“The only thing that exists is ‘Now’. The moments
ago do not exist anymore, and the moments to come do not exist as yet. Therefore:
Now is Eternity.”
The concept of Eternity
is by far the most difficult and the most confusing thing that the human
mind is required to understand. As the above observation by an unknown author quite correctly
indicated, the mind is constructed to deal solely with the here and now and as a result, this very moment-in-time is seen as everything. This anomaly occurs because the
only way the mind is capable of perceiving time, irrespective of past, present or
future, is as it exists in this moment, and therefore is incapable
of identifying or demonstrating any physical difference between the beginning, or
the present, or the past, or the future. Conceptually, these are all merely
illusions of time designed to explain reasons in living, but not necessarily to
explain the reason for its existence.
Throughout the ages, men have sought to find answers to this
dilemma, without ever arriving at a definitive conclusion. The only demonstrable
reality is that as humans we are fully aware that being mortal we possess
finite bodies with definite life spans, each with a beginning and an end; and
as such any thought of eternity does not sit easy with us or with our life
experiences. Yet everything around us tells us that eternity is no less a
reality, even against a background of multiple explanatory attempts offered by
countless scholars which continue to be conflicting, confusing and quite
convoluted. The reality is that however much anyone tries to do so, it is just
not possible to see, feel or experience eternity, and that the only reasonable option
available to any man is to trust his instincts and be guided by good judgment.
Eternity by definition and common acceptance is Timeless Time; without any beginning or
any end. It is the kind of event in which we are able to identify with it, and able
to feel and use it to portray our lives from the past to the present and into
the future, yet we are nevertheless never able to actually demonstrate anything
definitively other than this present moment. It has engaged the minds of countless
great thinkers and philosophers throughout the ages in every civilization from
the ancient Chinese masters, the old Arab scholars, the Greek and Roman
philosophers and all the great religions both ancient and modern; all of whom
have accepted, without being able to demonstrate in one way or another, its tangible
existence. The overwhelming consensus by all is that it is therefore a timeless realm, without duration or succession,
and with no ‘before’ or ‘after.’
Although
considered to be beyond the comprehension of the human mind which can only
perceive in the present, the concept of eternity is fully accepted by most
people as existing before and after life on this earth. Many models have been
developed to try to explain its image, some have described it as a complete
ring of life with no beginning and no end; just an endless cycle of creation
and recreation. Others have likened it to standing in a room that is fully
mirrored on all sides. One can look in any direction, backward, forward or
side way, and see endless images, each one exactly similar to the other ones, as
far back as the mind will travel, and beyond. In similar manner, over the many centuries
of human existence, different cultures have used a variety of symbols to try to
demonstrate and explain their concept of eternity. The most popular of these
include the Endless Knot in the
ancient Chinese and Buddhist cultures, the Roman Mathematical figure of eight, Egyptian Ouroboros (snake swallowing its tail), the Greek Key and the Armenian Wheel of Eternity. They all reflect the
universally accepted principle that eternity does not have a beginning or an
end.
Immortality, on
the other hand, differs substantially from eternity. Eternity by definition relates
to the endlessness of time and is therefore unchanging, but immortality deals,
not with the timelessness of life, but
rather with the essence of life. It
refers to eternal life, to being able to live forever. This is an idea that has
fascinated human interest since the beginning of time, but no one has so far ever
been able to demonstrate its existence. Historically, we recognize that all
forms of life, however long they survive, will eventually die, whether from
trauma, disease or from the natural ageing process. Similarly, even inanimate
objects, whatever their original formation, will ultimately succumb to decay and
break down to their basic elements. Realistically therefore, it is impossible
for the human mind, constrained by the boundaries of human knowledge and its
limited experiences of death and dying, to consider that anything is, nor can
it ever be, immortal!
Hence
any consideration of the concept of immortality must first take into account
the brain’s limitation in dealing with it. But in the same way that the brain is
able to accept light without ever collecting it, and hear sound without seeing it, so too it
should be able to accept the concept of immortality without ever being able to appreciate
any concrete evidence. In truth, believing in immortality does not deny the death
of the physical being, but, in keeping with the teaching of the great majority
of the world’s religions, it will require blind faith to believe in the
existence of a spiritual life that
had been present before physical birth and continues beyond physical death. This
in fact, is a very basic view and irrespective of the varying belief structures
among people all over the world, there is universal agreement that “life” in some form had existed before,
and continues after; even as the exact nature of which remains unknown, and
subject to great conjecture.
In
the past centuries, the ancient Chinese Philosophers
guided by the teachings of Lao Zhu
believed that mortal life was merely a stage in the preparation of the spirit
to seek harmony with the universe where it continues life to infinity. The
ancient Greek and Roman scholars led by Aristotle and Plato believed that all humans possessed immortal
souls that came from and returned to the realm of their Gods. The Eastern Philosophers embraced the idea
of reincarnation enunciated by Buddha,
where the immortal soul re-emerges in various forms until it arrives at the
final perfect state (Nirvana). In
recent times however, most of the world’s major religions including Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism,
Buddhism and Taoism all promise an Afterlife
that included a variety of explanations and combinations of non-human
influences such as God, Spirit, Soul, Resurrection, Reincarnation, Heaven and Hell to
try to explain the events that take place and to justify immortality. They
differed in the way that they presented the basic manifestations of
immortality, but they all agree on the ultimate conclusion and outcome.
In
truth, no one ever truly knows for certain that immortality is a reality, and in
spite of the constant reassurances and confident affirmations by the world’s thinkers and leaders and the
substantial circumstantial evidence that abounds in man’s history, there has
always existed a very large minority of the population that fully reject this
notion. This is quite understandable, since in the absence of verifiable
evidence to the contrary, it is difficult to prove its absolute validity. The Atheists and the others who deny life of
any kind after death, believe that the living body is made up of atoms in the
form of cells which come together to give life, and control all the mental activity
and actions that result from a variety of predictable chemical and physical reactions.
They see no reason to introduce any other external circumstance or source to
explain life and death. They insist that
following the laws of nature, when the person dies, everything dies and returns
to its atomic state. They adamantly insist that any suggestion of any kind of
life existing before and after this earthly life in whatever form, are merely
false stories concocted by man to avoid having to accept the fact of the
finality and irreversibility of death.
But this position, although scientifically sound,
will only hold if the agnostic is correct that life and living is to be
considered merely as manifestations of complex chemical reactions. It ignores
completely the philosophical nature of human existence, the past history, the
emotional expressions, thought processes and so many other activities that
cannot be fully explained by chemical reactions. It is precisely this duality
that has led the countless numbers of philosophers and serious thinkers over
the centuries of earth’s existence, to search for reasons and offer
explanations. And it is precisely this reasoning that has led them to conclude that
human life deserves greater respect than merely finite chemistry.
Albert Camus, one of France’s
most accomplished philosophers, a Nobel laureate, and a distinguished humanist,
made the following observation:
“I would rather live my life as if there is a God
and die to find out there isn’t, than live my life as if there isn’t, and die
to find out there is.”
This statement has always
impressed me as one which clearly makes absolute sense in this milieu of
uncertainty. To hold on to a belief that denies immortality in any form, and instead
offers no hope of anything except for decay and disintegration beyond death,
only encourages a reckless life without hope, and discourages any preparation
for the future, whatever that turns out to be. I would rather choose a life
that offers a hope of immortality and live it to my fullest satisfaction, while
doing everything possible to ensure maximum benefit in the future, in the hope
that if it comes to pass, I shall reap the rewards. Of course, if in fact it
turned out that I was mistaken, I would have lost little, for in my living I
would have secured the kind of life that I had considered worthy of living.
Bob Dylan,
recognized as one of America’s
greatest pioneers on American folk culture, and a genuine social philosopher in
his own right, offered the following profound comment:
“I’ve always thought that there is a superior
power, that this is not the real world, and that there is another world to
come.”
In its profound simplicity,
this statement speaks volumes in support of the existence of an afterlife and
of immortality. It does not make any sense to equate the human mind, with all
its inherent complexities, abilities and propensities, to an accident of
nature, or to a series of chemical interactions destined to play out on the
stage of life and then disintegrate forever. Life is indeed far more complex
than this simple model suggests, and the fact that the answers are beyond our
limited comprehension does not in any way negate the statement that life
continues beyond in another way.
The
great Greek philosopher Plato more
than 2500 years ago, declared:
“The soul of man is immortal and
imperishable.”
He viewed the human individual as
essentially a spiritual being made up of a mortal body and a soul that was
immortal, essentially perfect and an eternal creation of a Supreme Being.
Humans, he argued were created with spiritual and moral capacities which are
not fulfilled by dying but continue on as the
soul which is invulnerable and immortal. Professor William James, distinguished professor of Psychology at Harvard University and a leading American
pragmatist, in his famous 1898 lecture entitled Human Immortality, elaborated further by insisting that during life
the soul is a function of the mind of the person, and that after death
continues into an immortal, supernatural life. He stressed this quite
unequivocally when he stated:
“But such dependence on the brain for this natural
life will in no wise make immortal life impossible; -it might be quite compatible
with a supernatural life behind the veil hereafter.”
From
all of this, it seems quite clear that although the concepts of Eternity and
Immortality appear to be dealing with different levels in the existence of
time; the former, being without a beginning, and the latter, without an end, the
fundamental understanding is well beyond human capabilities. It is therefore
left entirely for each individual to make full use of his insights and his
faith to arrive at his own conclusions and then live by them. This indeed is
the fundamental premise of Faith, a
sense of confidence of a perceived outcome without absolute evidence.
For
myself, I have no difficulty in accepting the fact that the eternity in time,
and the immortality of spirit was created by a Supreme Being. This to me seems
to be far more appropriate than assuming, as so many are doing, than life is no
more than a finite chemical accident of nature. My own personal Religious Beliefs and Near Death Experience, together with the
accounts of the countless numbers of others with similar experiences, serve
only to underline the validity of the argument in favor of a supernatural
existence. As I have recorded previously, I firmly believe that:
“Life is an exquisite and precious expression of a
greater plan by a Supreme Being in which the time spent on earth is but a short
segment of a journey that began in eternity and will continue into eternity.”
Like Albert Camus, and the countless numbers of good people who have
done so throughout the ages, I am comfortable in choosing a life dedicated to continued
hope of immortality, and rejecting a mortal life that leads nowhere.
-And like Camus, I will continue to live my life in
the full expectation of immortality promised to me by the Son of God, and in so
doing, live a life of fulfillment and satisfaction. Knowing fully, that in the
event that this were not so, I would have suffered no regrets!
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