by Darlene Zagata

Created on: January 16, 2009

The possibility of life beyond death has intrigued humankind throughout time. I do believe in life beyond death. It seems plausible that we are something more than simply the bodies which we perceive ourselves to be. Several people have had near death experiences (NDEs) and many cases have been well documented. Although there is no concrete evidence of life beyond death, these experiences seem to indicate that some part of us does survive the physical demise of our bodies.

There are many different beliefs about an afterlife. The ancient Egyptians took much care to assure that the deceased would have everything they need in the afterlife. Even in modern times it is believed that the soul is an immortal aspect of ourselves that survives physical death. It has been said that we are spiritual beings having a human experience and that statement may be more to the point of truth than we imagine.

People have many different thoughts of what the afterlife may be like. These various views often depend upon a person's religious beliefs. Most often we imagine the afterlife being a beautiful, peaceful place as described in world views of heaven. Of course, there is its dark, dank torturous counterpart known as hell. Not all thoughts on the afterlife are quite so commonplace though.

There are some abstract views such as the possibility that the soul may enter into an alternate dimension in which life continues where it left off. Others believe that the soul lies in wait until it can be reincarnated into a physical body once again. Some believe that there is nothing beyond the dissolution of the physical body. They believe that consciousness ceases to exist along with the body therefore there can be no further type of existence. Then there are those who believe that when we die we return to the source simply becoming one with the whole of existence. Of course, there are also those who believe that we simply becoming disembodied spirits roaming around like ghosts.

No one knows if there is an existence beyond life and what that existence may be like. We can only speculate. I do believe that there is life beyond death simply because I cannot believe that this is all there is. I can't believe that all we are and all we've done simply washes away like a sandcastle leaving no trace that we ever existed. I believe that existence never truly ends, it only changes and continues to move forward. Death may be another step on the evolutionary ladder. Perhaps we simply become more of what we already are. Perhaps death is the door through which we enter bigger and better realms of existence where we continue to learn, explore and develop.

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