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Despite all the scientific evidence - EEG showing cessation of brain activity, i.e. consciousness, the natural decay of dead flesh and the fact (in my opinion) that no one comes back to tell the tale – many people still maintain that death is not the end of our existence. Surely by its very definition, death is the end of life - full stop! Yet so many cannot and will not accept this and cling wistfully to the hope of some sort of continuance, another existence beyond the grave. How can this really be? I think that these delusions must be brought on by a dread of death. It is perfectly natural to be frightened of death, that is part of our survival instinct, but to deny death’s finality seems to me, a grave mistake and almost a kind of “blasphemy”. I am of course, sympathetic to those bereaved who have lost loved ones who were children or young people who did not have the chance to realise their potential and live their lives to the full. It seems to be a kind of poetic justice that these poor young souls should go on to some other life beyond this one – but unfortunately, I feel it in my bones that this is not the case. Death has no respect for age, class, colour or creed. When someone has lived their full span of “three score and ten” or however longer, death seems to me to be a kind of reward, freedom from service. Just beyond death is the peaceful harbour of eternity after our long and hectic voyage. The eternal rest as it has so often been called. Death, not space is the final frontier. Give humanity time and we shall conquer, or at least understand a lot more about space - but death? I think not, we are but mortal! We may be able to vastly extend our life span with cell replacement and tissue building drugs and supplements to delay death - but the inevitable hour will still come. I don’t think that anyone would really want to live this life forever. Imagine how that would be on one’s own, living on to watch all your loved ones, spouse, children, grand children, great grand children ad nauseam spring up and die leaving you to mourn each passing generation. That would indeed be inhuman. What most people seem to want is a kind of comfortable heaven after death, a place where one goes in spirit (Whatever that means? A conscious entity without a body? A soul?) and is reunited with one’s lost loved ones and spends eternity in happy reunion, maybe with God or angels looking on. I find this all so difficult to imagine, let alone believe. Whereas non-existence, unconscious oblivion – a return to the state which “I” was in before “I” was born – I can imagine; and this seems to me reasonable, logical and non problematical – with no hanging around waiting for harp practice to begin! I believe in death after life.
John Ward
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