For non-believers of religions?!?

Question

I'm doing a research project so real answers please. For those of you who do not believe there is anything after this life (once you die you cease to exist and thats that), what do you live for? In other words, what keeps you striving to live each day when you know (believe) that at the end of this it would be as if you never existed?

Please dont take the wording in a wrong way, it is for a paper and I think you guys can assume what I'm trying to say if you're not very clear.

thanks guys, I'm getting very good answers that make a lot of sense!

By as if "never existed" I may of been too extreme. Its reasoning was simply to imply that you will physically no longer be on this earth.

And if my question seems biased, it is in no way so please do not take it as that!

Answer 1

I strongly believe that I speak for a lot of people when I say that although we don't believe in an afterlife world or reincarnation, we do love life. Unlike most theists, we don't need to use lies in order for us to accept the reality of death. I even see it as a better way to look at the world since we value life more than most theists who only dream about the afterlife and could care less about the real world.

I even read posts from some theists who were trying to justify the suffering of the concentration camp victims by stating that "it's ok for them to suffer on earth since they will be with god in the afterlife anyway." To me, that is simply disgusting because I highly doubt they'll be saying that if they were the ones who were placed inside those camps.

Live life and be good to others.
We don't need religion to be "moral" or to see life in a positive way.

Answer 2

Life, life is the living.

Personally my wife and I hope on having children, raising them, hopefully be grandparents. Being better than yesterday. There's allot of things that can be achieved in a lifetime but they are so short and can end so suddenly that achieving the most out of a day is really something to life for.

As for my existence after death I'll be better off being remembered by those close to me, and if I get greedy then I'll write a book or something. That will keep anyone around.

Answer 3

I've only found the true purpose of my life once I've come to terms with my mortality. Be a good person, be kind to others, work hard, do your best to make some difference, be the change you want to see in others ...

I live for my family and friends, for those I care about. My eternity lies in leaving a legacy of some kind (be it a deed, a thought, or a cherrished memory) and in doing my best to make this world a better place for the generations to come. It may not be huge, but my 2 cents surely do count :)

Good luck with your project.

Answer 4

I am the product of an unplanned teenage pregnancy. I am here by an accident. I plan to live my life fully, and enjoy it completely. I was fine before I was born, so I think not existing after I die will be just fine too. It's foolish to think that you are going to continue on, in my opinion. I will do my best to make my mark on other people's lives, and maybe they can carry on my legacy, along with my children.

Answer 5

I think we would all live a lot more if we knew this was all there is, your theory is a bit biased of your personal views. Not really a good way to start research.

Everyone has a bias, even the most liberal of us do. But part of a good research paper is learning to overlook this. I didn't call your question biased, your opinion seems to be biased. Why are you asking questions and setting up such a strong one sided arguement? That's what I meant.

Answer 6

Actually, if you believe that when you die, you just blink out, then it makes this life that much more precious because it's all you get.

Life is worth living for it's own sake. Have fun! Enjoy the time you get to spend with friends and family. Don't waste a single minute!!

Answer 7

"What keeps you striving to live each day when you know (believe) that at the end of this it would be as if you never existed?"

Actually, the fact that I believe that I will go into non-existence in the end is WHAT keeps me striving to live the best life possible. One time around, and nothing more--makes you want to live every day to it's fullest.

Answer 8

Because I enjoy being alive. Why would I want to be dead before I need to be? I love my husband, children, family and friends and spending time with them. I feel that my job and volunteer work contribute something to society and that gives me purpose and meaning. Love my children and feel that raising them to be happy and healthy is worth sticking around for. I have lots of things that I enjoy that interest me; gardening, music, diving, traveling, chess, etc...
Why wouldn't I want to live? Would you really just want to die if you didn't believe in religion? I don't even understand that. In fact, if you believe there is a better world waiting what keeps someone here? Just the deals off if you commit suicide clause most religions built in? Yuck.

Answer 9

I live for life, basically. I don't believe there's anything afterwards, so I continue living because of all the wonderful things life has to offer. Personally I think it's a much happier way to live than sitting around waiting for death because you think something better will come along afterwards.
I consider life to be precious because of my absence of belief in afterlives, not despite it.

Answer 10

That's a curious question. My question would be the opposite. What makes an individual want to maximize his or her life if there is some grand, eternal kingdom waiting? I want to enjoy this life as much as possible because I know that there is no other life afterward. I enjoy my life and I enjoy being with those that mean the most to me because I know that I'll never see them after they die or after I die. When you put life into that context, it's more motivating; whereas, the other is less.