"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather, to skid in, broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out and loudly proclaiming: 'WOW... What a Ride!' " -- Author UnknownQuote by: LetThereBe
It's funny but the Christian experience doesn't seem to help all that much. Loss is loss. I would think that it would be even more difficult for a Christian because they would have to reconcile how this loss could come to be from a god that they associate with complete love. For many it is at this point that they loose their "faith". Doesn't seem to me that the ability to cope with the emotional strain is much aided by Christianity at all. But it would be interesting if there were studies comparing the two groups. As is often the case in such studies the Christians do not do as well as they have been taught they should.
Starboy
I thought the same thing Isherwood did when I saw your post just after mine, LTB. It occurred to me that I was considerably less cavalier about death when I was younger. Maybe it's because there's still so much you think you want to do. Anyway, as I became more comfortable with what I believed in life... and became simply older... I became more comfortable with the idea that everything and everyone dies, and that since I've concluded that evolution has worked out everything else involved in human existance, evolution has probably worked out mechanisms for how we deal with dying.
Yeah, not too crazy about that part.
.
I don't suffer from insanity... I thoroughly enjoy it
The sense of running out of time to do things you want is the biggest fear for me. It's like I can see the finish line of a race I didn't really want to be in.
When I was a lot younger I had all the time in the world.
I started feeling old the day I realized that I could no longer have sex with anyone under 25 without it feeling perverted.
The Forum Rules
Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.
[John F. Kennedy]
The principal value of debate lies in the development of logical thought processes, and the ability to articulate your positions publicly.
[Senator Dick Clark of Iowa]
The presence of those seeking the truth is infinitely to be preferred to the presence of those who think they've found it.
[Terry Pratchett]
Hopefully I'll never feel that way. Does anyone here believe in reincarnation? I'd like to think that I would be given another chance at life in a whole new body. That makes me feel better about death. I don't believe in a god because it simply makes no sense to me. The bible just isn't logical as far as I'm concerned. If people want to believe in it, that is their choice; I will not belittle for it. I just don't like to think that when I die I will just sleep forever with no dreams. That to me would be boring. I wish to come back as another human being and experience life from another prospective.
"I distrust those people who know so
well what God wants them to do because
I notice it always coincides with
their own desires."
. . . Susan B. Anthony
Moved to Philosophy and Religion.
"I distrust those people who know so
well what God wants them to do because
I notice it always coincides with
their own desires."
. . . Susan B. Anthony
I don't know the who's and why's and how's, but I have to say I do believe in reincarnation. It's certainly a much beter alternative than hell.
"Okay, you screwed up big-time, and I hope you learned something. Let's try this again."
Making people go, "WTF?!?!?" since 1979.
Yeh! You are very right in telling loosing a child would be a worse situation than talking phiolosphy, God, Jesus, love, heaven, hell and what not. I have full sympathy with you and would try to answer your clear cut question, "HOW TO DEAL WITH DEATH?"
While trying to answer, I would try to leave all religions and faiths aside. As far as dealing with death is concerned, there obviously are two aspects. One physical and the other mental. Physically you have to inform your all friends, relatives and neighbors etc. and arrange for disposal of the body, irrespective of your rituals, faith and religion etc. Mentally you have to console yourself that who so ever has been born has died sooner or later. This is natural phenomina and you or, anybody for that matter can do nothing about this.
The matter is not so simple as given by me above. A number of thought provoking questions arise! A person, say for example your wife, who before your first meeting with her has become so much dear to you that you can not think of her death before yours. Just your parents or, friends and relatives told you that she would be your wife, has made her dearer to you than your parents, brothers, sisters or any other relative or friend. It is only due to your acceptance by your mind that she is now on your and only your. Same way the child which has come out that secondary prviously unknown person (wife) has become dearer than even the wife. Here, I am forced to use a term ATTACHMENT, a philosphical word. Why this attachment develops is vast subject which involves host of faiths, beliefs, religions etc. Not going into details, I would suggest you to reason out with yourself how to reduce this cheating attachment which would ease out your dealing with death. Less the attachment, less would be distress feeling. Simple logic!!!! :)
[QUOTE=Sonart]Sergeant, I'm reminded of a movie somewhere in which the pagan co-hero
But what if you are wrong Son and you miss possibly seeing your parents again in heaven. Are you sure you have touched all the bases and checked out all the score cards? Are you sure there is not something you have missed? Have you looked at the promises of God through the glasses of the world instead the lenses of your mind and heart guided by the Holy Spirit? Try again, you have nothing to lose, all to gain.
Zealot
I have written in detail about who, why and how about reincarnation on different threads which you can refer, dear Critter .
Here, I find most of the members miss the thread question and try to describe death and its fear. The thread question, "HOW TO DEAL WITH DEATH?" I have tried to answer in my first post on this very thread.
I would like to repeat my thinking about death. We fear death mainly, because we have seen others dying. Their bodies seen getting mutilated, seizing response to other living persons and getting permanently out of sight and approach. Similar thing would happen to our body also is the main worry which make the Death Fearful. Till now, nobody has seen his own death. The second illusion which also makes death fearful is that we consider our body our trueself. This obviously is not correct, since when say Mr. X dies we call then on the person as Mr. X's body. Very logically Mr. X is definitely different than his body.
Those who have seen their own death in the form of near death experiences have again and again asertained that they have seen their body lying by the side of themselves. This well proves existence beyond death. But Science terms holosinations and what not!!1 Even I myself had such dreams (better to put this way) two times.
Age has nothing to do with death. All living beings, not only Humans, would love live for ever. This is so because they consider their body as themselves and know very well from the experiences of others deaths, body finishes after death so are scarce of death. The reality is that they exist as in dream and due to their extreme love for body strive to get one more in form of reincarnation. :confused:
What if, out of the infinite number of possible Gods, you've chosen the wrong one? It's infinitely likely that you have :)
On Death...
Death happens, even to those closest to us. I'm in the same boat as Sonart. I've accepted the fact that death is the end. That doesn't mean I want it to happen (to anybody) any time soon. The athiest outlook has given me an incredible respect for life and for death.
Knowing that death is the ultimate end makes every life, every moment, every experience that much more important and that much more worth saving.
"Statistics show that of those who contract the habit of eating, very few survive." -- Wallace Irwin
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