What then, once your life is over?

Life is special in every way. It's statistically rare, improbable. However, it's great to be in it! Feeling life at liberty is what this is all about. We can't live life focused in worries about death. What happens once our bodies cease to function? So far, we have no connection with those who have died. Once they're gone, we only hear more from them by their acts and deeds, but never ever from them personally. They aren't persons any more, their bodies have ceased to function.

It bothers people to imagine that their thoughts and images exist only within their bodies. It's incredibly difficult for most people to accept that once life ceases, thoughts and images and feelings are gone for good. So, we better enjoy our special state, while we are awaken and alive.

Most matter around us, near or far, in our planet or in our Universe, is not conscious of itself, except us. We are matter, too. We are made from the same atoms everything else is made of. It's true: our combination results in thoughts, feelings, memories, images, creativity, love, hatred, selfishness and altruism. But that's all it is: our very special combination. We are living systems; we are conceived, born, educated; we love, hate, think, get anxious, stay calm, get sick, get well, enjoy, die.

It's important, I would say, not to live under false promises, expecting things which won't be. It's important to be conscious of how valuable our condition—matter conscious of itself—can be. Our cultures seem to be built upon strange grounds: "games" that might have worked at some past time, do not work now. Today we need to face reality as positively as it can be understood by our most careful methods of studying it. It would certainly help to move around using basic scientific attitudes.

Why can't we teach our children that we are alive and, in so being, we are privileged beings? Why can't we help children understand life and death? Anything taught soon enough, will become understandable reality for any being capable of thinking. We hide death from them. Why do we do that? Why do we lie? We cherish honesty and truthfulness, and yet we plan our children's education upon lies—that we dare to call practical. Why haven't we decided collectively that designing our cultures orbiting truths will certainly be more liberating than making people face hidden realities deceptively.

Living is our great privilege. We have some choices. We aren't as free as we would like to believe. We need to be realistic about our true limits. Not everything is possible, however, most reasonably envisioned goals are attainable applying proper methods and strength, will strength. Are we truthful with our children as we speak to them? Do we let them grasp reality in its wholeness, or do we purposefully hide dubious corners from them? It's time, now, to rethink our universal culture. And, yes, it's an absolute necessity, this new culture must be universal. Every single human being must be included. Our planet has already become small enough. We're all incredibly tight together.

So, what matters is your life today, now. We are mandated by existence itself, to enjoy life fully and ethically.

Metaphysics, a waste of time?

"War of the Worldviews", written by Deepak Chopra (pro spirituality) and Leonard Mlodinow (pro science), is one incredibly interesting book. I can't stop reading it; I can't put it down. Page after page, both authors deal with this eternal discussion about our origins. Where did we come from? Why are we here? Is it important to know why we're here? Do we need reasons to exist? Does our Universe need reasons to be? Is existing not complete in itself? Does it need initial reasons? Is everything planned ahead? Are we the result of preconceived ideas? Is our Universe planned of self designed?

Today we understand better than ever every single force that participates in generating our present material and conscious reality. We know with high degrees of certainty, that our consciousness is something that emerges due to our brain cells combining and interacting amongst themselves. Our consciousness is the final totality of what we experience. It forms itself as pieces of information enter our brain through our senses. We have at least two sources of information feeding our brains regularly: our senses—providing images, sounds, smells, feelings and taste of that which is outside of us—and our memories, combining information from our senses with information from within. Thirdly, we need to be very careful in including what our bodies need, which they communicate to our consciousness through our drives. There we have: three sources of information, of stimuli. Each one exerts its special degree of influence over every single decision we make.

Why do so many people—more than 56%—insist on explaining consciousness as something that can only exist if everything is within a greater, superior, transcendental consciousness?

When we say, individually, "I, me", who is there? Who speaks and thinks and refers to herself/himself as "me"? Is it not that combination of what entered our brains through our senses, mixed with our memories and our drives, what builds up our final consciousness, which, incidentally, is continuously changing?

Anybody with some understanding of processes will categorize human reasoning as something very special. It is! That can't be denied. However, the origin of such richness in handling complex issues is what is being debated. Some will fearlessly affirm that such complex processes are indicators of our spiritual nature. Thinking is first; existence comes after. Do we think consciously because of our brain's processes, or our brain processes are possible, because we originated from intelligent entities, beyond matter?

World views are radically split in at least two groups: skeptics and spiritualists. Skeptics account for less people than spiritualists. This is not something that would be expectable today! What happened? Why haven't most people been captivated by such beautiful methodology as that defined within anything scientific? Is it because perhaps it's one more deception, similar to discovering realities concerning Santa Claus?

Why do we insist on raising our children upon lies? Do we like to see them deceived as they find out reality? What is good about such game? We hold honesty and truthfulness as human utmost valuable assets, and yet we grow our children telling them lies that we amiably call "fairy tails"? Do we not know, yet, that deceipt is highly conducive to frustration and misbehavior? Why are we tolerating such falsehood as something "nice"? Is it because it generates sales?

We need to find ways to free people from illusions. Some of us are convinced without any hint of doubt, that freedom depends highly on depending on what is true.