Why do so many religions focus on death?

[Waymarker]

.. I just admit that I don't know the answer and move on with life (agnostic). Otherwise, there are so many "faith-based" stories and fairytales to explain the unknown, which one would I believe?

Fly in the ointment of that position is that a young carpenter blew peoples socks off with stuff not even David Blaine can do, and said- "I'll tell you things hidden since the creation of the world", so surely it's only logical to give him a hearing?
Right Spock?

"Affirmative, I'm all ears"

 

[luecy7]

I'm not sure why some religions focus intently on the death of themselves, the ego, and their mind along with it.

 

[Lunitik]

Deep-down we remember the indignities lived through in our past births.

We live in a world composed of 'duality' ---so:
'What ever is dead now, will later, take a living birth;
and,
What ever is alive now, will later, experience death'.

Fundamentally, I have an issue with this... manifestation is certainly the experience of duality but this isn't the ultimate reality. Duality is necessary to create the contrast that allows us to experience life, but to say it is indignities that fuel obsession with death? This simply shows that your tradition teaches differentiation of manifestation, you are not accepting your experience and thus feel you have been wronged. This is quite immature, spiritually.

Maybe I've just been lucky and all my past lives have been awesome? I would say it is simply that religions fuel our fears because it makes controlling us easier.

 

[Lunitik]

I'm not sure why some religions focus intently on the death of themselves, the ego, and their mind along with it.

I feel like you are referencing our prior discussions here... to be clear:

I have never said the goal is to kill the mind, it is quite useful as a storage device. The goal is to silence the mind so we are not distracted by it, this permits us to perform our tasks better and generally be more productive and peaceful.

The ego doesn't die either, it merely leaves as part of enlightenment. It isn't a living thing, so how can it die?

We are discussing the obsession with the death of the body, however, and fundamentally this is because we identify with the body - society repeatedly fuels this identification and most religions attempt to stop this through identification with something external or merely as a contemplation item.

 

[Snoopy]

Am I the only one that is pursuing spirituality for a more full experience during life? It is depressing to me that so many religious groups seem to concentrate on the afterlife while forgetting to live the current life.

Threads about reincarnation, punishment after death, whether we continue in some capacity after we die... some people may have had near death experiences, some may even recall past lives and the experience of that life ending, but we're all alive now. Why concentrate on some future event? It only distracts us from the herenow...

Of course, much of it is based on fear of death, but why fear something that is inevitable? Enjoy your time herenow, the future will come of its own accord - your beliefs do not effect it, they only claim to explain it. Allowing fear to control you is truly depressing, but even worse is allowing another to dictate what you should do with the fear... enjoy the gift you've been given, don't waste it worrying about when you have to give it back!

There are miraculous things you can encounter during life - not that life itself isn't miraculous already - which answer all your questions through experience, yet we'd rather alleviate fear by hearing another living persons words on the matter. I just don't get it...

The issue of death does not have to concentrate or be concerned with any notion of afterlife. An atheist may be concerned with the issue of death but presumably has no concern with the notion of an afterlife.

Secondly, it does not have to be an either / or does it? One may be concerned with life AND death (the Chinese expression of “The Great Matter of Living and Dying). Not to consider what is final and inevitable for us all would be strange I think. Humans may be unique in the animal kingdom in being aware of our mortality and it is this which naturally leads to consideration of what may occur post-mortem. Such thinking does not have to lead to fear, it may lead to an altogether different mindset or response – a joyous appreciation of our temporary conscious period time of life. Spending silent time amongst the dead can provoke a new or renewed vigour for our life here and now.

And to answer your opening question, I’m sure you’re not the only one! I do not believe in an afterlife, in reincarnation, in literal rebirth, punishment after death, past lives nor do I fear death. But this is, in some part, because I have given “consideration” to death. I cannot have beliefs about something that I can have no knowledge of. I can barely believe that the builder is going to turn up next Tuesday.

 

[Nick the Pilot]

Snoopy,

You bring up an interesting point. Can an atheist have a notion of an afterlife? If he/she has, for example, an out-of-body experience, a near-death experience, or experiences astral travel, is he/she, by your definition, not an atheist any more?

Do all atheists believe that stories about out-of-body experiences, etc., are nothing but a bunch of hooey?

 

[Ahanu]

Do all atheists believe that stories about out-of-body experiences, etc., are nothing but a bunch of hooey?

Behold the God helmet! Put it on for an out-of-body experience!

‪The God Helmet, Casco de Dios, Neuroscience, Neurociencia, Through The Wormhole‬‏ - YouTube

I think most atheists would point to this.

The best evidence for life after death would probably be in proving time and space are not absolutes: these two things would have to be absolutes for death to be final.

Find an atheist that can prove that, then I will believe there is no life after death, but experiments suggest otherwise (^_^).

 

[Waymarker]

Originally Posted by Waymarker-
I personally wouldn't get aboard any coach (or religion) that didn't have Jesus in the drivers seat

why is this ?

Who would you prefer in the driving seat, a David Koresh type or a Jim Jones type etc?
If you join a Jones-type cult you'd better change your name to 'NiceCupOfOrangeJuice'..

 

[Lorenzo Bermejo]

haven't any of you thought we might be spirits in a material existence? it seems so plausible for me. anyway, each of us has his own Truth and that is what matters.
be good, do good.

 

[IowaGuy]

Do all atheists believe that stories about out-of-body experiences, etc., are nothing but a bunch of hooey?

Do you believe all such stories that you hear? There are/have been a lot of people in this world claiming healing powers, communication with spirits, future telling, rising from the dead, virgin births, etc. Do you believe all of these people/stories and, if not, how do you decide which stories to believe and which not to believe?

 

[Waymarker]

..haven't any of you thought we might be spirits in a material existence?..

Yes that's what Jesus said- "the flesh alone is worthless, it's the spirit within that's the life"

 

[Waymarker]

There are/have been a lot of people in this world claiming healing powers, communication with spirits, future telling, rising from the dead, virgin births, etc. Do you believe all of these people/stories and, if not, how do you decide which stories to believe and which not to believe?

They're mostly fakes. We know that because none of them have yet claimed James Randi's longstanding million-dollar prize..

RANDI CHALLENGE- Challenge Info

 

[Lunitik]

haven't any of you thought we might be spirits in a material existence? it seems so plausible for me. anyway, each of us has his own Truth and that is what matters.
be good, do good.

What exactly does this have to do with the conversation?

Even science is confirming this, it is not a question of "considering" for it is fact. In fact, in the science realm, they seem to be confirming that matter is merely dense spirit... of course, they call it differently, they call it quanta.

 

[Lunitik]

Yes that's what Jesus said- "the flesh alone is worthless, it's the spirit within that's the life"

How many Christians do you think look within for this spirit?

 

[Lunitik]

The issue of death does not have to concentrate or be concerned with any notion of afterlife. An atheist may be concerned with the issue of death but presumably has no concern with the notion of an afterlife.

Secondly, it does not have to be an either / or does it? One may be concerned with life AND death (the Chinese expression of “The Great Matter of Living and Dying). Not to consider what is final and inevitable for us all would be strange I think. Humans may be unique in the animal kingdom in being aware of our mortality and it is this which naturally leads to consideration of what may occur post-mortem. Such thinking does not have to lead to fear, it may lead to an altogether different mindset or response – a joyous appreciation of our temporary conscious period time of life. Spending silent time amongst the dead can provoke a new or renewed vigour for our life here and now.

And to answer your opening question, I’m sure you’re not the only one! I do not believe in an afterlife, in reincarnation, in literal rebirth, punishment after death, past lives nor do I fear death. But this is, in some part, because I have given “consideration” to death. I cannot have beliefs about something that I can have no knowledge of. I can barely believe that the builder is going to turn up next Tuesday.

I just honestly don't understand why people spend so much time considering things which they cannot control. Neither the past nor the future actually exist, they are both merely projections. Only now truly exists, our measure of time is simply a perception of motion.

 

[Snoopy]

Perhaps fear?

 

[Lunitik]

Perhaps fear?

Well, yes, but why?

You can't avoid death, why allow people to manipulate you saying they know what happens after? It is bizarre to me, how can this person know? They are living when they try to explain it...

 

[Waymarker]

How many Christians do you think look within for this spirit?

If you mean the holy spirit, none.
Christians don't have to look inside themselves or anywhere else, it comes to us..

Jesus said:- "If anyone loves me, he will listen to my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him" (John 14:23)


If you mean the 'spirit within' (the soul), everybody has already got one of them..

 

[Lunitik]

If you mean the holy spirit, none.
Christians don't have to look inside themselves or anywhere else, it comes to us..

Jesus said:- "If anyone loves me, he will listen to my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him" (John 14:23)


If you mean the 'spirit within' (the soul), everybody has already got one of them..

So the words alone suffice as proof?

 

[Waymarker]

So the words alone suffice as proof?

The kool confident fearless zillion-mile stare in all Christians eyes is proof enough that the holy spirit is in them, here's Grylls pic as a classic example in case you missed it in another thread-

"My Christian faith is my backbone"- BG