death and religion
Disclaimer: If you disagree with anything, feel free to do so. Just don't yell at me about it. I'm unlikely to change my mind. Nor am I attempting to be calloused or unfeeling. I'm just feeling in a different way.
I don't understand about 90% of modern day western practices concerning death. I find them... excessive and altogether too mournful.
1. Excessive mourning: I don't really think of death as the end. Which is slightly surprising since I'm not christian (or jewish or muslim) and I don't believe in heaven or paradise or whatever. Mostly my beliefs lean towards reincarnation (it's slightly more complicated than that but that's close enough). That being said, I really believe that death is, more than anything a Chapter Two. Or a Chapter Ten. Or whatever chapter of life you are on but I definitely don't believe in death as the end and thus I think that mourning should be the same as if you were saying goodbye to someone you may not see for a good while. Likeliness is, that if that person was a big enough picture in your life, you'll see them again in the next Chapter.
2. “To a well organized mind, death is the next great adventure.” Yes the quote is from Harry Potter. No that does not make it any less substantial. Basically I'm afraid of several things, not a lot of things, but several things. I will admit that I am afraid of being left behind or forgotten about, I am afraid of hurting people, I am (to a degree) afraid of pain and I am afraid of bugs, but I am not afraid of death. I feel that a person's funeral and the way their friends and family conduct themselves should reflect the way that person feels about death.
At my funeral, I hope that people will miss me and I hope that people will remember me, but I do not hope that people's hearts will break and I hope that people will not mourn for me. I hope that they will say their goodbyes and get on with their lives. I hope that my friends and family will take it as an opportunity to come together, enjoy themselves and enjoy each other, enjoy that I gave them that last gift and that I am now off on another adventure.
and while we're here I just wanted to address my religion. my current official status is thus:
taoism w/ bits of buddhism mixed in. (I can never stick to just one)
I don't understand about 90% of modern day western practices concerning death. I find them... excessive and altogether too mournful.
1. Excessive mourning: I don't really think of death as the end. Which is slightly surprising since I'm not christian (or jewish or muslim) and I don't believe in heaven or paradise or whatever. Mostly my beliefs lean towards reincarnation (it's slightly more complicated than that but that's close enough). That being said, I really believe that death is, more than anything a Chapter Two. Or a Chapter Ten. Or whatever chapter of life you are on but I definitely don't believe in death as the end and thus I think that mourning should be the same as if you were saying goodbye to someone you may not see for a good while. Likeliness is, that if that person was a big enough picture in your life, you'll see them again in the next Chapter.
2. “To a well organized mind, death is the next great adventure.” Yes the quote is from Harry Potter. No that does not make it any less substantial. Basically I'm afraid of several things, not a lot of things, but several things. I will admit that I am afraid of being left behind or forgotten about, I am afraid of hurting people, I am (to a degree) afraid of pain and I am afraid of bugs, but I am not afraid of death. I feel that a person's funeral and the way their friends and family conduct themselves should reflect the way that person feels about death.
At my funeral, I hope that people will miss me and I hope that people will remember me, but I do not hope that people's hearts will break and I hope that people will not mourn for me. I hope that they will say their goodbyes and get on with their lives. I hope that my friends and family will take it as an opportunity to come together, enjoy themselves and enjoy each other, enjoy that I gave them that last gift and that I am now off on another adventure.
and while we're here I just wanted to address my religion. my current official status is thus:
taoism w/ bits of buddhism mixed in. (I can never stick to just one)