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As an atheist, how do you handle the thought of death?

Greenheart 7 May 20
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38 comments (26 - 38)

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2

The only thing I fear about death is the potential that my last moments will be spent in pain or indignity. That and that I may never have positively impacted the species, and therefore my existence was a moot exercise in futility. But I aim to change that, if nothing else and for no other reason than to be proud of what I leave behind as a form of comfort in my last breaths. It would also be nice to have loved ones around before I go, but, at the same time, I'm not sure I'm comfortable with them having to bare witness to that, especially if it's a traumatic, painful, or otherwise undignified death...

2

Bring it on. I am ready on the day that I die, be it today, next week, or 20 years from now.

2

Much like the other posters here already.. its inevitable. I guess I made my peace with the idea back when I was shipping off to war. The CO lined us all up, said "look at the man to your left" (everyone did). "now, look to the man to your right". Everyone did. "its a good chance one of those two men won't be coming back". there was some chuckling. some sotto voce "nice to know ya".. but I thought about it.. Sure.. I looked at 2 people.. 2 people looked at me. That gave me pause. So yeah, in my late 20's I accepted death as inevitable. I don't fear it. I don't welcome it, but I know it'll happen.

2

For me there's nothing to think about it.
The only thing I regret about it is I won't be aware to appreciate it.

2

Well, I know that I have a small amount of time to live so I’ll try and make the most of it ?

2

I don't worry about it. In fact, sometimes I look forward to it.

2

I handle the "thought" of death, by not having the "thought" of death. If it comes it comes and whatever happens will happen. Thinking about it isn't going to change anything.

1

Thank goodness for death. Like most people I enjoy my life, I am in no hurry to die, and in fact I take steps to try for a long life. But the scariest thing to consider would be enternal life. At some point I would have seen and done everything so many times that surely boredom would lead to madness. And knowing that release from it would NEVER be coming would indeed be hell. So I am grateful for the wondrous gift of life, and also grateful for an eventual end to it. As usual, I am peaceful and happy following the ways of nature.

Jean-Paul Sartre wisely said that death is one experience we don't have to live through. I find that quite comforting.

1

Does anyone ever spend much time contemplating death? Even monotheists and monotheism don't dwell much on death, prefering to skip ahead to the life-ever-after bit.

I spent over two years in a bad place psychically and the prospect of a quick release was never too far from my thoughts - a rational response, given the circumstances. During that time, I came to the rational conclusion that, as I think I may have written in another post or comment, that death is, quite simply, the absence of life. I will cease to exist, other than in the memories of those who outlive me (as will the store of my memories, in the way that vivid dreams can be forgotten on waking as if they had never existed - and, to all intents and purposes, they don't). Death, then, is not some vast, dark nothingness, but an absence of everything - including me.

1

Not afraid of death. Will be unconscious. Plus before I was born, I can argue, I didn't exist and it wasn't a problem then.

1

with a sense of dread

0

I welcome human extinction, so I guess I’m pretty ok with it.

0

Death its self does not scare me. The ways I could be killed,now those do scare me as a young teen I was burned severely and the thought of being trapped in a burning car,or building freak me out.

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