Afterlife and Immortality in the Death Discourse

Abstract

This paper examines the concepts of the afterlife and immortality – two similar terms yet with differences and often used interchangeably. They are crucial in the discourse on death and virtually all scholars centre their discourse on their existence or otherwise. Religion is the proponent of immortality; its arguments were rejected by science for lack of empirical verifiability. Recent scientific research focuses on how humans live immortally and possibly revive the dead. This aligns with religious immortality and contradicts science’s understanding of human biology. The debates about life after death are on two polarities: religious and scientific and each has internal inconsistencies. This paper uses the qualitative research method of conceptual clarifications and critical analysis to interrogate the arguments of the two polarities. It realises their inconsistencies are because death is unknowable with humans’ present cognitive apparatus, so postulations about life after death are confusing. Therefore, it submits that humans should live within their lifespans for the betterment of humanity. Life after death could be a privilege but should not be the major driving force for doing good. Life is meaningful when well lived, and death is just a natural phenomenon.