Ok try this one on for size.

We as humans find it extremily hard to comprehend our own death being the end of our existance. One of the greatest questions ever posed by the mind of man has been, what is the following set of events that occur upon our passing from this physical world into the next life?

Most cultures and religions have their ideas based on the teachings of their prophets through history. And most usually have to do with the concept of the human soul extracting itself from the physical being and entering the afterlife in this form.

I think generally, most people view this scenario as our soul representing the greater whole of our mind's build up of memory, experience and knowledge. Most recorded studies of people who have been legally dead for a period of time then awoken have usually told of their experience as if nothing had changed in their general mindframe except for the fact they recognised they had left their physical body behind.

However I have a problem with this.

Brain damage.

It is common medical knowledge that brain damage exists. In severe cases, this can compleatly turn an otherwise normal individual into nothing more than a slobbering vegitible who no longer posesses any form of logical thinking or common sense. (And its not only brain damage, what about old people with alzheimer or a range of other mental disabilitys formed at birth or during the life.)

What happens after death for these people?

Do they remain retarded even in the afterlife?

See, you may be sitting there thinking.. This doesent effect me.. But let me tell you right now, during your death, depending on how you go out, it is very plausable that you may recieve a vast amount of brain damage before the final shut down of your physical being. In your very dying moments, you could be compleatly twisted in a mess with half your face sprawled out across the ground, imagine what might be going through your half dead mind at this very moment...

You would essentually be a vegitible..

So, how can we ever assume we will enter the afterlife in our currant mindstate? And furthermore, if damage to the physical organism that resides inside our skulls can cause us to compleatly lose our minds, effecting us on such a large scale, how can we assume this seperate 'soul' even exists?

And if it still does, what the fuck kind of entity are we going to be in the afterlife according to general belief?.. One that has no memory, experience, knowledge or imagination?

Its obviously a bit of a connundrum that we seem to take for granted the things that are contained in our brain as if we will even upon death, have the same mindstates as we have during life. Is it possible that when the brain shuts down, so does our very existance?

When we can no longer access the abilitys created by our complex physical brains, what exactly are we? Just residual energy left off containing only the most basic memory of what we once were?

I am not an athiest, I believe in god (although not in any form reletive to the mainstream perception of god). Therefore I do believe things run through on a grand plan and the afterlife is only the next stage in our development. But certain observable facts about life just dont seem to mould right with the general concept we as humans usually have about our own death's.

What do you think?

__________________
RIP jono, peace out bboy.
Pardon Canada Criminal Record Pardons Services Toronto