Death
 

Simple question, what do you think happens after you die?

There r many possibilities fo dis question, my answer is our soul goes to a different dimension called "heaven" where we all live lol.

^ I am writing an essay on that topic for university at the moment. So far my conclusion is that if there is such a place/thing as heaven that exists as a literal afterlife, the "you" that goes there would have to be completely different from the you that you were living as for your entire life. So if you were planning on continuing your existence/consciousness for eternity, like most people who believe in heaven are, it isn't going to work out.

I could post the essay plan if people want to see my logic on that.

Please do

Ye this topis is interestin.......good theory by tha way mang.

(5) Some think that personal identity is grounded in the identity of the soul. Is this a sensible view?

Body of Essay

I will be dealing with biblical definitions of the soul. Other interpretations of “soul” are beyond the scope of this essay.

Soul – Immaterial component of a human, sometimes also known as spirit. Is eternal and unique to an individual.

Some people believe feelings, thoughts and desires, among other personal qualities are included as part of the soul, others believe it is just the “essence,” “life force” or “spirit” of the person and nothing else.

Our sense of self or identity is created by (I am not saying these are definite components of identity, just that they give us the feeling of identity):

• Morals/Values
• Memories
• Likes/Dislikes
• Desires
• Habits
• Physical Appearance (Obviously not part of the soul)

Since all of these things except physical appearance can be altered or completely destroyed by brain damage, it would suggest that the brain is responsible for them and the soul must not be responsible for them. Therefore the idea that the soul contains them cannot be true. This is unless there is some sort of interface between the soul and the body that requires the brain. I am not considering that possibility in this essay, since there is no proof of that claim as of yet.

So, is the notion of identity being grounded in the soul (as in only the “essence” or “spirit” of the person) a sensible view? The soul contributes nothing to our sense of identity. If it contributes something, that thing can not be seen, heard, detected or experienced in any way. What purpose, then, does such a thing serve? A Theist would say that its purpose cannot be grasped by human intellect. A Theist would also consider the soul important because it is the key to the afterlife.

Most people who believe in the soul and the afterlife do so in hope that they (their personal identity) can live eternally in heaven. For this to work, the identity must be grounded in the soul. If it is, their identity will be what goes to heaven.

Heaven, by its biblical description, cannot possibly house identities as we know them. For our identity to exist in heaven, it would have to be completely different in every way to what it was for the duration of our lives.

Therefore, for the identity to be grounded in the soul, the identity contained in the soul would have to be nothing like your identity as you know it. This does not seem sensible. The fact that one of the main reasons people believe that the identity is grounded in the soul is not sensible doesn’t really help either.

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The second last paragraph is a bit vague since this is just the essay plan, not the actual essay. Just ask if you want a further explanation.

I've always thought that the soul can't be anything related to the brain. I'm not sure if I'm missing something obvious here, but I'm thinking that the soul is what gives up perspective. It can be the reason why I'm consious of this brain i have now and not of someone elses, or that i inhabit this body and not someone elses. I dunno it might be obvious but I forgot what obvious is :(

i pray that i become black...ahhahaha

I thought our soul shapes are identity......

hmm.. I think that take on the soul isn't necessary. It adds complication to something that doesn't need it. Look:

"I am this body and consciousness because of the soul."

When really all you need is

"I am this body and consciousness."

That thing about how all the characteristics of the soul can be destroyed by brain damage isn't necessarily true. In that physical being, sure, they can forget memories and what they like etc but the fact that their memories are actual things that DID occur through the course of time and the fact that they did like and dislike certain things over time etc etc makes them eternal. It's like, if I somehow forget RV exists, that doesn't mean it doesn't exist, it just means that my physical doesn't remember it existing. Heh.

But even in that sense it seems that the body and soul aren't connected, as you said. I guess the soul in that case would have to be complete self-consciousness, a collective of everything that you ever felt, saw, tasted, experienced, learned etc. as your brain simply can't remember EVERYTHING, hence it being a physical aspect of "you". Still, whatever you go through in your physical attributes to your soul as well, so maybe they are connected.

you stop living :thumbup:

What a compleatly redundant thread..

Why do you waste your time?