Many of us identify ourselves with who we know ourselves to be, with our conscious awareness, and rationalize that this is all there is to our existence. For many whose lives are turbulent and less than they would like it to be, perhaps the thought of an afterlife, with a continuation of more of the same, is abhorrent. Then, there are those who find peace in the thought of an afterlife; they live their lives with the awareness that they will have to live with the consequences of their actions and therefore strive to live by the precepts of doing no harm to themselves or to others.
Nobody knows what happens after we die, even though we have stories of contacts with spirits of those who have died, where information was given that only the deceased person would know. These ghost stories could perhaps be our unconscious projections in the form of psychic phenomena. Nobody really knows if there is an afterlife, even though our religions point to myths about it. Anyone who questions the purpose of existence and their role in the greater perspective, eventually approaches the question of immortality. Carl Jung refers to his work as, “nothing but attempts, ever renewed, to give an answer to the question of the interplay between the “here” and the “hereafter.”
So it is important to come to some hypothesis of what the afterlife is, which then acts as a rudder to steer our lives in a direction consistent with our view. If we do not believe in an afterlife, then we may well live life driven by our impulses, without heed of the consequences. For example, the greed that is rampant in our society today says to me that the perpetrators have no morals that guide their conscience as to the consequences of their actions. The lack of a myth may go hand in hand with a lack of moral conscience.
If we do not spend some time thinking about death and what happens after, when we are faced with the inevitable moment, we may find ourselves falling into a deep dark nothingness. If we formulate some kind of myth, this will provide us with images of another existence and spiritual support that will help us to deal with the end of this life, even if our myth is all wrong. The difference between people who have a myth and those without one, is that even though both will die with the uncertainty of the afterlife, the person who dies with a myth will have lived a life filled with a richness guided by the archetypes of his myth. The person who does not believe in a myth, lives with a stark feeling of separateness, cut off from the unconscious which teams with archetypal images of the afterlife.
Carl Jung in his book, Memories, Dreams, Reflections, said, “Our age has shifted all emphasis to the here and now, and thus brought about a daemonization of man and his world. The phenomenon of dictators and all the misery they have wrought springs from the fact that man has been robbed of transcendence by the shortsightedness of the super-intellectuals. Like them, he has fallen a victim to unconsciousness. But man’s task is the exact opposite: to become conscious of the contents that press upward from the unconscious. Neither should he persist in his unconsciousness, nor remain identical with the unconscious elements of his being, thus evading his destiny, which is to create more and more consciousness. As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being. It may even be assumed that just as the unconscious affects us, so the increase in our consciousness affects the unconscious.”
Living a conscious life that has meaning is dependent on a belief of transcendence, of an afterlife or at least of a phenomenon beyond the known that bridges with the known. Many of us have a myth that was passed on to us through our families. Some of us were disillusioned by our given myths and adopted another or none at all. Others never inherited a belief. Today more than ever, we are exposed to many beliefs about the afterlife. We are not as limited by our tribes and can choose a belief that resonates with us, and one which we can guide our life by. Nobody knows the nature of transcendence except through our own psychic experiences and dreamworld but we have adopted beliefs passed on to us as truth. The purpose of this life is to test the nature of the beliefs we inherited, are they our truths?
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi Miruh,
I think the afterlife is a fascinating subject and while I am intrigued, there is also a part of me that doesn’t buy into it. To me it is like saying, “I will be happy one day,” instead of being happy now.
We can’t postpone joy for what may or may not come, we have to experience life to it’s fullest and leave the notion of the afterlife in the afterlife.
When we live life to it’s fullest and cultivate love from our highest being, then we won’t even THINK of an afterlife. The afterlife is now.
Great post my dear.
Miruh, the topic of your post may evoke discomfort in some readers but that itself is a sign that the subject deserves different attention. It is a welcome topic precisely because it encourages readers to grow.
You say, “nobody knows what happens after we die.” Some beings would disagree. Near-death experiences (NDEs) are a sample phenomena that permit experiencers to align their mind with different levels of awareness and dimensions of existence. Those beings who return to this physical world will share their perspective. Granted, it is not always accepted by Science, or by people not willing to accept the possibility that something other than their deepest fear is real. Ask yourself why sceptics prefer to nurture fear rather than listen to large groups of people and research that corroborate shared, personal and collective experience. Some people do not choose to confront and rise above their own reasons for anxiety.
Other events and phenomema also suggest immortality of the spirit is reality. Shamans, intuitives and other individuals with heightened sensitivities communicate regularly with beings in other dimensions. Areas of research and practice such as energy medicine are raising awareness of society. Personal healing and other practical experiences empower people to evolve and feel what they used to believe was unseen, imperceptible or impossible. You may come to believe the truth must be felt. Even then, some people resist and deny information provided by their own expanding senses. In this way, a person may only ever shift mindfulness or deepen consciousness about topics he or she has managed to mentally accept.
Hi Liara,
As Miruh was writing this post, I was thinking that there was more evidence that she could provide for the continuation of life. Like you, I find the evidence very strong. Besides what you pointed out, I would like to add out of body experiences, as well as people, especially children, remembering past lives. There are even accounts of children taking their families to meet their previous families.
I firmly believe in reincarnation, however, I have to admit that I cannot say beyond a shadow of a doubt that we continue to exist. It could all be explained by Jung’s theory of the collective unconscious. All memories are out there, somewhere, available for any of us to tap into. If that is possible, it seems to me our continuing to exist after the body dies is also very likely.
Very well said! I do believe that one can reach a state or awareness which reveals a knowing … what is next is a mystery clouded by our own self-imposed limitations. We wear a veil, a veil which can be lifted via awareness.
Hello Alexys,
You bring up several interesting points:
Fascination with the afterlife can indeed be used by some to not deal with the lessons of this life and like you say, to use it as “I will be happy one day, instead of being happy now.” I agree, but to be able to look at the afterlife not as an out from the sufferings of this world, but as the possibility of life that transcends the physical, is what makes the human existence even more meaningful and interesting.
“The afterlife is now.” I agree, from the perspective of spirit, I think that there is no past, present and future. From the perspective of our human life, we were born and we will die. The afterlife then, is about going back to the spirit world. Thus the purpose of this conversation is to stimulate the contemplation of what that might be, before one is at that point when it is a bit late to think about it.
“When we live life to it’s fullest and cultivate love from our highest being, then we won’t even THINK of an afterlife.” Your thoughts indicate to me that you already have a myth of the higher self so you have already done your homework. Your myth guides you in living a life based on love that transcends all levels. That is exactly the point I was driving at, so thanks for these words.
I enjoyed your provocative share!
May your inner light and love guide your way!
Hello Liara,
Indeed with all the evidence of life after death that we have today, it is with much relief that people approach death knowing that there is something after, not a nothingness. But no one has absolute proof of what this actually is. It can be like the blind people who describe an elephant by feeling a part of it. All religions have a different version of the afterlife, can they all be right, a part of the elephant?
The stories of near death experiences gives us a myth that guides us to live well, so that we die well, with reassurance that we don’t have to be afraid.
I believe that skeptics are only naturally defending their fear of death; if you deny what you are afraid of, then you don’t have to look at fear. In this case, a fear of the immensity of our immortality.
Thanks for your wise sharing!
May your love shed light into the darkness!
Hello Ed,
“All memories are out there, somewhere, available for any of us to tap into. If that is possible, it seems to me our continuing to exist after the body dies is also very likely.”
This is an interesting perspective, perhaps past life memories may actually be memories of the collective unconscious that we tap into. Then maybe there is no past, no present, no future, just beingness that constantly evolves, an intelligent energy.
Thanks for your provocative share.
Deep peace and warm love to you!
Hello Mark,
I like what you said, “what is next is a mystery clouded by our own self-imposed limitations.”
I think our highest purpose is to become established in awareness, in knowingness. All the mystics speak about this knowingness in the language of love. This is common to all religions, all myths, though the consensus on what happens next is not absolute. Love is the only constant!
Thanks for your wise words.
May your inner light lead you on the path wholeness!
Miruh, I fully agree with you that we should live a conscious and meaningful life. The ultimate goal of human being is to BE with HIM.Since we all are a part of The Almighty, we should develop the qualities of love, compassion,forgiveness etc. towards each other.
Thanks for sharing your wisdom.
God bless.
I believe that deep inside each one of us, we feel the connection and intrinsically know what is real. If we were to throw out all ideas about the “afterlife”, what would we be left with? I think we would only be left with a feeling. Anyone who has learned to silence their mind and feel that sense of well-being knows what I mean.
Thank you for a thought-provoking post!
Nicole
Hello Surjit,
Indeed our highest purpose is to unfold the inner love and compassion and to live peacefully with all beings sentient and insentient. Forgiveness for ourselves and others is a path to unfolding this love and compassion.
Thanks for dropping by and sharing your wise words.
May you ever live within the heart of compassion and love and bask in its light!
Hello Nicole,
The connection to the Self when we quieten the mind is the goal of the spiritual journey. Words we use to describe the experience of divinity are not important, as you say, it is the connection, the experience of transcendence that matters.
Thanks for sharing your wisdom.
May you know truth in the depths of stillness and centering in your heart!
Miruh, when a being evolves to stop asking questions, that being tapps into profound an infinite inner knowing. To borrow a relevant quote:
“The first step in the acquisition of wisdom is silence, the second listening, the third memory, the fourth practice, the fifth teaching others.” ~Solomon Ibn Gabriol
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