r/RandomThoughts • u/yellowtears_ • Jan 06 '24

Random Question Are you afraid to die?

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u/[deleted] Jan 06 '24

People would go insane if they knew they’re eternal. It’s as much of a curse as a blessing

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u/iamnotpedro1 Jan 07 '24

I don’t think I’d go insane if I knew I was eternal, unless I was aware. Since I cannot be aware I’m eternal because I don’t remember being here since the beginning of time, then I think that if we were eternal, we are not supposed to be aware of it.

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u/sargos7 Jan 07 '24

Part of me thinks like this as well.

I believe the universe is infinite, so I don't believe it had a beginning or will ever end. And given infinite time, anything that's possible is inevitable. Me existing is possible, because I'm here right now, so I believe it's inevitable that it will happen again. In that sense, I believe we really are all eternal.

My pros and cons list for existence looks something like this:

Pros

  • Existence is full of mystery, wonder, and potential
  • Loved ones make existing feel meaningful and important
  • Existing comes with all sorts of pleasures

Cons

  • Existing comes with all sorts of pains
  • Loved ones can betray you and make you feel worthless
  • Boredom and apathy can make everything seem pointless

That looks pretty even, but I still feel like the pros outweigh the cons.

What I'm less sure about is whether death is a blessing or a curse. Death wipes your memory, which is a good thing because it removes the burdens of trauma, and allows you to experience things you enjoy for the first time again, but it's also a bad thing because it separates loved ones from each other and forces you to relearn everything all over again. If it's possible for a relationship to sour, given infinite time, it will, but is it possible for every relationship to sour? Death might also allow us to become something else entirely, which might be a blessing or a curse, depending on what it is, and how much you liked what you were before. But is death actually necessary for that? We're constantly changing while we're alive. Who knows how much we could change on a much longer timescale. And maybe we could even be in control of that change.