Why do humans believe in an afterlife?, page 1

It is a concept as old as human history. It permeates every spiritual belief system ever known. The belief that there exists beyond this mortal coil another realm of existance. That death is not an end, but mearly a transition into plane of reality. But why?

Is it instinctual? Is the secret to this mystery buried deep in our psyche? Is it something we bring with us into this world? It would be counter to Darwin and Evolutionary Theory for this to be a part of our species evolutionary imperitive, to Survive! Our fear of death, even amongst the faithful, shows our Darwinian side hard at work.

Therefore, if it is to be considered instinctual, then it must be some form of hidden knowledge we bring with us when we are incarnated into this form, thus implying that the immortality of our 'souls' goes in both directions. Far Eastern Philosophies, and Past Life Regression suggests just that. During my time as a professed Agnostic, I can state that while I was unsure about the existance of 'God', I could not shake the firm belief that there was an existance that trancended death. This belief is what kept me from ever professing to be an Atheist.

Is it psychologically motivated? Does the belief in an afterlife come from a psychological need to deal with grief? Is it the minds self defense mechanism in dealing with the loss of a loved one? In this manner, we don't really have to say goodbye, but more like see you later.

Is it the Ego's need to believe that the self will never cease to exist? Since we all share the fear of death, and as far as we know, we are the only species on the planet that is aware of it's own mortality, it could very well be that it is a coping mechanism in dealing with the end of the self.

Is it spiritually motivated? It is not that uncommon for someone to experience a haunting experience. There are even those among us who claim to be able to sense and communicate with the dearly departed. I have experienced both of these phenomenon myself. Is it due to these otherworldly experiences that we have come to the conclusion that there must be life after death?

Does Science now support this belief? According to Physics, energy never disapates, organized energy never disorganizes, and the entire Universe is composed of nothing but energy, and that it is all connected. If the 'soul' is merely the organized energy of the person, then the loss of the organic computer (the brain) should only force the energy that is the individual to trancend the physical.

Then you add the growing scientific data that has been gathered at various haunted locations, such as EVP's, ghostly images caught on film, Electromagnetic and Thermographic readings and the like, the scientific evidence seems to indicate and support the existance of an afterlife.

Now there are those who insist that there is no God, and that once you die, that's it. But if given clear scientific evidence to the contrary, these left brain dominant skeptics would most likely change their minds.

While every Religion and Spiritual Belief System varies as to what this Afterlife is like, a majority of humans, including those who follow no given religious or spiritual belief believe that one does indeed exist. But is it real, or just the mind's way of coping with mortality?

reply to post by JaxonRoberts

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Good thread.

The topic is endlessly debatable. Perhaps we believe in an afterlife because we only know existence.

Every single one of us, right now, exist. We are familiar with it, we are experiencing it, and we don't know anything but existence. So, how could we believe in something so foreign as nonexistence?

I don't know though. This just happened to have crossed my mind while reading this thread. That's about all I got right now!

Again, good thread.

reply to post by JaxonRoberts

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I've posted this video once before, but I'm going to do so again because it truly represents what I believe about our existence and the hereafter.



I believe that what we experience in this reality is so radically different from what we experience in the ethereal, that our physical minds just wouldn't fully be able to comprehend it. We might catch glimpses of what lies beyond the grey rain curtain of of this world, but I don't think we'll ever have the full picture while in the here and now.

reply to post by ReelView

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So what about blind people?

This is a great thread and one of the reasons why I enjoy ATS regardless of all the other bad threads and silly topics.

Years ago I studied a little bit about gnosticism. One of the most intriguing aspects of it was finding salvation within yourself. That really spoke to my spiritual side as a human being. That to find the meaning of life or salvation or whatever we have to look inward..........not to some deity, not to a white, beared man........and not to the cosmos per se. That within all of us human beings is something that is so completely different from every other life form on this planet that there is a reason to live..........

I personally think of life as a lesson. And however long it takes you to learn whatever lesson we are supposed to learn........until you do.......you can't "move on". Like many others in this thread have said........I think reincarnation makes A LOT of sense. Maybe the only way to really love........to really feel love is to be a human being. To live on this Earth........an earth and a planet that is like no other.............filled with such danger, such extremes, such ugliness.............yet also filled with such beauty........such amazing potential. I mean we as human beings seem to really forget or completely disregard just how amazing and beautiful mother earth and nature really is. I feel more than ever as I grow up and grow older that all the answer to our problems are here right under our noses. It's almost as if...............if we as human beings could just get our collective butts together..............we could in fact create something very close to heaven on Earth. I don't know...........there is this innate closeness and spritual peace that I yearn for when I think of living closer to nature.............wild and free like Native Americans did. I feel if I had to choose any type of life to live as a human being on this earth it would be that life.

I know Indians were not perfect...........considered to be savages by many.......but their one with nature truly was amazing to me. I don't like how I live as a human being nowadays. I don't like 21st century society. And I don't like where humanity is headed. So again........I feel each of us is responsible for where we as a species are headed........maybe that's the ultimate test.............we either learn the lesson of being human......which to me is to truly love each other and advance spiritually......or we will kill each other off.

I feel like the twilight of human existence was reached thousands of years ago in my opinion............and it's been all down hill from here. I don't even think despite all our technology and capabilities we are even that smart of a species anymore.

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