]

I believe in life after death but i'm an atheist.
This is based on my experiences of having contact with dead loved ones and the experiences of people whose word I trust.

I believe yes you will know your daughter.
And your loved one will love the elderley you because he loves your soul. Your physical body has been left on earth so how you look will be irrelevant.

[Nodancingshoes]

I'd like to think there is an afterlife but it's so confusing... I have another 8years until I'm the age my mum was when she died and I'm older than my dad was when he died. How would that work? Would I be older than them in the afterlife??

[Nodancingshoes]

Would very much like to see a medium too but too scared. My mum very much believed in the afterlife so I know if she could come through she certainly would.

[foxyliz26]

I was brought up to believe it was a load of old nonsense

but I have had a couple of experiences that I wont elaborate on either , things happening I couldn't have seen or known about

my big brother is an atheist and thought it was a load of nonsense, too but he has seen our mum since she died
scared the crap out of him ! his wife told me , he still hasn't admitted it !

so you believe what you all want to , but the rest of religion stuff is a load of old pony !

[Robin233]

This is a good thread.
My opinion changes as time goes on.
From 'once the light goes out that's it ' , to Reincarnation makes sense, to heaven and hell are here on Earth.
It took CBT for me realise my belief in the devil had caused some serious people pleasing traits - and Tom Ellis in 'Lucifer'
To finally to release this.
However, it was after my dad passed that was the most telling.
For about a month , on and off I sensed him round me.
It was if he was making sure I was ok - and then he was gone.
Very strange :)

[YoYotheclown]

I absolutely believe in life after death. I believe we will see our loved ones but I believe everyone who is there will be like we are all one family. No such thing as a husband and wife or child and grandparents. We will just be.

[packofbaloobas]

I believe in an afterlife. I've had a few pretty convincing experiences too to strengthen that belief. I have no idea what it is like but I doubt that it's anything like what's here. I do too believe that good and evil sipeenatural forces are at large and working on us all on earth.

[packofbaloobas]

Supernatural

[Tawdrylocalbrouhaha]

I don't expect any consciousness after death, but I like to think that as I'm dying I will feel that "all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well".