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"A question about death"

What do you think happens when you die? The most realistic answer would be that you just go into a neverending sleep. Without dreams though.

"When we pop our clogs we transform into an inferno: we retain our human shape, and we sprint, glide and fly throughout the galaxies like great balls of fire, destroying malevolence with our cinder touch."

-So it is written in The Book of Ember-man (page 13, verse 11).

Once you die you cease to exist. We can't describe what we think it's going to be like to be dead because we can't comprehend how it will feel as the closest thing we've ever had to death is a dreamless sleep. Death is less than that. You can't feel anything, there is no desire to feel anything, there is no thoughts about this lack of desire there's no nothing. You just stop.

However much I want there to be an afterlife were I can be happy with the one I love forever I lack the faith needed to be able to believe in it.

Grix Thraves wrote:
> Coffin.. hmm.. I guess cremated, I'm terrified of being buried alive.

Snap. I'm also taphephobic and would take being burned alive over being buried alive anyday of the week. It's over and done with much quicker for starters.

As to what happens when you die. I believe nothing happens other than you become worm fodder or ash.

For most of my life I've believed that sod all happens when you die - just like the end of T2 when Arnie is lowered into the steel - your vision shrinks away over an indiscernable time scale, to a tiny dot, a high pitched ringing is all you can hear as your consciousness wanes and you slip into a dreamless void. I imagined it to be peaceful.

Perhaps excessive exposure to mind bending literature has influenced my beliefs, but I would be willing to entertain the theory that our spiritual consciousness, or soul, continues to exist after our physical bodies die. Nothing to do with heaven and hell and other fantastical trains of thought, no God, no Devil, nothing like that. Where that Energy goes I couldn't guess, but Einstein did say that energy cannot be destroyed, only changed into other forms of energy. It's one theory anyway.

I fail to see the need to believe in Deity's anyway, I'd be more inclined to believe we are all 'Gods', whatever that may mean. Seeing as most peoples perception of God is something that is way beyond their/our comprehension, I don't see why such an entity should be pigeon-holed as existing in one particular guise anyway. If God cannot be truly described, how can you even know where/who/what God is? I think that people are so evasive when it comes to defining God, because to define it using our simple language would make it seem less mystical. I use the term 'it' instead of 'He', because surely the idea of God being of one particular Gender makes no sense. Gender would serve no purpose to an omnipotent entity, unless it was to reproduce. This would mean there is more than one God, which would invalidate most common religions. Of course, I don't mean to discount those religions, I'm just someone who likes to question what he is told, rather than taking it on good faith.

Sure, I could discuss this kind of stuff all day, but most people are hesitant to even entertain such discussions. Religious fanatics refuse to as they are blinded by their faith, and loathe those who force them to question a lifetime of belief. The rest of the population are sometimes scared to voice their opinions in case they sound like a lunatic with their maverick theories. Just remember - most religions started off as maverick theories.

But these are the big questions that everyone must ask themselves at some point, if not regularly (as I do). Why not discuss them in a civilised manner, without resorting to blanket statements, name calling and blind prejudice? We've all seen what that can do to the world.

Mwah. That would be fun.

I believe that when I die, I will be reborn in a parallel version of the world in which I left, but I am the ruler, the god.

I believe that when you die, you're re-incarnated.

Im a Christian so I believe there is a heaven and a hell. I am not completely sure of the ins and outs of how and what goes on when we depart but I hope it is as glorious as the bible depicts it.

And for hell not as nasty as the bible depicts it..

Right now I am pretty confused about death, losing my Grandad Friday and watching him die everything seemed so surreal. I was praying for him as he left us but who knows.

I wonder if he knew I was praying for him, I wonder if he could see us all there and himself and I wonder how it was in general.

I think the "what if?" factor plays a huge part in inciting fear amongst the unbelievers.

I'm not afraid of dying. It happens and everybody's got to deal with it. I think there is'nt a God because of all the tragic events that happen. I agree with Icarus, just diverting people from the realistic fact.
But what if we're wrong? What if there is a God and we didn't believe, we would be stuck in hell while the people who did believe would be having a good time in Heaven.