Atheists: do you get frightened when you think of dying?

Question

serious question here, not trying to start a fight. You believe in annihilition, doesn't that scare you? One day you will not exist at all. I just want honest answers because I personally couldn't deal with that, and no, that is not why I'm Christian. I don't hide behind my faith to protect my fears. Please, real answers here

Answer 1

Theo sux...

Really, it's hard to judge how things will be. I kno many athiests who dont necissarily believe there is no after life, they just dont 100% believe there is. i kno this isnt ALWAYS the case though.

i personally fear non-existence as well, but i am open to the fact that that might be the only thing.

i guess the best thing to do is live your life to the fullest. then, there's no regrets either way.

Answer 2

I'm not Atheist but may I answer anyway? Everyone comes to a point where they face their own mortality. There is naturally going to be some anxiety to work through. I would guess Atheists deal with this event the same as anyone else. Annihilation means the complete destruction of something and while I do believe in an afterlife, I can see why an Atheist wouldn't be scared of dying any more than anyone else. Blessings.

Answer 3

I get frightened when I think of heaven. Who needs the constant consternation of a large group of like minded "judgmentalist" christians hanging about? Give me annihilation or give me hell.

(Judgmentalist, to my knowledge, is not a word. I used it as a play on fundamentalist.)

Note: I don't believe in either concept mentioned above. My real answer would be, no, I don't fear death. Death is only a new beginning and what that beginning is, I don't know, but whatever it may be, I'll welcome it with open arms. My first answer was what I thought the questioner was expecting.

Remember, a wise man knows there is much he does not know, and claiming to know the complete and utter truth is just plain arrogant.

Answer 4

I'm not an atheist, but I think their way of thinking might be just as possible as existing in some form for eternity. And I am less frightened of death now than when I was a Christian.

Answer 5

Steady on there, you're basically dicating my beliefs now and I don't agree.

Of course I'm afraid of death (mine and others I love around me), few people aren't. I personally try not to think about it though as it is depressing and generally not worth thinking about.

As for the "annihilation" thing. I don't think you've got it right. There's no annihilation involved at all, we just cease to live. Nothing is destroyed except the electricity that enables brain activity.

Answer 6

This body is just a way for our divine spirit to have a physical experience.
We never die, our bodies get old etc, after each life we return to spirit and figure out if and when we should return.

Read the TIBETAN BOOK OF DEAD
.
This book is the first English language translation of the famous Tibetan death text, The Great Liberation upon Hearing in the Intermediate State. Also known as the Bardo Thodol which means "liberation by hearing on the after death plane" (Bardo: after death plane, Thodol or Thotrol: liberation by hearing), it was originally written in the Tibetan language and is meant to be a guide for those who have died as they transition from their former life to a new destination.

Answer 7

Yes, I do agree that ceasing to exist is most likely what happens to a person upon death, and yes, I do find it frightening. I hope to put it off for as long as I can. Why do you ask?

Answer 8

I do believe in Annihilition, that when I pass away my existence ceases to be completly.

Do I fear death then? Yes, but not because what awaits me but because I will leave this world and all the people I care for. I'm sure thats a trait we all have.

Not fearing the afterlife lets me make choices that I want to make, not choices I make out of fear of damnation. But fearing death lets me cherish my existence and not throw it away for false beliefs.

Answer 9

no, because I really never was afraid of dying like a lot of people are. I don't really know why. I do get a little mad though, because I want to be able to see what happens to our human race in a thousand years. But other than that, no.

Answer 10

what is there to be scared of? obviously most people would hope to die peacefully, but we are all going to die, one way or another, at some point!

my flesh will return to the earth, my breath to the air, my spirit will live on in my children.

light would not be without the dark, and so with life and death.

it is all natural, and none of it is to be feared.

blessed be

)o(

edit: i do not fear my relatives dying. but i dread the day because i will miss them greatly. i think therin lies many people's fear of death.. that they will either be cionsumed by grief when another dies, or that they will cause grief when they die.
it is natural to be shaken to your core when people you love die.. i have experienced it, from relatives and friends, and not enjoyed the experience obviously (just incase a fundie suggeste otherwise). but at the same time i have had more peace in my heart than some xian relatives, because i know they have returned to nature.
love n light to all