it is empty of mind, because the chemical process of mind has stopped.

and that is the fundamental difference. the chemical process is done. there is something fundamentally different about a burning log and a pile of ash, a batch of dough and a finished loaf...

I do not believe in a soul, and it does not influence my answer one bit.

Thank you all for your replies. I do not believe in a soul, and the main difference is this "lack of life" or the state of being "devoid of life." For a body be devoid of life it is simply no longer functioning.

Once the brain ceases to function, you cease to function. A soul may be the energy we all have in us. The body is a shell indeed and kept alive via the brain, Such as major surgery. You are asleep as another cuts you open and then enters your body and fixes things. You have no recollection of this event. Such as when you die, the brain is not processing the you ergo you do not exist .

There is no soul. Our bodies just rot after death, just the same as an animal carcass. Why people think we are any different I can’t understand. So in answer to your question, yes our bodies are different after death, they are devoid of life, our brains and hearts have stopped ....the end! It is what legacy and memories we leave behind us for our friends and loved ones that we should be concerned with, not whether we have souls and whether they go anywhere. Love and charity towards our fellow beings whilst we are alive is the best way of ensuring we live on after we die.

there is no soul. your body is not emptier after death, but it isn't functioning as a living body anymore. instead it is decomposing. watch a plant, a flower if possible. plant it from a seed if possible so you can see the whole process. watch it grow and form a blossom and open up and be beautiful and begin to wilt. watch the flower drop off, and the plant begin to die (well, unless it's perennial; we're not! so go with an annual.) watch what happens to the plant. if we were not embalmed, the same (more or less) would happen to us. it's not EXACTLY the same of course; meat decomposes differently. with us, there would be a lot of insect action, and the decomposition would create a strong smell. for this, leave a piece of meat out and watch it rot, but i recommend you do this outside because you don't want flies in your house, and get rid of it before the neighbors complain.

g