How do you know there's life after death
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| Tue, 01-09-2007 - 10:47pm |
Well I have started a poll so everyone can answer.
I am always trying to seek proof of everything. I have occasionally "thought" that I have felt something spirtual but I always question it. I am a little uneasy about life and death. I find myself dwelling on it, and am very afraid to die. The whole concept of it terrifies me. I'm not sure if it's because it is just unknown, or if it will be something I have to do alone and cannot avoid. I just don't understand what the spirt is. I don't know how to picture it, what it looks like and how it exists. I wonder if it is similar to what we feel now. I often feel like I am exsisting inside a machine and running it. I can look at myself in a mirror, I can see the outside of my body, but I seem to be existing inside of it, controlling everything. Thinking deeply like that, then made me believe that I MUST have a soul. There must be something other than this life form. If there isn't, then I wouldn't feel sort-of "detached" from myself.
I am just learning about different religions now, I have never been baptised and the thought bothered me. I started to question life, then I was worried that I wouldn't get into heaven. So I started researching, I know that I have a long road ahead of me, but I'm off to a good start I think. I have so many questions. Of course, the famous what is the purpose of life? How long has God exsisted? Who created him? Where is the end of the universe? Why can't I speak to my dead loved ones? If there is a wonderful life after death, and God has a plan, why can't we know? Why won't God reassure me of his presence?
All that I know is that I want to do what I have been put here to do, and I want to live my life to the fullest. I'm sick of worrying about all these things and need to find some peace! I don't know how to exactly go about it, I know it will take a lot of reading and learning. If that is going to help my well-being, then I'm more than willing to do it!
I was just wondering if any of you can share with me some of your thoughts and experiences that have assured you that there is a God. Can you feel him? How do I know if I do have a soul? Is it just my human nature asking the questions, or is it my soul? I'm so confused everyone!
Thanks for listening!
Amy

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You'll have to excuse me. I've been going through a very spiritual/philosophical journey as of late, and this post just seems to have opened a floodgate.
Maybe I've been thinking of it all wrong... lol. I've been thinking of it as the physical body allowing the "spirit" or force to experience the world, when maybe it is the other way around. But either way, there is no doubt that the physical body has limits. The body stores physical memories in order to experience the world, but perhaps the "spirit" has its own way of storing memories, and the physical body is simply unable to retrieve those memories - but for a very good reason --
Learning and experiencing things is, for lack of a better word, fun! You know that "ah-ha!" feeling you get when you figure something out? It's great. But once you've figured that thing out, you'll never get that "ah-ha" feeling - for that particular thing - again. It's like hearing a really good joke for the first time, and laughing your butt off, but then only chuckling the second time you hear it, even though you know it's still a darn good joke. After you've heard it several times, you're lucky if you crack a smile anymore, even though you can STILL appreciate that it's a good joke.
Haven't you ever thought, wouldn't it be great if I could go back and laugh at that joke again like I did the first time? When you really think about it, isn't that what brings us some of the greatest joys in this world? Experiencing things for the first time? This is why children are so fascinating - it brings us joy to watch them experience their firsts - the moment of their birth, their first steps, their first words. Relationships are exciting in the beginning, and it's only natural that that will eventually fade, which is why you and your partner better have a very similar way of thinking because before long, all you'll have is your mutual appreciation for the things in life, and your mutual respect and admiration for each other and what you've been through together.
Back to the funny joke though - take it a step further - haven't you ever thought to yourself, wouldn't it be fun to go back and look at the world through the eyes of a child again? Take it further again - haven't you ever met an elderly person, who is not only happy, but truly, completely, utterly content - who would tell you that they would do it all again, hardships and all? These are the people who get it.... really get it. Life was meant to be lived. I think that whoever or whatever created us (out of convenience, I will call it God), created us for that purpose. We die because if we didn't, life would get pretty boring after a while, wouldn't it?
But as the phsyical memory is left behind, maybe our "spirit", "soul", or what have you, retains those memories but keeps them stored away somewhere where the next physical body can't access them. To have memories of the previous life would defeat the purpose of living a new life, to experience everything from a fresh perspective. Maybe the more knowledgeable or "enlightened" a spirit becomes, the more easily it can imprint onto a physical body - think about it - some people "know" things, or just seem so much more... intuitive... than others. Some people just seem so much more content than others, and perhaps these are the "souls" who have been through this existence many times already and are starting to "get it". But even these "old souls" can still continue to learn and experience, because this world is constantly changing and advancing. Maybe this is where the "soulmate" thing comes from - like someone said, it could be more like "soul friends" or even "soul recognition" - old souls who have met before, and happen to meet again.
As for what God is, or where he/she/it came from, I don't know. Maybe some things just aren't supposed to have an explanation, or the explanations are just too big for us. In the bible, when Moses asked God's name, he simply said "I am". Whether or not I believe in the bible, it occurred to me that maybe that's all the answer we need - God just "is", and always was. Time just "is", and always was. The universe just "is", and always was. Existence itself... just "is". Maybe when we "exhaust" all the experiences in this world, there will be a new world waiting, and even the "old souls" can start from scratch. Because nothing dies - everything is a circle, with no beginning, and no end. What else could there be?
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Wow.
perhaps the "spirit" has its own way of storing memories, and the physical body is simply unable to retrieve those memories - but for a very good reason --
I think you've hit the nail on the head with this one.
Maybe some things just aren't supposed to have an explanation, or the explanations are just too big for us. In the bible, when Moses asked God's name, he simply said "I am". Whether or not I believe in the bible, it occurred to me that maybe that's all the answer we need - God just "is", and always was. Time just "is", and always was. The universe just "is", and always was. Existence itself... just "is".
Exactly what I believe... that was probably the most profound 'ah ha' experience for me.
Thank you, for sharing your thoughts with us... I'm so enjoying your posts!
Maybe I've been thinking of it all wrong... lol. I've been thinking of it as the physical body allowing the "spirit" or force to experience the world, when maybe it is the other way around.>>>
You reminded me of that quote: "We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience."
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