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are you afraid of death?

being atheist or agnostic we know that chriatainality and angels and demons gods and devils and most likely an afterlife are all just wishful thinking. seeing as we know that death is indeed the end for us does that idea frightend you ? what are your thoughts on death ? personaly i gotta admitt it scares me . i know there is nothing i can do to avoid it . im so sad when a relative dies knowing ill never see them again. and this is why i think so many people wanna believe in a god and heaven. we want so badly to believe us and our loved ones will live on that many do so just to comfort themselfs. your thoughts ?

DavidDeLa89 6 Dec 28
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371 comments (301 - 325)

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2

Dying, yes. Death, no.

I'm just worried I'll bite the dust before the final installments to the books I read are released.

1

No, just how I'll be remembered.

1

I am afraid of death as a mortal creature. My morality does not bother me, nor do I fear being dead. I fear dying, it's instinctual.

1

I know I can't stop my death. It happens at the right time and I am not afraid

1

I am not scared of death ( We're going to die) my only fear es what's my last breath going to heel like.

1

I have no fear of death, but there is a fear of dying. I only fear the pain of prolonged suffering prior to death.

1

I find funerals creepy. I think allot of people are scared of death by how they talk about it as if it isn't real. I don't look forward to it, but it's inevitable with age, and for me probably painful getting there. I hope I don't have many regrets by the time I cease to exist. "It is finished"

I don't necessarily think funerals are creepy but I really resent the whole long process we put into laying dead bodies to rest and the fact that I'm going to be the one making that effort when my parents go. I've told people to cremate me or donate my body to science, whatever is easiest to them. I find it silly that we feel the need to go to so much trouble and expense to take care of dead bodies.

1

I am not afraid for it is a natural situation and we are sure about it no meaning in frightened

2

I think, there is no need to worry everything related to the religious ideas about the death,
C'oz many Religious idea (Especially Christians idea) tried to design human mind illusion, fear, and uncomfortable thoughts about the death.

For me; I'm not afraid to die

2

...ur loved ones live on thruogh u
what I emulate of the loved one/thier views
triumphs;interests;traits-these I carry(filtered).
having no regrets;leaving the earth
better then I found it- makes death normal
part of life??

1

I’m not afraid of death and I think the reason why I’m not is because when you think about, eternal life no matter where you spend it would have too be the worst thing imaginable because after a while you’ll have experienced everything there is, at that point why even go on so I do sorta like the idea of simply not existing and there’s just something poetic about my body being used as nutrition by the same world that I’ve some small hand in destroying

JJay Level 2 Oct 6, 2018
1

I’m afraid of dying but not of being dead. I have no wish to cease to exist, or suffering through some sort of death throws, but I could care less about worrying about what happens afterwards.

1

I look at death as the ultimate investigation into the unknown and I look forward to finding out what is in store for us, I hope it is a quiet nothingness. Dying scares the crap out of me, medical science in it's special wisdom doesn't believe in you getting the drugs you might need to go quietly into the darkness because they fear you might become addicted.

2

I don't welcome it, but I hope I can face it well.

2

I think that once you accept that there's nothing else after you die, then it only becomes hard because you don't want to leave your loved ones or not see anyone again. There's no point being afraid of things that are inevitable.

tj509 Level 4 Oct 7, 2018
3

Actually, as a fledgling agnostic, I actually used to cling to the idea of souls for that exact reason. Well, that and I refused to believe that we were nothing more than sentient meat-bags.
I figured that after we died, our souls would wander the earth, being able to experience the world, but not interact with it. Then I started thinking about whether animals had souls. After deciding that they did because they displayed emotions, I started thinking about why eating meat would be okay then.
And rather than becoming vegan because I really didn't want to do that I thought well okay, maybe it's only a "beta soul" and only humans had "alpha souls". I started asking myself what the difference was and ultimately came to the conclusion that this whole "alpha soul" and "beta soul" thing was starting to become more of a religion than I wanted it to.
In the end, I decided that when you believe in souls but no god, the former falls apart under scrutiny and the ladder suddenly feels needed to have it all make sense. I then accepted that death is pretty much a dreamless sleep, and that actually gave me a lot of comfort because I love sleep, and life can get pretty tiring.

1

No. I am 83 years of age and have lived a long and productive life with all its joys and sorrows. I am grateful that I had this chance on life in this universe. I do hope for a peaceful and pain free death. I am relative good health for my age and have excellent medical care. Modern science is amazing and I hope to live to be one hundred but would not want to live forever. Unless I was able to travel to a distant planet which would take many thousands of years. Assuming Iscience could also get me spruced up a bit.

1

No I dont

2

No I am not afraid to die

2

It used to terrify me when I was little. After a lot of thought on it I realized there was no point in stressing over it. It will happen eventually and my consciousness will cease. When that happens I won't be around to care and all I can hope for is that the people I leave behind will be better for knowing me and remember me fondly.

3

Terrified.

1

I am not afraid and that is the end of your existence.

3

I am getting much closer now, so I think about it often. It's the method of my death that ccauses me the most concern. I would like to have some say in it, but there is that fine line where I can still make the decsion and the point where i am too feeble to have any power over my body.
I am already disposing of my "treasures", realizing that they are only precious to me and not my heirs. And I am naming people in photographs. Most of them dead and in the old country. And I am writing my memoirs, with at least 15 more chapters to write.
So, lots to do before I die. Afraid? No.

Wonderful words.

2

Comfort is certainly a reason people elect to suppress their doubts. It's painful to think about. But I simply can't allow myself to live delusional. That said, it does frighten me. This is it. We weren't here for billions of years, then we're here for a little while, and then we're gone for the rest of eternity. That reality sucks. But this is why it's so important we live happily. Also, I found a quote from Carl Sagan that really helps...
"I would love to believe that when I die I will live again, that some thinking, feeling, remembering part of me will continue. But as much as I want to believe that, and despite the ancient and worldwide cultural traditions that assert an afterlife, I know of nothing to suggest that it is more than wishful thinking. The world is so exquisite, with so much love and moral depth, that there is no reason to deceive ourselves with pretty stories for which there's little good evidence. Far better, it seems to me, in our vulnerability, is to look death in the eye and to be grateful every day for the brief but magnificent opportunity that life provides.”

Wonderful quote really. I connect with what you say about being unable to live being disillusioned. Honestly that is me all over, I cannot ignore the reality I am faced with maybe life would be easier if I could but I never will.

...Thanx,nice guidepost- I admire CS
more in time...

3

I am not afraid of being dead, but the idea of dying does not sound entirely pleasant. Anyone or thing I've seen die was certainly not having a good time! That being said, I had always secretly hoped to drop dead in a mosh pit. I would be doing something I love and several dozen people would have a pretty good story.

Snail Level 2 Oct 25, 2018
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