On the Immortality of the Soul

[Epictetus]

When you die odds are other animals will likely use your carcass for food, absorbing whatever nutrients there are, converting them into proteins or whatever. The rest will be converted into shit and disposed of. That’s the shared fate of most human beings on the planet, post mortem. Most people are destined to pass through the intestines of a hungry animal. Case in point: several days ago old uncle Leo died of Malaria in the Congo. The bugs and bacteria were quick to take advantage of the feast, then the chimps came along and reduced him to a pile of bones. Now, several days later, all that remains of the "immortal" uncle Leo is a steaming pile of shit somewhere in the dense leaf litter of the Congo.

[Animavore]

?

[Rum]

And your point is?....

(BTW - don't forget we were also stardust once too!)

[Epictetus]

And your point is?....

(BTW - don't forget we were also stardust once too!)

i'm a peace loving man and have no desire to argue in heated debate. but i suppose my point is summed up in the slogan, "shit happens". PEACE...

[Epictetus]

And your point is?....

(BTW - don't forget we were also stardust once too!)

i'm a peace loving man and have no desire to argue in heated debate. but i suppose my point is summed up in the slogan, "shit happens". PEACE...

[Rum]

I suspect alcohol is a factor here.

[Epictetus]

I suspect alcohol is a factor here.

that is an ironic statement, coming from someone who calls himself/herself "Rum." the truth be told i am "under the influence" of a somewhat debilitating stroke. sorry if my op appears to make little, if any, sense. my point is that in certain religious circles it is held that the body --the actual physical body-- will be reconstituted at some future time in heaven. but how shall it be reconstituted, if it has become a source of food and doled out by so many different kinds of organisms, and reduced and dispersed and scattered to the forewinds? Peace.

[AshtonBlack]

You seem quite Stoic about it.

[Epictetus]

You seem quite Stoic about it.

the stroke, or being turned into a pile of dung?

[The Curious Squid]

You're preaching to the wrong people here, I don't think you'll find anyone here that thinks they have an immortal soul. What a let down, the title was so promising but the content is pretty much a statement saying "There isn't a soul"

What made you contemplate this now and why hadn't it occured to you sooner?

[Epictetus]

You're preaching to the wrong people here, I don't think you'll find anyone here that thinks they have an immortal soul. What a let down, the title was so promising but the content is pretty much a statement saying "There isn't a soul"

What made you contemplate this now and why hadn't it occured to you sooner?

Im sorry i'm not as astute as you obviously are. though it had occurred to me before i just never found a place where i could attempt to articulate the idea. Peace Paco.

[owtth]

Being a bit of dung is far more enticing than any form of immortality. Forever is a long time in which to become jaded by every fascinating thing the universe has to offer. How many times could you watch a supernova, or a civilisation be born, grow and die. After the 20 millionth time I bet it gets a bit stale.

[The Curious Squid]

Sorry, that was rude of me.

Is having the stroke responsible for bringing up these thoughts now? Subjects like this always fascinate me, despite being an atheist all my life (or at least agnostic when I was too young to care) I hadn't considered the fact that I had no soul until a few years back (when I joined RDF)

I see this cycle of other life consuming us when we die as a comforting thought, it's the closest we can get to Gaia theory or Buddist reincarnation without adding the crazy spiritual nonsense to the mix.

[Epictetus]

Being a bit of dung is far more enticing than any form of immortality. Forever is a long time in which to become jaded by every fascinating thing the universe has to offer. How many times could you watch a supernova, or a civilisation be born, grow and die. After the 20 millionth time I bet it gets a bit stale.

i agree. i would not want to live forever, ad infinitum, ad nauseam.

[Horwood Beer-Master]

...i agree. i would not want to live forever, ad infinitum, ad nauseam.

I would, but unfortunately the universe cares not for my opinion on such matters.