The saying is that the world ends, not with a bang but a whimper. I understand the sentiment. Ending with a “bang” is more appropriate for the young. I had plenty of opportunities to end with a bang, including automobile accidents and a tour of duty in Vietnam during the U.S. war there. So far, at least, I have avoided “going out” with a bang. In general, I think of that as a good thing, although I am not especially savoring the idea of going “out” with a whimper.
Surely there must be a third way, neither a “bang” nor a “whimper.” The idea that appeals to me the most is “curiosity.” I am, in fact, very curious about what’s next. People have, of course, wondered about what’s next for a long time. That’s where the concepts of “Heaven” and “Hell” came from: “Pie in the sky when you die” or fire and brimstone to punish the wicked.
While humans have been “supposing” about life after death for as long as humans have been been on the planet (and I’m not ruling out the possibility that other living beings don’t also engage in “supposing”), there’s no way to “test” the various theories people have had about what comes “next.” The only way to know what comes “next” is to die, and, while people have hypothesized about life after death as long as people have lived, we have no evidence that anyone has actually died and “lived to tell about it.”
Of course, people have claimed to have experienced an “afterlife,” either “Heaven or Hell,” and then attempted to profit from their versions of the afterlife. They do so, however, on the basis of scant evidence. I went to a “Christian” church once a week for most of my early life, and I am well-acquainted with traditional religious beliefs. Humans hate to think that life–and consciousness—will end.
The only way to conquer death is, of course, to die. And while many have claimed to have returned from the dead, there is no actual evidence that anyone has done so. We would, I think, do well to focus on making our daily lives as good as they possibly can be, and that would include helping others have good lives as well.
I would be curious to know what others think.