Afterlife, Past Lives, Consciousness, and Eternity

What is your opinion on the idea of an afterlife, consciousness after death, and eternity?
Bonus question for those who believe in an afterlife: do you believe in past lives as well?

Except that it is incommodious, I have never seen any objection to the thesis of concurrent life-after-life(s) in life.

This life is already a “afterlife” so far as one can see.

The issue is surrounded by the general opinion that treats the “world” as such as existing apart from one’s own radius of experience. This “general opinion” is likely an ontological feature of human life, we, each one, have the “world” as part of ourselves.

I believe this is true. For those believing that brains create consciousness, the world we experience is an artificial reality or “Matrix” created and generated by the brain. The existence (if they exist) of dreamless sleep and death (the only difference between them being the former is temporary and the latter eternal, for those who do not believe in an afterlife) is proof that consciousness is a “Matrix” not created by artificially intelligent machines but the physical brain (for those believing the brain creates consciousness). For those who do not believe that brains create consciousness, consciousness is still a “Matrix” created by another consciousness, conscious particles, or conscious substance.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWsCNPEwdxM[/youtube]

Nice video.

I think that we are eternal.

Yes.

There could be a pool of ideals that we’re returning towards, a higher palace of wonders and enchantment. Old themes and archetypes may guide our journeys in the dream worlds, show us the keys to opening the acentric labyrinth. Spirit is a quest to unearth our true nature, what we seek most in life. As ghosts, the adventure must wheel ever further, flooding our portraits of happier days under the sun. So it’s sunshine and rainbows forever in heaven, and a rainbow bridge of self fulfillment and discovery.

I really, really like this.

It might be really exciting to meet/figure-out who we were in past lives, to drown ourselves in the pleasures of long lost gifts, and sprinkle some of our greatest testaments into the archive of lore and legend. Since we’re on a philosophy forum, there may even be a few of us who were some famous, influential thinker in past ages! The possibilities are endless. Deciphering our soul card, and getting granted access to the castle kingdom even that we spent between our lives, previewing where we would go next, must have been ecstatic. And some of us may have even come from Atlantis (or some other lost kingdom or world).

I think death is nothing more than a transition from consciousness to non consciousness
I think most human beings want an afterlife to exist because they cannot deal with the concept of eternal death
I have no problem with death because it is the end of all suffering - what would bother me would be eternal life