I am not afraid to die

Today I finished the second draft of my paper on a quote by Marcus Aurelius:

"Death, like birth, is one of nature's mysteries, the combining of primal elements and dissolving of the same into the same. Nothing about death should shame or upset us, for it is entirely in keeping with our nature as rational animals and with the law governing us."

I chose this quote for a number of reasons. First, death is a surprisingly easy topic to write about. We have all thought about death and virtually every aspect surrounding it. What happens to our bodies when we die? What happens to our soul, if such a thing exists? Is there an afterlife? What will happen to my loved ones if I die? What does it feel like to know you won't exist the next moment? Humans, as cognizent mortal beings, think about their demise perhaps more than any other aspect of their existence. This is not surprising. We all have a purpose in life and to think about the conclusion of this purpose is only natural. Another reason I chose this quote is because it goes against what most people in the United States believe death is. For the majority of Americans, who are religious, death is a "transition" to another sort of pseudo-existence or afterlife. I believe that the notion of an afterlife severely limits a person's potential and aspirations during their existence on earth. If heaven is so much better than earth, why try to make something of yourself here? What is the point of doing everything you can for the betterment of mankind if you believe you're going to heaven anyway? I do not believe in an afterlife, and I fully agree with Aurelius' quote. When we die, our bodily functions and mental processes cease, and we start to decay back into the substance from which we were assembled, "the same into the same."

Some would say this is a rather bleak outlook. At least one person has told me they feel sorry for me. Sorry that I lead such a pitiful and meaningless existence; a life without God or the prospect of residing in His Kindgom. Unlike some feeble-minded Christians, I do not need to believe in a completely arbitrary and invisible concept to live a fulfilling life. I find meaning in what I can experience. I live for my friends, my family, my fellow humans, and myself...nothing more. Many people live for God. If this works for you and you are truly happy, then you and I are no different other than the fact that we live for different things. There are many people who claim to live for God, yet completely go against everything Christianity stands for. They lie and cheat their way through life, leaving a trail of wounded and demoralized humans behind them. Nothing saddens me more about the world then a person who claims to live by a set of standards set forth by a divine being but instead doesn't blink an eye at the suffering of a fellow human being. I am not critical of religious people who find freedom and happiness in their faith. I believe it is a beautiful thing. It is when religion creates a cage for the mind that I criticize.

After writing my paper on Aurelius' quote, I did not walk away a changed man. My whole adult life I've believed that death is nothing more than a chemical process. That is why I am not afraid to die. As I related in my paper, none of us has ever been made nervous by thinking of our condition prior to birth, so it makes no logical sense to be afraid of our condition after death. Both are states of nonexistence.