Is there an afterlife?

[Frigga]

I think that the afterlife depends on you. If you believe something with enough conviction, than it becomes true for you. Do you believe in an afterlife yourself? Then that's what you will have. Do you believe that there is nothing after you die? Then you go off into oblivion. It's all in the energy that is put into something. Lies that are said to be truths enough times that are believed to be true truths evolve into a form of truth. Now, here is the question: What do you want? Find that, and work at it a little every day. That is what will greet you when our mortal coil passes away from us. Surround yourself with those who support you in this way of thinking. They will encourage you, and be a witness to what you are striving for.

[anonymaus]

Almost certainly not.

"I will not die, it's the world that will end." --Rand, channeling Lucretius

[HawkR]

All depends on your religion, in blood. Me, I mean there's an afterlife, a Valhalla or the nine underworlds, depends on how and when I'm dying.

Say, if you're of Heathen heritage, only heathenisme will bring you an afterlife, and if you are not a heathen at the time of your death, your soul will wander restlessly in all eternity.

[Loki]

I meant is there such thing as heaven? Will my soul live on? I am just so scared right now. I can't think about falling asleep.

Guys, take it easy on Elfichka. She's experiencing another panic attack.

Dear Elfichka

I'll give my honest thoughts when you're feeling better.

All I'm going to tell you right now, is that you are going to outlive me by far! up I'll be eaten by the maggots when you will still be having fun. So ... don't worry about a thing. You're not about to die! You're going to live long and prosper.

[Laudanum]

Nobody really knows what will happen when we die. But to me that doesn't mean we have to be afraid to die. Death is natural, everything dies. It's just as natural as living. I believe in Germanic mythology, but you can never be sure what happens when your dead. I guess you'll just have to wait and see..

[Lulletje Rozewater]

An atheist is driving along the motorway on his way home. On the opposite carriageway a large truck swerves but fails to avoid something in the road and blows a tyre. The truck veers across the road and ploughs through the central barrier. The atheist has no chance to avoid the truck and his last thought is "times up!"

The atheist opens his eyes with the memory of the impending crash vivid in his mind. But to his surprise he is not in a smashed car, nor a hospital bed. He feels no pain as he looks around a featureless white room. His mind is reeling. Having been taught about Christianity as a child his first though is that he is in heaven, then, being an atheist, that this is the anteroom to hell. But having no basis for either idea he waits to see what happens.

A short while later a door opens in one featureless wall and two strange looking creatures enter. They approach him and consult a board they are each carrying before speaking. They use a language that is not English, nor any language he recognises, yet he understands it perfectly. They say "Do you know your status?" Uncertainly he replies "Dead?". He speaks in the same strange tongue. They nod and ask "Heaven or hell?" This seems very strange, does he have a choice? "Neither." he says. "What god do you worship?" "None." he says. They tap at their panels and turn toward to door saying "follow us".

He emerges through the door into an unearthly room with a view over a very alien looking city. The two creatures lead him to a third figure who greets him "Welcome. I will debrief you. Take a seat." As he sits he catches a glimpse of himself in a reflective wall panel and realises that he is the same type of strange creature. Part of him is repelled and sickened. Another part is comforted.

The debriefing begins. "Who are you?" He gives his name, in English. "Where are you from?" He names the town of his birth. His companion nods. "In fact you have been in the training room for the entire duration of your Earth life. You have now completed the programme and made a successful transition back to reality. You are not a human from planet Earth, you are a native of this planet and you have just completed a course on primitive culture and superstition at this university." He looks around the increasingly familiar surroundings and knows this is the truth. Already his memories of his 36 years on Earth have taken on the sense of a remembered dream. "So, how did I do?" he asks. His companion answers "Very well. You saw through the many superstitious world views that are prevalent in the simulation and worked out a coherent philosophy based on the limited factual evidence available to you. You have passed the course with distinction. Take a few days here to readjust and one of our careers advisers will visit you to discuss your options." It is coming back to him and he recalls friends that enrolled in the course with him. He asks about them. "Mixed news I'm afraid. One became an evangelical Christian and not only did he fail the course for that, he is still convinced he is in hell and we are all demons. We are having problems deprogramming him. He keeps calling out to Jesus. Very sad. Another friend is finding the course tough and has been retaking modules. He has been seduced by various faiths for a while. When he realizes each is false he just moves onto another. I have hopes that he may still graduate though, eventually. Another friend worked out that she was in a simulation and exited the course early. We don't get many of those, she is an exceptional student. She reminds me of a particular star student who invented his own religion on the course without reference to the pre-programmed religious traditions at all. It was very successful as well. So successful that we have written it into the simulation now. Most students have no problem seeing through it though."

They rise and he goes over to the window to gaze over his home city and reflect on his experiences and ponder his future back in the real world.

Disclaimer: this has nothing to do with anything. Just a story about the meaning life that is as worthless as most others since it lacks any basis in fact. If you see a Truth in it and think it might be an idea you could believe in you may need professional help.

[Brännvin]

Nobody really knows what will happen when we die.

This is true.

Even atheism is a sick religion. People should live their lives without thinking about death, what happens after death no one really knows.

[Loki]

... what happens after death no one really knows.

The overwhelming evidence and logic says that nothing happens at all. We decompose and become nothing. Like we were before we were born. We didn't exist then, and we won't after the maggots have chewed our last pieces of flesh.

[Brännvin]

The overwhelming evidence and logic says that nothing happens at all. We decompose and become nothing. Like we were before we were born. We didn't exist then, and we won't after the maggots have chewed our last pieces of flesh.

If you're buried in a garden, part of your organic matter indirectly will be useful for an another form of life, but then something happens.

[Äike]

I want to be assured there is some sort of life after death.

There probably isn't any life after death.