Being living in the existing phenomenal world on planet Earth, humans have some empirical knowledge of life what it is all about with never ending quest to learn the nature, character, beginning, end and thereafter an afterlife when life comes to an end. In Brief History of Time, Stephen Hawking reasoned, "If we find the answer to that (why it is that we and the universe exist) it would be the ultimate triumph of human reasoning- for then we would know the mind of God."
Lexicon defines life as 'condition or fact of being living; period from the birth to death, birth to present time or present time to death. It is an irreversible fact that life ends in death. Death is defined as cessation of circulation and respiration applicable to any living being. Mathematical theory of probability suggests that death is the only certainty of life with 'probability one' without any chance or failure.
It is an axiomatic truth that likes all other living being humans have to embrace death and destiny. In Iliad, Homer said that "no son of a mother, coward or brave is born who can shun his destiny." To conquer death and attain immortality by stopping the process of ageing is the great urge that human yearned for ages and bore it in their psyche ever since the dawn of civilization.
Humans' lasting desire and thirst for living for infinite time is manifested in their age-old wishes of having an indestructible and perennial afterlife is evident. In philosophy, mythology and religion; perception of afterlife is clearly exhibited. Now the question arises what is afterlife and when its journey begins. Obviously it gives ample reasoning that it begins when life, with all its characteristic features, ceases in this phenomenal world.
'Afterlife is the belief that an essential part of an individual identity or the stream of consciousness to manifest after the death of the physical body. Afterlife is the essential aspect of the individual that lives on after death may be some pertinent element, or the entire soul or spirit of an individual. The continued existence in afterlife often takes place in a spiritual realm. Some belief systems, such as those in the Abrahamic tradition including the religion of Judaism, Christianity and Islam, hold that the dead go to a specific plane of existence after death, as determined by God, or other divine judgment, based on their actions or beliefs during life.' Major views on the afterlife derive from religion, esotericism and metaphysics.
In divine comedy, the narrative describes Florentine epic poet Dante's travels through Hell, Purgatory and Paradise while allegorically the poem represent to soul's journey toward God afterlife.In most of the existing religions, perception of afterlife is vividly described in the narratives this way or other. But the science so far does not find the arguments of the perception of afterlife as convincing for acceptance because of lacking proof. As science only goes by the golden rule of 'observation and experiment' any perception which does not come under the purview of sciences golden rule, pertinently does not merit acceptance through the science's hard gaze of scrutiny and investigation.
Different religions envisage and promise afterlife in different dimensions with the core spirit of the concept remaining more or less the same. According to religious belief system, virtues and vices are to be judged and dealt in afterlife with reward and punishment. Both rewards and punishments are characterized and visualized by the conventional examples of rewards and punishments of the phenomenal world around us.
Joyful life in heaven vis-a-vis the everlasting torments and painful life in hellfire has been carefully compared with the joyful and tormented life of this material world in order to give a better visual worldly understanding of reward and punishment for virtue and vice. Now the question evolves in inquisitive mind, where and under what condition this afterlife exists. Does it exist within the boundary of our visible known Universe or lies morbidly encrypted in the obscurity of parallel universe, beyond our existing one, where time & space does not exist?
The concept of parallel Universe is a fact of astronomical theory of the multiversity. There actually is quite a bit of evidence out there for a parallel universe. Does given definition of life i.e. merely the activity of an admixture of carbon, amino-acid and few other elements in this world apply to the definition of life system in the afterworld?
Is a given nervous system with a blood pumping heart system or anything similar to that living being is of necessity in the life support system of afterworld in the possible parallel universe? Is the afterworld supposedly lying encrypted in the elusive and paradoxical universe phenomenal or intricate noumenal (opposite phenomenal) concept about which humans have no concrete and vivid perception and empirical knowledge other than that of philosophical speculation of an absent minded blind philosopher 'searching for a black cat in the dark room where there is no cat at all' syndrome.
Religions paint a vivid multidimensional picture of afterlife of reward and punishment as evident in the religious texts. As religious interpretations of afterlife do not go with the golden rules of science, the same obviously does not find ground and thus the answer lies shrouded in mystery.
A recent revolutionary finding, contrary to existing norms of science which dismisses the concept of afterlife, a scientist from Wake Forest University School of Medicine in North Carolina, U.S.A, Professor Robert Lanza says that the answer to afterlife lies in quantum physics---specifically the theory of biocentrism. He says further that the evidence lies in the idea that the concept of death is a mere figment of our consciousness. Professor Lanza explains that when we die, our life becomes a perennial flower that returns to bloom in the multiversity or otherwise what we call it afterlife.
With the above observations of Professor Lanza, suitably blended with the spirit of philosophy, science and religion; perception of afterlife though purely sounds spiritual and metaphysical in nature, now finds a solid ground of hypothetical experimentation of theoretical physicists. The theory of biocentrism of Professor Lanza and few other recent scientific findings on afterlife will obviously narrow the gap between science and religion, which seems conflicting often, in foreseeable future.
"Life after death has been confirmed by some scientists who have discovered consciousness continues even when a person has died. Some British scientists further confirm that thought do carry on after the heart stops. Scientists have offered a glimpse into the afterlife with a huge study on Near Death Experience, with the most shocking finding suggesting that people see spirit when near to death. Many people claim to experience feelings of peacefulness a sense of disconnection from the body and visualization of bright light."
Revealed religion of Islam and other widely practiced religions of the contemporary world enunciate and approve the perception of afterlife of infinite time. Science has to grill the perception through an arduous laboratory test toward traveling miles to go millionth of millisecond proximity to decipher the encoded secrets of the master computer (!) of the Grand Designer with the wisdom humans bestowed with.
It is still beyond humans' perception if the law of nature and laws of physics apply to afterworld. In case of afterworld, as religions assert, neither law of nature nor laws of physics apply there as it lies beyond the matrix of space-time equation, otherwise called 'la-mokum-la-zaman' (no space-no time) mysteriously and meticulously preserved and encrypted in the 'Loho-mahfuz'--- the master computer of the Grand Designer. Humans with so far earned scientific knowledge and wisdom, are still millions of miles away to decipher the secret whether the afterworld lies is in the hypothetical multiversity or its beyond.
Perceptions and problems of afterlife and multiversity are simply brain storming with no logical solution visible even faraway so far. Humans' quest to learn the secrets of afterworld and see their most Merciful and Beneficent Grand Designer face to face, Who create by an ordain: "Koon Faiya Koon" (Be! and it is)- Al- Quran and govern every bit and pulsation of Life, Afterlife, Universe, Multiversity; is unrelenting.
To Conclude, I recollect from Alfred Lord Tennyson: "For tho" from out our Bourne of Time and place/The flood may bear me far/I hope to see my Pilot face to face/when I have crost the bar."
The writer is a former civil servant
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