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But there are many people who know that they are headed toward death. They may not be aware at the moment it happens, but they know that they are going to die. That their sense of being "I" or "me" is ending. That their family members will miss them, that who they thought themselves to be while alive is going to end.
But for the rest, they are just living their lives, and then they are dead... and they don't even know they died.....in those situations, our consciousness would not know that its ending. It just ends.
I don't really have a major point to make here, I just find this issue interesting for some reason.
Maybe because throughout our lives we often think about the fact that we will be dead at some point. We might wonder how old we will live to, wonder what will cause us to die, etc. Even the most mentally healthy person, at some point, has the occasional thoughts about death.
So to think that such a major component of our existence could happen without us even knowing that it happened is kind of strange when you think about it.
What about Alzheimer's ? Your mind deteriorates slowly, so at most you might at one point know you've got 10 years to live. But that is longer even than say a patient in the early stages of congestive heart failure with 1-5 years to go. Unlike the heart failure patient, the Alzheimer's patient will lose their mind without being aware of being closer to death.
...So to think that such a major component of our existence could happen without us even knowing that it happened is kind of strange when you think about it.
Consider the reverse: birth. How many of us are cognizant of that event, or even of what happens in the several years that follow? Consciousness and self-awareness, the capacity to retain memories and to reason from them, to place oneself in the context of past-present-future, to conceptualize of how the self relates to everything external to the self - these ideas take time to form, and perhaps for those who suffer mental decline preceding death, such ideas also slowly drain away, so that death becomes a process rather than an event. But barring such illness, whether death comes after premonition or sudden surprise, the thing that's "dead" is our self-awareness. I think that an apt analogy would be the literal pulling of the plug in some electrical machine. The machine might have some capacitance, remaining briefly in operation after being unplugged, but only briefly. Then it ceases to work, although physically the device remains and appears intact.
To me, death as loss-of-consciousness is actually a soothing and comforting prospect. It means that there is no semi-death, when we're trapped inexorably in a broken state with cognizance of exit from life, but no means of altering it. The plug is yanked out abruptly, not slowly pried from the socket with the electrical device buzzing and cycling between full voltage and none. The ramping-up of consciousness post-birth is slow and tortuous, in spurts and uneven. The closure is so much cleaner.
Some people do not know they are dead and they, well their spirit is still at the place they died until someone comes along and sees them and tells them they have died and it is time to go home.
Since we're all going to die, we all know we're going to die. But once we die, we forget what death is. And then it no longer bothers us. Some people know they're going to die within seconds. Such as if they're face to face with a hungry tiger and have no weapons. But even then, they can hope for a miracle. And by the time they stop hoping, they no longer know what death is. So the only time death ever bothers us is when we can still hope for a miracle. Even knowing you're going to eventually die of old age, you can still hope for a miracle. Such as if future technology makes old age obsolete or whatever. Therefore, nobody ever knows for sure that they're going to die or are dead. Death is always a mystery, but becomes less of a mystery when we die and lose interest in mysteries. In fact the only thing that keeps death from being boring is that dead people aren't capable of boredom.
But there are many people who know that they are headed toward death. They may not be aware at the moment it happens, but they know that they are going to die. That their sense of being "I" or "me" is ending. That their family members will miss them, that who they thought themselves to be while alive is going to end.
But for the rest, they are just living their lives, and then they are dead... and they don't even know they died.....in those situations, our consciousness would not know that its ending. It just ends.
I don't really have a major point to make here, I just find this issue interesting for some reason.
Maybe because throughout our lives we often think about the fact that we will be dead at some point. We might wonder how old we will live to, wonder what will cause us to die, etc. Even the most mentally healthy person, at some point, has the occasional thoughts about death.
So to think that such a major component of our existence could happen without us even knowing that it happened is kind of strange when you think about it.
You keep saying happen without us even knowing that it happened and therein lies the confusion. Whether or not you have any advance warning, you still don't know in either case that it happened.
It is an interesting topic, but what I think you are really trying to say is that you don't want to die suddenly without notice. Some people, on the other hand, may prefer it that way and I think I lean somewhat toward preferring that scenario.
I do not believe that we don't know that death happened. I firmly believe that our soul goes directly to Heaven, that we know what happened, and can watch over our loved ones.
I've not decided if I'd rather be awake and know death is happening or if being asleep would be better. I don't want to drive off a cliff and know it that way.
I've not decided if I'd rather be awake and know death is happening or if being asleep would be better. I don't want to drive off a cliff and know it that way.
Having been in healthcare for 25 years and having had to withdraw life support on numerous occasions, I think it's better if someone is unaware that they've died. The process itself can be difficult to watch and I always feel better if the person is well into coma land. I would prefer being here one minute and gone the next when I meet my demise. Better yet, fall asleep in a warm cozy bed and never wake up on my 100th birthday. Perfect.
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