When I’ve got not much to do, I like to meditate about things. How does this world come to the shape it is now; could animals also be religious; why the form of worldwide anarchy wouldn’t work; when will the weather get warmer so that I could go out and play basketball again etcetera.
I slept over the alarm this morning till 9:36. No haste, boss wouldn’t herein bite. That’s what I like about the company, flexible timing and free lunch. The first thing I received when I opened my computer, as always, was the greeting from Katie Showalter who is a good friend of mine I’ve been talking to for years through IM, for which I appreciate very much because she is the only one who greets me whenever I go online and I actually love talking to her.
As the talk went, we were into the discussion of afterlife. She’s a nonbeliever of afterlife, nor am I, I guess. Thing is, as I have also asked her, that why would people still fear when they walk in a cemetery or graveyard? Feeling alone and uneasy at least for that matter. If you are a solid nonbeliever of life after death, why the heck would you still act like you do somewhat believe in it? It appears so to me when people show their anxiety of being ambushed by some sort of souls or ghosts lurking around the tombs especially when the corpses weren’t cremated but buried directly six feet under. Katie came up with the answer that because people watched too many horror movies where bad and weird things always take place in cemeteries. So does that mean people become flip-flopped in their belief before and after the movie? Which, again, means that perhaps they are not quite sure about it?
I myself am very aware that I dare go to the cemetery in the day with a bunch of people around and sunshine if possible. However, I will never go there alone, in the darkness, with no breath of liveness. Any kind of breeze of movement would scare the shit out of me under that situation, even it is the sound of my own. Yet, I still claim myself a disbeliever, an atheist. Why? I dunno.
Maybe I misclassified myself into the atheistic category. Maybe I’m an agnostic. Probably many others are as well. The existence of supernatural phenomena, such as souls and life after death, is unverifiable and therefore unknowable. This also leads to one of my above meditations, the animals, do they have afterlife, too? Are they held responsible for their actions?
Some people form their views based on observation, some formulate theirs based on faith. The notion of afterlife is absurd at first sight, but with more thought into it, particularly if you have some sort of special experience of near death or out-of-body, then you might challenge your own certainty . I haven’t experienced any of it, certainly I hope I never will, I still ridicule the concept of afterlife yet I have doubts nonetheless. Am I making myself paradoxical?
So what’s your take on this?
January 18, 2008 at 8:04 am
“So does that mean people become flip-flopped in their belief before and after the movie? Which, again, means that perhaps they are not quite sure about it?”
I think people believe what they see, which is generally a good outlook to have in my opinion. And although they know it’s not actually real, horror movies tend to be so realistic that a tiny part of the subconscious really does believe that something like it could happen, even if you don’t believe in the afterlife. I’ve never seen a horror movie, mainly because they are so realistic.
January 18, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Nicely written Yao – You have put some thought into this. You mentioned things I had not thought of before. To me it has always been a sad thought for the people that have no belief in an afterlife. It is quite a depressing thought actually to think that this is really all there is.
I do believe in an afterlife and am not really afraid of death but I hate to leave my friends and family…… even for a while……as I believe they will get there eventually.
Quite an interesting thought about people being afraid of cemetarys in the dark when they don’t believe in an afterlife. Love it! I also agree with Katie that movies and TV are probably the driving force behind our fear of creepy things in cemetarys (sp?)
As with all beliefs that are religiously based – they can neither be proved nor disproved “scientifically”. No belief in an afterlife is simply an opinion which everyone is entitled to….. I must say that believing in life after death is a more comforting way to live if nothing else. Without it, life would be very empty to me and I would fear and dread death greatly.
Karen – “The Believer”
January 18, 2008 at 1:58 pm
Empty? I would think it’s more full that way, knowing that everything will come to an end and that you should live your life to the fullest because of it (I’m a bit hypocritical about that though, I spend every day in front of my computer). Maybe a better way to put it is to say that you should live life how you want to live it, because you don’t get another chance.
January 18, 2008 at 2:46 pm
“I’m a bit hypocritical about that though, I spend every day in front of my computer”
Hahaha, I am pretty much the same. Karen, however, does better than us. She likes her computer, but she also goes out a lot. Don’t you, Karen?
I think Karen and your opinions are kinda like the half-empty, half-full view, but not quite exactly. To perceive the life will end up to be vacant and therefore living to its fullest is a mixture of negativity and positivity. And it’s a very good amount of positives for people who could look up forward when positioned at a dilemma. I’m not saying to not believe in an afterlife will make everyone a miserable life, but some people do live terribly in fear of death at their late years and it’s actually the major of nonbelievers. Quite the contrary, believers would usually live peacefully with the idea of death at that stage, which very few of nonbelievers could handle.
So question to Katie, do you think you’ll be scared at your late years?
January 18, 2008 at 10:39 pm
Everybody’s feeling may be the same.
Here is my own experience. When I was child and protected by my parents, I mean, nothing serious to worry about, I was afaid death, not only my death but also others’, even though it won’t happen so closely.
With growing up especially teenage, I first realize the feeling not come from fears but loves. I love my family, I love the people around me, I love my life and I love this world. And I have not had many things tasted or undergone yet, I cannot suffer the way to the death.
But another question appears, “what will I do when doomsday comes to me?”
I think it depends on people’s value view. And my lats day in the world, I’d rather drink some hot tea or coffee in a cafe with some guys who really understand my, talk about anything. That is enough, because I appeciate that god gives my life and makes me accompanied with so sincere friends.
By the way, I have my opition that the live pattern after death may like electric waves, full with freedom and totally different from what we are. Haha… Maybe affected by too may science fictions.
In the end, forgive my English and thank trevor for giving us a space to doodle.
January 18, 2008 at 10:44 pm
Everybody’s feeling may be the same.
Here is my own experience. When I was child and protected by my parents, I mean, nothing serious to worry about, I was afaid death, not only my death but also others’, even though it won’t happen so closely.
With growing up especially teenage, I first realize the feeling did not come from fears but loves. I love my family, I love the people around me, I love my life and I love this world. And I have not had many things tasted or undergone yet, I cannot suffer the way to the death.
But another question appears, “what will I do when doomsday comes to me?”
I think it depends on people’s value view. And my lats day in the world, I’d rather drink some hot tea or coffee in a cafe with some guys who really understand my, talk about anything. That is enough, because I appeciate that god gives my life and makes me accompanied with so sincere friends.
By the way, I have my opition that the live pattern after death may like electric waves, full with freedom and totally different from what we are. Haha… Maybe affected by too may science fictions.
In the end, forgive my English and thank trevor for giving us a space to doodle.
January 19, 2008 at 12:05 am
You are more than welcome to be here, Pony.
Just to be clear, everybody, Pony is one of my workmates who specializes in computing and programming. Quite an outstanding man out here for his intelligence and ability to handle complexity.
So what you were saying is that you feared death when you were young because you were afraid of losing everything that you had cherished and would do and that you had so many things you hadn’t yet experienced, correct? When you are old, you won’t fear death because you would think that you have lived a full life without regrets, also the companies of your dear friends will make you calm and peace. Well, easy said than done, man. I even doubt the no regrets part, which I myself have already had a few. Am I being pessimistic?
You also said the afterlife may resemble electric waves, does that mean you believe in an afterlife?
January 19, 2008 at 12:21 am
“do you think you’ll be scared at your late years?”
I think I’m too young to have any idea of what I’ll think then. Too many variables in the middle that can change my opinion about different things.
January 19, 2008 at 12:30 am
@Katie: including your disbelief of an afterlife?
January 19, 2008 at 2:08 am
Right now, I don’t think so, but you never know.
January 19, 2008 at 9:58 pm
Very nice written, buddy.
But I’m just feeling that I can not write too much about it, coz I can not drive myself into such topics at all times.
Yes, people will never know the answer, I mean, if ’someone’ KNOW that afterlife exists, ‘it’ is definitely not human being anymore.
But well, as to me, I believe in afterlife, and even samsara. Why? No idea, just a thought, maybe because the sixth sense or something?
Anyway, at least we will all know the excact answer someday, the day after our last day, lol.
January 19, 2008 at 10:51 pm
Singa: So you are an agnostic.
I think I have an inclination to be agnostic as well. Katie’s ‘You never know’ (in other words, anything is possible) may also very well exhibit her uncertainty about the life after death, even she doesn’t commit so at the moment. lol.
January 20, 2008 at 12:01 am
My belief is that nothing is true until it can be proven, and I haven’t seen any proof about this topic.
January 20, 2008 at 12:10 am
Shall we give the benefit of the doubt to the unknowable mysteries of life? Which is “Anything is true until it can be proven not” or “Anything is possible until it can be proven otherwise”.
It’s kinda like the legislation sense that everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial.
January 22, 2008 at 10:54 pm
To me, much simpler,
1. People see horor movies for stimulation or chalenging their courage…
2. People not seeing horor movies can feel scared in the cemetery too, like me, even in the day time alone. Just the thougt of being with the unhuman all around me can freak me out, totally, although I convice myself they are angels not ghosts.
So, it is wise for me not bother myself by this complicated topic~~