Are you afraid of death?

[saturdaynitespecial]

Starting a morbid topic often is met by reactions of self denials, taboo topic, pple just slot them in their subconsciousness...but have you thought about it?
I mean, anyone at anytime can be struck down by some incurable disease or get hit by a car.
just the thought of it, isnt that scary??
Humans are so vulnerable to death, there are so many ways to die, diseases, accidents, get killed etc.

All of us must die sooner or later but what is it like to die?

Someone said once ago "We all live to die....."

What will be on your obituary?

....

[The Sun*]

In the final analysis, we are all dead.

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.

Death is the greatest leveller, cos' when your time is up, that's it. Period. No extension given. No extra time. Whether u are royalty, prime minister, secretary of state, road sweeper, garbage collector..........

there's no way anyone can cheat death - it will come finally.even with the best medical team and the best medical support, the jaws of death will come to all of us.good and bad, high and low, powerful and the weak, the leaders and the sheep, the evil and the virtuous, all will meet mr death and mr karma. nobody will ever escape death.

Death is like a thief in the night.it comes suddenly and takes your breath away anytime. since death is inevitable and since life is only temporary, why make people lives miserable and painful?

i really don't understand why people in power and in a position of influence cannot make people happy.why only make themselves happy? why only reward themsevles handsomely? why are they ignoring the cries from the ground?



..................................

[Plavt]

Personally I think you are asking a bit of silly question; we all know we are going to die so there is no sense in thinking about it only those we leave behind such as our children, family friends and relatives. Succumbing to an incurable disease or being hit by a car is just a chance we take since we cannot control those things. A doctor once told me I might have cancer but what could I do about it had he been correct? I would have said it was sillier to ask what is it like to die since at one time people would not have known until they were there. However, modern medicine now knows that a body even a long and painful illness will always shut down exactly the same way which is both pain and anxiety free - nature's way of ending it quietly. This was in recent documentary narrated by Lord Robert Winston.

http://www.robertwinston.co.uk/

Note: Several of his documentaries, notably 'The Human Body' amongst others are available in both video and CD format and worth watching together with books published on the same and related subjects.

In the search field of the BBC website http://www.bbc.co.uk type Robert Winston for more information.

[taxico]

what i worry is that i do something unknowing or stupid that ends in a felony conviction and i get jailed for a long time.

but maybe only cos i see death regularly and it's more comforting than a long spell at the gray bar hotel.

prof. winston is da bomb! does he have a new documentary out? i'll be sure to give it a look-it.

[Strong Eagle]

Since we're all going to die, rather than worry about that, you might want to consider what you would like to have said about you at your funeral and then live the life you have left in furtherance of that goal.

I had a business relationship with a guy who was a drunk, a cheat, and a liar. He had lots of money but was greedy, never contributing to anything, and under investigation for tax evasion. He was also a terrible father.

At his funeral, there were about 20 people, mostly drinking buddies, and nobody knew what to say. There wasn't anything good to say about him. The minister recounted his life as a series of dates. His best friend could only say, "Well, 'Joe' was 'Joe'." It was done in 10 minutes.

Contrast that with my father-in-law who was active in community, church, family, and volunteering. The 500 seat church was filled to overflowing, and if all who wanted to tell stories about his kindnesses over the years had been permitted to speak the funeral would have gone on for 8 hours.

Fear comes from wanting certainty and security in life and no matter how hard you try both will always be an illusion. There is no need to fear death. It is life that matters and when you have the faith that your life is unfolding exactly as it is meant to be, questions of death become irrelevant.

[Plavt]

prof. winston is da bomb! does he have a new documentary out? i'll be sure to give it a look-it.

I think the only one at the moment is 'Child of Our Time' which is on-going as it follows a group of children from a very young age and will go on until their teenage years. Check the bbc website TV listing for more info.

[banana]

"Today a young man on acid realized that all matter is merely energy condensed to a slow vibration, that we are all one consciousness experiencing itself subjectively, there is no such thing as death, life is only a dream, and we are the imagination of ourselves." ~ William Melvin Hicks

[ksl]

Having read each and everyone, I would still hold with the conclusion, that the question " Are you afraid of death or afraid to die" is all relative to bio-chemical disturbances within the brain.

We all know, that we are born to die, many have been in combat or faced life threatening instances, fear is a natural warning signal for survival instincts to kick in , because of the chemical reactions in the brain, a few may run the opposite way, doesn't make them cowards in my eyes, because one just cannot mix the chemicals in the brain, oneself.

I wouldn't say it is not the fear of death, but a fear of how you are going to die, just like SE explains with age it should be a natural occurrence, and if one as had a fulfilling life not in terms of wealth, but friendships and family, with good ethical behaviour, it should be more easy to embrace.

It is quite painless in many circumstances, even though we see so much brutal and awful deaths, in war, the stressed state of the body has already prepared for the action, by releasing endorphins, and adrenalin, to be just out in the area, is enough stress to be prepared, even without combat.

Stressed situations for long periods, results in all sorts of mental disorders, they call it post trauma, where the chemicals in the neurotransmitter are all screwed up, this person may then feel fear for his life, he will be prepared for action and ready to kill.

Fear is just a warning signal that you maybe in danger, the body should be preparing itself for that danger, so pain isn't felt. Although survival is the main reaction to the danger, so one needs to embrace death when it is arriving, or fight it, if there is a chance of living.

The closer one gets to death, will be the deciding factor of how one is able to accept it. So for those that say they are not afraid to die, believe they are not afraid, until the time is on the door step...emotions are just like the weather unpredictable in most circumstance, although we all hope, that the chemicals in the brain are functioning more or less normally, it must be really bad if one is suffering neurosis.

For me its all a beautiful illusion

[sharonang]

i ready don't know, but first thing i had to is takeing care my family