Question for Atheists?

Question

I am quite intrigued by many of the arguments that I have read for there being no God, some using very capable logic. Although I was raised as Christian, my views on God now are hardly parallel to the traditional points of view. Still, it is quite difficult for me to comprehend an end to my own existence, mostly from my own experiences (such as one out-of-body experience when I was 18... don't laugh), rather than what I was taught in Sunday School. My question is, do atheists believe in any kind of existence after the death of the body, and if so, what kind of existence? I understand that you wouldn't believe it would be in some kind of heaven, or with some Supreme Deity. Is there merely an end to all cognizance, wherein everything would be black, such as in an unconscious state? These questions are not meant to inflame, but are truly slated for more understanding of my own world and concepts. Thank you in advance for honest and sincere replies.

Answer 1

I appreciate the question because it's honest and meaningful, unlike most threads in this forum, and here's my honest answer.

Most atheists do not believe in afterlife. That includes me. I believe the sensation of self ceases, permanently and indefinitely, after the body has died. There's apparently no heaven or hell. There's simply nothing.

I understand that is a much colder fact to accept. That is also indefinitely more pessimistic than the belief that "my soul will go to Heaven after I die." Surprisingly perhaps, this belief in "no afterlife" is even more difficult to accept for some people than "an afterlife to Hell." A suffering soul in Hell is still better than no soul at all.

In fact, truth doesn't always comes in the flavor you like. Truth can be stunning and very disappointing. Was it easy for the world to accept that the Earth is not the center of the universe? No. Was it easy for the world to accept that we won't have cure for AIDS in the near future? No.

As for "how does it feel like for a no-afterlife after death?" In fact, I have a ridiculously simple answer to this question.

What do you feel like every night, when you are sleeping but you are not dreaming? That's the state of death according to my beliefs. It is a state of total unconsciousness. You are not aware of your own presence, physically or mentally. You are not bored, because you don't feel anything. You don't worry about going to anywhere, Heaven or Hell, because you are not contained in any entity. You are not concerned with going back to the real world because you just feel nothing. You just don't exist. Do you worry about "not waking up in the morning" while you are sleeping but not dreaming? Absolutely not!

At last, I want to introduce the concept of "reductionism." Reductionism is a belief in cognitive psychology, in which some researchers claim that our self-awareness is actually a delusion given by the complex thoughts we have. In other words, we as humans don't even have souls, consciousness, or self-awareness to begin with. Our central nervous system is just to complex that it is generating false signal to make us believe that we are actually in control of our body. If you think this theory is wild, I agree. It is really lacking satisfactory evidence to support itself. But it may help explain why a no-afterlife state is possible.

Answer 2

I state that I am not an atheist. Nor do I choose a denomination of any sort. I do not label my way of thinking nor do I care to be labeled. With that said, I believe that their are circumstances and events that happen in ones life that will help choose ones religion or way of thinking. They may be called miracles, life changing events, or whatever you desire. I think that it is different with each person and their blueprint of life. I think that an atheist would think that when the body dies that is pretty much it. It as seen as anything coming to an end and just not being. Some claim that their love and faith in the holy spirit is just something you feel. I don't think that is much different than someone feeling how a car runs, or how they know when someone is mad at them. That would be blasphemy to some of religious outlooks, but all in all it is pretty much the same lines of faith. I personally think that the soul as we speak of is the concious mind aware of feelings that to some in science cannot be explained. Things that can't be explained like this have a best educated guess, in which with a big enough degree or social status can make it the "right thing". In closing, any supreme diety in any religion is seen as hope that we are all not just here to live and die. I hope that with what I have witnessed in my journey so far might help me find the "ultimate" answer one day. I believe the day you find out the meaning to it all is the day you die. Those last 5 seconds of life I think it comes to you. Once again not bashing anyone's religions or belief's. Thanks for letting me share that with you.

Answer 3

Thanks for such an open question.

I speak personally of course. I believe life after death is the same as life before birth. It is humans egocentric fear of death and the cessation of our existance that is one of the main reasons for religions to linger.

I was bought up a christian and struggled initially after realising that it was all myth, with the end to my existance. After reading more and more biology and understanding my place in the universe, I began to accept that the end of my life is not something to fear, it is natural. This acceptance provided me with the contentment I was after and made me realise just how precious a FINITE life is, and how I wanted to live each day and contribute.

For my children I read them books like 'Death is Natural' and they find it easier to accept than I did because they don't have the indoctrination that I did. They know there is no point being concerned with death, once it occurs we know nothing more, so it is life that should be our focus.

Answer 4

I don't think anybody can really claim to know what happens after we die. Even scientists will admit there is something about consciousness that is not reducible simply to our physiology. However, I think it is more rational to believe that our consciousness ends when we die. Would I like it to continue in some way? Of course, but I can't trick myself into believing that. I don't mean to be depressing but I think we just rot and become part of the earth. However, because I believe this, I think I have a greater appreciation for my life. I believe I've only got one shot, and I want to enjoy it.

I was always not sure about God but after some deep introspection, I just cannot find any good reason to believe a god exists. I once had a philosophy teacher that said something that really stuck with me. He said, "truth is useful". I think the best way we can improve our lives is to seek truth. The more truths we learn, the more ways we can respond and react to these truths to improve our lives. The only way to learn different truths is through logic and reason. God is just in direct conflict with logic and reason. I hope my comments were helpful. Cheers.

Answer 5

No evidence of a soul. It is but wishful thinking by men for their own mortality.

"The human body is nothing but a set of chemical reactions. The chemical reactions powering a human life are no different from the reactions powering the life of a bacterium, a mosquito, a mouse, a dog or a chimp. When a human being dies, the chemical reactions stop. There is no "soul" mixed in with the chemicals, just like there is no soul in a bacterium, a mosquito, a mouse, a dog or a chimp. Why would there be an afterlife for the chemicals that make up a human body?" (Quote from "God is Imaginary")

Answer 6

Very good question and great reasoning skills.

I don't believe there is a god. I do believe in the power of the human mind (proven through a few real experiments) and I do believe that there are worlds, and dimensions, that we have not yet found. So it is not impossible for me to stretch that to believe that when we die we go to a different dimension.

And I have a couple very real, and much unexplained, events during my life. They were not "god like", nor did they give me a "feeling" of god's presence, or absence. But I can tell you that they made me believe that there is a very real possibility of realms other than ours.

Peace to you and good luck on your journey...

Answer 7

I am an agnostic, but I have the reasoning of an atheist. I dont believe that there will be anything spectacular after death and we will probably just stop existing, just like before birth. However, I believe in souls and possibly incarnation, although it is probably just wishful thinking. I still have to work out some of the kinks in my own beliefs, but it sounds like you are on your way to finding peace in your beliefs. So good luck.

Answer 8

I do not believe my consciousness survives death, because my brain will have ceased functioning. I would not be able to think, feel, or perceive anything.

But in a way, I think that we survive death in the memories of other people. It sounds cheesy, but memory is a way to preserve the past amid constant change, at least temporarily. Life cannot exist without death, but a remnant of me can exist in other self-conscious beings, like my family. Not to mention art, literature, science, and other contributions.

Sometimes when I open a book compiled by an ancient philosopher, I imagine that I am bringing that person back to life, in a superficial sense: Their thoughts are organized on the page and preserved after death. I can be touched by a poem written by Emily Dickinson, though she has not existed for over a century. It is as if she is speaking to me past the grave, her world and culture intact.

When I think of death as non-existence, I try to think of it like the period before birth. In fact, they are exactly the same. There is no pain, no consciousness, no awareness of any form, though a billion years may pass in the span of an instant.

It also helps to ease my fear of death. If I am not sad for not existing in 1849 or 1583 or any other age before I was born, why should I be sad for not existing after my life has ceased? If I do not exist, the question of wanting to exist becomes meaningless. I'm only afraid of dying, and losing my experiences in life. But there is no way to avoid it.

"If death is, I am not. If I am, death is not." -Epicurus

Of course, you could always take the biological route after death, with is not exactly surviving death, but recycling organic matter. When the body decomposes, it releases gases in the atmosphere and bacteria consume what remains of soft tissues. It sounds gross, but the atoms that makes up my body could eventually become new organisms, maybe a sentient one given enough possibilities. Not that this view a comfort, but at least life goes on after I die...

Answer 9

I believe that there is a release of energy when we die.That energy is released into the universe.Where it goes and to what level of thought it has is beyond me and I think it is arrogant presumption to think anybody has the answer to what happens when we die with certainty.But I believe that, at the very least, the electric energy that we carry in life does leave our bodies and once released it goes somewhere.But I doubt seriously that the somewhere it goes is a place called Heaven or Hell.It is far more likely that the place it goes is into the infinity of an ever expanding universe.

Answer 10

I don't think we have a "soul". I don't see any evidence that conciousness can exist apart from matter. Some of the evidence I see has more to do with science and other has to do with human experience. An old person kind of "shuts down" with Alzheimers. As their brain dies, the bit that is "them" shrivels up and goes away. The lose their "personality."

An unconscious state is a way of putting it. I like to think of it like "before I was born."