Ask HN: How do you deal with your mortality? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with your mortality?

#61

Post by Viliam1234 » Thu, Dec 24, 2020, 11:21 PM UTC

newusertoday wrote: post #45

do you go to sleep everyday? do you like to goto sleep? don't you "cease" to exist in sleep everyday? is that an unpleasant experience? if not think of death as sleeping it would stop bothering you.

It's not the sleep that frustrates me, but knowing that I will never wake up. I don't mind "not existing" for some periods of time. But I hate that what I have experienced so far (plus a few more years, depending on how lucky I get) is all I will ever experience.

So many possibilities, so little time, and most of the time is spent doing some kind of maintenance (most of that is making money to pay your bills).

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with your mortality?

#62

Post by tardismechanic » Fri, Dec 25, 2020, 1:22 AM UTC

I choose not to identify with my body or mind but instead with the consciousness that is aware of both these. Look up Advaita Vedanta for more. Best of luck!

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with your mortality?

#63

Post by runawaybottle » Fri, Dec 25, 2020, 6:49 AM UTC

You don’t, it’s a constant, so just factor it out.

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with your mortality?

#64

Post by morlockabove » Fri, Dec 25, 2020, 8:50 AM UTC

giantg2 wrote: post #57

morlockabove wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think one problem is that wanting to not die seems fucking logical. No less logical than any other want, anyway. If you don't have to justify pullimg your hand out of a fire, I think you don't have to justify an aversion to non-existence. All the arguments about it actually being okay make me suspicious that they're a coping mechanism, from people who wouldn't actually choose physical degeneration, pain, and death…

I generally agree with what you are saying, but you missed my point about it interfering with living. If you're so afraid of death that you lock yourself in a room instead of doing the things you want, then what's the point of living. The OP says the fear he has is interfering with things he wants to do in life. What's the point of extending life if you don't get to live it?

Yeah, shutting yourself in a padded room isn't a good strategy to maximise your quality-adjusted life years. I think you could make a case for spending a significant amount of time looking into the science of aging/senescence and seeing what you could do personally to contribute to the field, if only money.

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with your mortality?

#65

Post by tubularhells » Fri, Dec 25, 2020, 7:27 PM UTC

Alan Watts' Out of Your Mind, the Essential Lectures series helped me cope with dear of death, and got me down on a road of meditation, acceptance and appreciation. Highly recommended.

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with your mortality?

#66

Post by pryelluw » Fri, Dec 25, 2020, 7:34 PM UTC

You need to go see a medical professional. A therapist is a good choice. Don’t let this continue untreated because it will get worse. How do I know? I used to suffer from it myself and almost died from it.

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with your mortality?

#67

Post by bvcvbuiy » Fri, Dec 25, 2020, 9:45 PM UTC

You should try reading All men are mortal by Simone de Beauvoir : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Men_Are_Mortal

It is about a man who becomes immortal and experiences a lot of things. Without spoiling you, it turns out not to be as great as expected.

Apart from this there is the somewhat classical : "A famous quote tells us the three things every man should do during his time on earth: Plant a tree, have a son and write a book. The reason behind this quote is generally believed to be that we are only here for a short time and these three things will live on long after we have passed. It’s like leaving a legacy and in a sense achieving a kind of immortality."

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with your mortality?

#68

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Dec 26, 2020, 9:25 AM UTC

Viliam1234 wrote: post #60

auxpart wrote: post #46

I know this will come off as crazy, but there is something called subjective immortality that causes us to live nearly forever but only from our personal perspective. So you'll see other people die, but you'll continue to experience only a worldline where something prevents your experience from ending. I've started a forum to discuss the idea with others but haven't got very far. Still if you have any questions or wa…

The bad news is that living forever doesn't necessarily mean living an enjoyable life. Religions have the idea of living forever in hell. Any system that has the possibility of living forever, includes the possibility of hell.

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with your mortality?

#69

Post by auxpart » Sat, Dec 26, 2020, 9:27 AM UTC

Viliam1234 wrote: post #60

auxpart wrote: post #46

I know this will come off as crazy, but there is something called subjective immortality that causes us to live nearly forever but only from our personal perspective. So you'll see other people die, but you'll continue to experience only a worldline where something prevents your experience from ending. I've started a forum to discuss the idea with others but haven't got very far. Still if you have any questions or wa…

The bad news is that living forever doesn't necessarily mean living an enjoyable life. Religions have the idea of living forever in hell. Any system that has the possibility of living forever, includes the possibility of hell.

For sure, though I wouldn't call that bad news. In the long run the only hell that matters is the one you make yourself, so it just reinforces the importance of a virtuous life.

External factors can certainly make temporarily hell-like situations. But if it's a personal hell depends on how you think about it; there is always the option to adopt a Buddhist approach to inner peace.

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with your mortality?

#70

Post by henearkr » Tue, Dec 29, 2020, 6:14 PM UTC

Sorry to arrive late in this discussion...

You can give a try to transhumanism.

It does not promise anything, but it hints at the possibility to defeat finiteness either by biological/medical or technological progress, going through a bunch of paradigm-revolutionizing innovations called a Singularity.

Personally I'm atheist and when I seem to begin to have existential dread I climb to this hope of a future Singularity. Even if I know it could very well be that it would never happen at all, only the possibility of it allows my angst to disappear.