Misguided Belief in the Afterlife

[Callypigia]

I have been thinking about how humans peddle misery. I saw a picture of ISIS beheading an infant that made me sad. There was a forum discussion on Nazis that led to conversations about genocide. Hundreds of millions of people have died in wars, genocide, murder, etc. Many of these people were young, even children.

It got me thinking. How much of humans' hate is caused by or disregarded by some misguided belief in the afterlife? People comment with statements like, "well she's in a better place." Maybe not; probably not. They are just dead and their life got cut tragically short. Some people are just horrible and evil, but other's truly believe in some life hereafter and sometimes justify crimes against humanity because they have some irrational belief that person is being liberated to a peaceful afterlife. I'm not going to argue the psychological nature of rationalizing our fear of loss and death with a fraudulent belief in the afterlife, but at what point does it become a debilitating excuse? Not even murder, but imprisoning people for mild crimes. If this is the only life we get, does someone deserve to be locked into jail for 10 years of their life for possession of marijuana?

Life is precious and we should be thankful we are here for as short of a time as we are, but this misguided belief in an afterlife is part of the problem. If there is any reason to live in the moment it's because there is no afterlife and probably no reincarnation. Do you want to spend your life drunk/high, missing out on life's experiences? People don't get another chance. It breaks my heart to think of people who are massacred for other people's political agendas, religious zealotry, or hate, but if anything it makes me appreciate what I have any more. Even in our day to day life we need to do our best not to peddle misery onto others. Even if you believe in an afterlife, you need to stop and think, just in case there's nothing after death are you living the life you want? Are you allowing other's to enjoy their life?

I'm not really saying the belief in an afterlife creates suffering as much as it instills a very passive outlook towards the suffering of others in this life. These questions are rhetorical and my thoughts are always rambling, but this is what I think about while I'm drinking tea.

 

[Venomous Cobra]

Well yeah, kind of. It mostly happens when you have an ignorant fool believe in certain stuff by justifying them using religious beliefs as evidence . It is never about a tool, It's all us. An idea cannot exist without force which performs its action and thus leading to whatever the result is. If we only didn't fear the unknown, we would have been in a much better world now.

 

[YowYan]

I have a different perspective on death. Your body dying means you passed on to the source or wherever and when alive but without purpose nor joy is when you're really dead.

And fear of the unknown makes people valuable products exploitable by control.

 

[Melanin]

When I die, I hope I'm greeted with a phat a** blunt.

Doesn't have to be loud but I just would want a little buzz before I meet my maker.

 

[Jazzy Stardust]

I don't know how to respond to this, you're just ranting. I mean it's cool to express yourself but this is more of a blog post than a forum thread. There is a difference.

 

[Professor Finesser]

When I die, I hope I'm greeted with a phat a** blunt.

Doesn't have to be loud but I just would want a little buzz before I meet my maker.

You seem like someone who tries too hard to be a stoner tbh

 

[Melanin]

You seem like someone who tries too hard to be a stoner tbh

I don't consider myself a stoner nor would I want to be classified as so.

That would mean that I would willingly want to neglect important aspects of my life.

I'm a well adjusted person who just likes to smoke, we exist. #legalization2016

 

[Professor Finesser]

I don't consider myself a stoner nor would I want to be classified as so.

That would mean that I would willingly want to neglect important aspects of my life.

I'm a well adjusted person who just likes to smoke, we exist. #legalization2016

Idk maybe it's your name that throws me off.

 

[Ldude]

The whole idea of an afterlife (other than death) has always been bullshit. Personally I find it more of a comfort than anything that you can just decide to stop living whenever you want and not have to deal anymore. I guess some people just need a way to cope with their dissatisfying goody-two-shoes lives while they secretly believe the people around them will go to hell. But whatever makes them feel better is okay, I guess.
I'll still never understand the concept of heaven though. People are only capable of thinking about heaven in terms of what they wanted in life. People don't want some otherworldly heaven. A lot of them just want a second Earth.

“The concept of hell and endless torment is popular with those who believe they aren't headed there.” - Ian Brady

 

[Yubel]

At the root of this problem is fear, fear of the unknown. To humans and all of life death is the ultimate unknown and that's why we're so scared of it so we've created two solutions to this, the belief in the afterlife to give our lives meaning because all our efforts seem to be cancelled out by the fact that we're going to die, making all our achievements and aspirations meaningless. The second solution we found is outright denial, to surpress the thought the best we can, we've managed to create a society that disguises death, everything relating to death is put to side, we watch movies with people dying, we watch news of others dying but this makes us forget our own mortality. We come to relate to death as something that happens on a screen when infact it represents the ultimate reality awaiting each one of us. Repressing the thought of our mortality means to repress everything that would remind us of it but the subconcious mind doesn't work that way, if you close the door, it'll slip through its cracks, this will show up and manifest in your life as anxiety, being too involved in trivial everyday thing, being mechanical, living passively, not taking a risk, avoiding anything that makes you feel bad etc. What we should realize is that accepting our inevitable death will allow us freedom and power that we couldn't imagine. You will live life more fully and won't be afraid of the negative things life will inevitably throw at you. Life and death are not separate, they exist together, for you to live, another life must end. The only true connection we have to the people in our lives is that we all share the same fate and this doesn't just go for humans but animals too and all life. Having embraced your own mortality will make you realize that we're all in this together and that will inspire compassion for everything that is alive because to be alive means to be dead. If people conquered their fear of death then all other fears would simply melt away and we would appreciate life more. This alone would put a stop to all wars, our advancement as a species would also speed up tenfold. As we all know our greatest breakthroughs have always come in times of adversity. With accepting our death, we would create so many things that would advance us. Paradoxically as this thought spur us on it'll also give us true peace of mind.

Well this is the stuff I think about while I'm in bed in the morning.

 

[The Work]

Nothing new under the sun.

 

[Callypigia]

I have a different perspective on death. Your body dying means you passed on to the source or wherever and when alive but without purpose nor joy is when you're really dead.

And fear of the unknown makes people valuable products exploitable by control.

Yeah, most Buddhists believe in reincarnation. I do too, but similar to you in so that my life energy is passed back into the universe and redistributed into new life. I don't believe that I will be reborn as a deva, ashura, preta, etc. I'm sure it would be nice (well not to be a wandering tormented spirit), but it just doesn't seem logical. Death is the only proof I suppose.

 

[Karna]

Look what spiritualism has being reduced to in some parts of the world, people these days man- they are so desperate for something bigger then themselves; something that will make them happier that they will believe in anything, but I feel like alongside bad consequences, lack of proper education and intellectuals abusing they brains over less bright for selfish needs, the ones who are fooled and manipulated are to blame as well, you see they are too afraid to go out explore and find the meaning they need themselves that they give in to whoever seems to knows better then them- without even seeing if they are being made do horrible things to people that no one should ever do. Its just lack of proper belief or even half-a$$ed ones that allows these things to happen(terrorism).

So actually imo the big picture is just Smart abusing the Stupid, and not giving them proper guidance which they should, so maybe its just lack of proper moral(doing whats good for you and others) in everyone that is the problem, but IDK that's a topic for an entire discussion some day

 

[YowYan]

The whole idea of an afterlife (other than death) has always been bullshit. Personally I find it more of a comfort than anything that you can just decide to stop living whenever you want and not have to deal anymore. I guess some people just need a way to cope with their dissatisfying goody-two-shoes lives while they secretly believe the people around them will go to hell. But whatever makes them feel better is okay, I guess.
I'll still never understand the concept of heaven though. People are only capable of thinking about heaven in terms of what they wanted in life. People don't want some otherworldly heaven. A lot of them just want a second Earth.

“The concept of hell and endless torment is popular with those who believe they aren't headed there.” - Ian Brady

Heaven is just a state of being.

 

[Multiply]

Welcome to religion. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[Awkward Linguist]

Do you believe in God?

 

[Callypigia]

Do you believe in God?

I wouldn't presume to say that I know with 100% certainty, but I highly doubt in a god.

Welcome to religion. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I can't understand how someone can just sit there and say, "I know there's an afterlife," or "I know there's a god." In the same vein I don't understand how someone can say indefinitely that there is no god. I just doubt a god's existence, and I don't think it does any good to concern oneself with such things. Treating people how we would like to be treated is the best rule despite some fear of otherworldly reprisal.

Heaven is just a state of being.

Thích Nhất Hạnh said that Heaven and Hell exist on this realm of existence. Hell is the just the absence of compassion.

 

[Multiply]

I can't understand how someone can just sit there and say, "I know there's an afterlife," or "I know there's a god." In the same vein I don't understand how someone can say indefinitely that there is no god. I just doubt a god's existence, and I don't think it does any good to concern oneself with such things. Treating people how we would like to be treated is the best rule despite some fear of otherworldly reprisal.

I agree. I don't live my life thinking I am a good person solely because of my faith; anyone who doesn't share that same faith with me will rot in hell.

 

[Callypigia]

I agree. I don't live my life thinking I am a good person solely because of my faith; anyone who doesn't share that same faith with me will rot in hell.

Yeah. We Zen Buddhists are weird too. While being very religious and spiritual we seem to paradoxically reject most dogma, even in Buddhism. The goal of Zen is to not need Zen.

 

[CornyRainbow]

It's whatever man. The day humans get wiped from this planet is the type of eternal happiness that I would be able to have but I will most likely die without that kind of treat. Oh well, if I die and there isn't an afterlife then it will just be the same as before I was born. I don't remember shit and didnt even know I was alive so vice versa. Though spending forever with my loved ones is also very nice and welcoming to. Idk, man, Idk.

Just got to live life to the fullest.