Philosophy of Death and Dying


Twisted-R's avatar
Tell me, what are your thoughts on this? I've been looking around to see what is said out there, and it's very interesting (along with the psychology of death and dying. :D) But I would like to see your interpretations of this subject.
Comments104
Join the community to add your comment. Already a deviant? Log In
EchoInTheVoid's avatar
I see the highlights of one's life flashes before them, and then they grow very warm and serene. And if there is a strong existing guilt in them towards some person they knew/known they begin seeing them right beside them and pleading for acceptance and forgiveness. But I haven't shuffled off of this mortal coil just yet so I would not know (I guess that's why it's in the philosophy forum!)
TheWerewolfPuppy's avatar
I've heard that some scientists say that a few seconds after you die (or right before you die, I don't remember) the brain will send out some signals and make the dying person feel really happy and peacefull. At the same time the center of the brain that keeps track of time is "turned off". So, they mean that these seconds of happiness will feel like an eternity.

But noone really knows for sure. I've heard a lot of different philosophies of what happens after we die. I think the scariest one is one that says that you just end up in a sort of waiting area, all by yourself, where you'll just sit and wait for an eternity for something that will never happen. You just sit and wait...
seth2012chaos's avatar
Well we'll just die and see what happens, but I don't believe in the religious prize-punishment approach to an after-death stage. That's like some divine dog training in my opinion. We will obviously die sometime, what happens later if anything happens, I'll wait and see.
ML4P's avatar
I sincerely hope ninety percent of humans die including myself but no one gets to decide for another person when that happens
kaikaku's avatar
100% of humans die eventually.
ML4P's avatar
That gives me reason to get up everyday
kaikaku's avatar
:lol: Dark humor is good.
ML4P's avatar
Soo good ever watch black books?
kaikaku's avatar
No, but if you're recommending it I'll try to check it out. :)
ML4P's avatar
Yea it's a British but its on Netflix very funny
Mihaihen's avatar
A warrior is always ready to lay down his life for glory and slaughter of his enemies \o/
That is the reason he always living his life to the fullest... cause he knows it might end in an eye blink!
staple-salad's avatar
Death is a thing and I'm quite curious about it and rather excited for when I'm old and it's my time and I get to find out what it is.

But I'm not anxious enough to find out because I want to know what all life has to offer first. And maybe at some point I'll figure out what the damn point of everything is.
catching-dreamz's avatar
i find it fascinating! It's something I research a lot...even though no one really knows the answer, it's fun to get the different in-puts and evidence in each direction!

I personally believe in reincarnation...but the type kinda varies based on where I'm at emotionally and stuff...but i think the idea of karma makes a lot of sense!
kaikaku's avatar
To live in this world

you must be able
to do three things:
to love what is mortal;
to hold it

against your bones knowing
your own life depends on it;
and, when the time comes to let it go,
to let it go.

~ Mary Oliver, Excerpt from In Blackwater Woods, American Primitive
catching-dreamz's avatar
that's a beautiful quote....and a very hard one for me to live by!
kaikaku's avatar
Yup. Me too at times. We do the best we can knowing it doesn't all last forever.
UncleGargy's avatar
That's just lovely! :-)
kaikaku's avatar
Glad I could share it. I think Mary Oliver wrote it after her lifelong SO passed away, and reading it helped me through some tough things I've been dealing with recently. Figured others might appreciate her work. :)
WhiskyOmega's avatar
I believe, personally, that what we call the 'spirit' is eternal and when it's finished with this existance it moves onto another, and so to me death is just the process of the spirit leaving this life to go onto something else.

My great uncle and aunt passed away early last year and, while it was sad because we were very close, I don't believe they're gone, just that they moved onto another life somewhere else.
TimeHasAnEnd's avatar
Well the philosphy of Evolutionists, claim that physical death is normal event. It is their view that death is part of how the universe works. Evolutionists insist that death is a necessary function, which contributes to the change of living things, as over time, only the fittest survive. In contrast to that, the "Word of God of the Bible" states that physical death is not part of the original design and plan of the universe. That is partly what the Bible means, when it states that the universe was perfect and good (Genesis. 1:31). The Bible teaches that death came into the universe some time after God created it, as part of His curse in response to sin (Romans. 5:12).

"Although the theory of evolution does not speak to the question of life after death, focusing only upon this physical universe, most evolutionists teach that all living things (plants and animals as well "as people") cease to exist after death."

In contrast to that, the Bible teaches that physical death is not just the termination of people's physiological process, but it is an enemy of sinful men (I Corinthians 15:26). Far more than just separating them from any blessings they might have in this life, physical death is the last event most people experience before they face judgment and the second death of eternal wrath in Hell (death) (Hebrews. 9:27). Clearly, we cannot reconcile the claims of evolutionists with the teaching of the Bible.
Smkiller's avatar
I like how you say "evolutionists" like that's even a thing.
der-freishutz's avatar
while i was in god's hands before my creation, i felt no pain or pleasure, so not existing felt fine for me. I would not mind dying if god required me to, But i have alot to do in this world, so i do not want him to take me home just yet.
stoneman123's avatar
Death doesn't sound bad at all. As death is the extinguishment of the consciousness, I will not, nor have the capacity to, notice or care.

Dying, on the other hand, is terrifying. That's a naturally-ingrained reaction, and an essential evolutionary adaptation. If we did not fear dying, we wouldn't be nearly as careful with our lives, thus making us much more likely to lose them prematurely, thus greatly diminishing our chances of reproduction. Besides the involuntary reaction, it terrifies me for other reasons. I enjoy my life, and would be very upset to know it was coming to an end. Further, I am very proud of myself and my accomplishments, so I might compare dying to building a glorious palace, then being locked inside it while someone burns it down.

Oh well. We've all got to do it, eventually. This planet would quickly become an undesirable place to live if the people of one generation didn't clear out for the next. If someone were to discover the secret for immortality, it would be a slow train wreck unless we also outlawed normal reproductive behaviors.