"If you could live forever… would you?" A question that might sound counter-intuitive for some readers, is actually intricate for others.
Throughout History, Humankind has always been highly concerned with this query: "Can eternal Life be attained?" Historically, referring to traditional science to formulate a solution was in vain. This pushed alchemists from different ages and civilizations to come up with a potion, a spell, an elixir, to overcome the misery instilled in Mortals: Death. These endeavors gave birth to the notion of Elixir of Life – also known as Elixir of Immortality – initially originating from the myths and stories spread among various cultural groups, namely in ancient China and mediaeval Europe [1, 2].
The concept of Immortality and the meaning of Life troubled Humankind, potentially since forever. Alas, the exact origin of such ideas is probably erased from identified History with the absence of literature at that time. However, with the creation of written text, concrete evidence behind Humans' early pursuits of Immortality saw the light. In ancient Mesopotamia, circa 2100 B.C., the Epic of Gilgamesh was written, perhaps being the oldest fictional piece of literature in the History of Humankind [3]. This Sumerian King was told to be seeking Immortality, afraid from the idea of Life having no meaning. Obviously, this Hero failed to achieve his quest [4].
Yet, the concept of Immortality was not only restricted to the renunciation of physical Death. In reality, ancient civilizations, such as Pharaohs, Hindus, and later Jews, Christians, Muslims, and many others, believed in Afterlife in terms of Resurrection or Reincarnation [5]. From there, came the notion of a Soul, which would either transcend to a heavenly place or get reborn in another form of Life, depending on the population's religion or mystical beliefs. The sinful soul would unfortunately pay for its sins in its second Life. Burial could then have transmuted from an act of grief and respect to a route towards Afterlife. Therefore, the concept of Immortality happens to be not only Universal, but arguably conveyed from one civilization to the other as well. Immortality may then have been constructed by Homo Sapiens' distinctive intrinsic ability of complex fictional thinking and storytelling, as a natural way to explain Death and ease its dark sorrow. Or perhaps, Afterlife is much more than a mere pseudoscience confirmed in sacred religious texts and discussed among philosophers and deep-thinkers. On a side note, if interested in a scientific approach on God, then you might want to have a look on El Hachem's latest article. Anyway, with the progress of science and engineering, Immortality could be theoretically achievable after all.
In his latest article, Gereige discussed the possible Future of Human Evolution, sharing the vision of Transhumanists who believe in the amalgamation of Human anatomy and advanced technology, paving the way for Immortality through 3D-bioprinting, Gene Editing (via CRISPR), and the Digital Cloud. Shall we attain this point of technological Singularity, Humans will have the luxury of answering the intriguing question: "If you could live forever… would you?"
In this article, Gereige and El Hachem will discuss two divergent viewpoints, advocating and criticizing Immortality.
On one hand, from an advocating point of view, El Hachem stresses the importance of Immortality as an ultimate goal.
Immortality has always been humanity's ultimate goal. In fact, the average lifespan of human beings has consistently increased through years. Immortality has always been the center of religions. Believe it or not, a big number of people fearing fade take religion as shelter.
Humans have always been searching for power whether military through wars, economically through money saving, politically through cold wars or socially through titles, and what is more powerful than Immortality? What a greatness to survive the Plague, the Spanish flu, and the Coronavirus. What a greatness to survive Crusades, World War I, and World War II. What a greatness to accompany evolution from its very beginnings to our very day to the very future. What a greatness to meet Jesus Christ and his disciples! Wait Immortality and Jesus are two incongruent concepts, at least when it comes to body Immortality. So be sure, if body Immortality is achieved the concept of God is condemned and this why till our day, we can neither confirm nor negate the existence of God.
Immortality does not only benefit the body but also the brain and the attitude. Have you ever asked yourselves why sages in "Japanese Manga" are modeled as elderly? Have you ever asked yourselves what is the importance of an elderly council? Have you ever asked yourselves why the final decision was taken by elderly summit in old tribes? All of this is due to maturity. Maturity comes with experience that comes with age. When ultimate maturity is achieved, one always takes the right decision or at least the optimal one. All we know about maturity is limited to the maturity reached at the age of 70 or 80; so just think about the maturity one can acquire in billions of years. If humans become immortal, peace will inundate Earth. No wars, no suffering, no tears, no pain, no greed, no worries; tomorrow you'll do better! It has been said that "Life is short, so enjoy it". What if it is replaced by: Life is eternal just relax! Doesn't it sound better?
Immortality is not limited to body Immortality, but it also extends to soul and name Immortality.
According to religion and theology books, soul Immortality is given to hermits and righteous people. Many people have welcomed and embraced this Immortality in different ways through years: Pagans through Valhalla, Christians and Muslims through heaven, and Buddhism through Nirvana. Each civilization believed in soul Immortality in its own and personal way.
When it comes to the Immortality by name and work, one can think of Newton, Einstein, Tesla, Maxwell, Bohr and furthermore. Those have contributed to humanity development and evolution; their work has developed and facilitated our lives. They tried to understand the piece of art we are living in (the Universe) and the rules governing it. They will never be forgotten. What a greatness to live forever! If one day, Immortality is achieved, it is because of those immortals by name, mortals by body. Think about it, how hard it is to live 70 years and die forever. You just live 70 years while the universe lives forever. The Universe doesn't care about you if you die.
Remember, O man, you are from dirt; and to dirt you shall return. And no one cares about dirt; this is why we shall, must, and need to find a way to live forever. Imagine discovering Earth in the early ages; imagine discovering the Universe in the future; imagine witnessing the extinction of some species and witnessing the proliferation of others. In simple words, not seeking Immortality is equivalent to embracing suicide. Imagine being a God who shall live forever.
How many of you are restricted by time? Just think how many times you cancelled a plan because you have no time. We are compelled to study a single major while we might love 2, 3 or maybe 4. All of this is due to the limited time human beings live. Imagine what can you do with 500 billion $. Now imagine what can you do with 500 billion years. You would have known dinosaurs, you would have met your ancestors, you have met Napoleon, you would have met Georges Washington, you would have met Jean Paul II, you would have met Abraham Lincoln; you would be able to meet your future descendants but more importantly you would be able to discover the secrets of the Universe. Just imagine what Einstein did in 76 years, and extrapolate the results for billions of Einsteins and billions of years.
On the other hand, Gereige disapproves the idea of absolute Immortality.
By nature, Homo Sapiens always crave more. They are curious, but greedy. This instinctive desire to control all resources at will, in order to satisfy our endless needs, is the source of every progress to-date and the main reason why Happiness – Humans' utmost desire – is seldom attained. With every new breakthrough, Humans solve few problems, to end up creating multiple more. Nonetheless, our complex thoughts are to be praised. Without our fictional beliefs and bold curiosity, we would still be hunter-gatherers feeding on raw animal leftovers, concerned about the slightest disease or predators' attack. Without our fictional beliefs and bold curiosity, our species could not have cooperated to dominate the entire fauna and flora. Yet, with all this power, we still struggle with Happiness.
Fine, but what do curiosity and Happiness have to do with Immortality? Bear with me, and it will all become self-evident in a bit.
As Simon Sinek always recommends, we must always start with "Why?"
So, why do Humans want to live forever?
Humans can be considered as a merger of instincts, emotions, and beliefs.
From an instinctive point of view, it is irrational to refuse Immortality, right? Survival is hardcoded in our DNA. By nature, we eat to stay alive and mate to reproduce. When in danger, we fight back or escape. Our primal brain is designed to protect itself, hence, keeping us alive. Yet, survival is different from Immortality. The instinctive brain cannot fathom Immortality. A bee will do whatever it takes to stay alive but cannot understand and will never be able to control Death. A brain that cannot understand Immortality can never achieve it.
But we are not merely instinctive animals. Humans, like other creatures, have feelings. Accordingly, when a loved one is dead, we feel grief. Emotional beings have a tendency to protect not only themselves, but their community as well. So, from an emotional perspective, Humans will do anything to stay physically connected to the ones they love. In other words, Humans will spend lots of effort to escape Death. However, just like instincts, emotions are simply another by-product of biochemical reactions in the body. A mother elephant would protect its calves at all costs and would also mourn its dead. Yet, elephants are just aware of Death; they cannot understand Immortality and will never attain it on their own.
Luckily – or not – Homo Sapiens have developed the ability not only to think rationally, but to form complex beliefs. While other cognitive beings might be curious about concrete entities – what is hiding behind a tree, for instance – only modern Humans have the ability to question abstract beliefs such as Afterlife, Immortality and Happiness. Humans might have sought Immortality believing it would put end to the fear generated from trying to comprehend what comes after Death. But that would be absurd since most Humans believe in a form of Resurrection or Reincarnation. Just imagine a conscious Homo Sapiens tribe leader some 70,000 years ago convincing his/her community that there's finality after Death with no such thing as soul or ancestors… probably, the entire Human race would have gone extinct from mass depression!
So, is this confidence in an afterlife just another fictional belief?
Anyway, there is maybe another explanation to the need for Immortality. Apparently, Humans might have also thought that reaching Immortality will help them overcome their eternal misery – a fictitious belief – and attain Happiness at last – a misunderstood concept.
Indeed, Immortality guarantees long-lasting survival and relieves us from the grief of Death; yet we mistakenly believe it will bring us Happiness. Being an amalgamation of instinctive, emotional, rational, and fictitious thoughts, the Human mind can never reach bliss… except by configuring a simple concept in its core: Balance.
An outstanding friend once told me: "Balance is everything".
To find Happiness is to be grateful for the present while still building future plans.
To find Happiness is to be satisfied with what you have while still aiming to achieve more.
To find Happiness is to accept that Life ceases at last while still living it to the most.
Some readers might then argue: "Then why living at all?" or even others might go further questioning: "Not seeking Immortality is equivalent to embracing suicide". Those arguments are expected, but must not be accepted, for Humans tend to instinctively think in terms of extreme binary cases. The brain normally believes in the good and the bad. It is naturally hard for it to perceive the Duality of Life. A young gamer would constantly ask for additional Internet speed and capacity, until finally reaching a theoretical limit where speed and capacity do not matter anymore. Bypassing this state of saturation is only an unnecessary greed. Similarly, requesting an everlasting Life is merely the product of pure greed. To think of Happiness as a pursuit of success – by constantly setting new goals and striving to achieve them – is a false interpretation. Happiness is not a future destination; it is a present state. Therefore, Immortality can never ensure Happiness. Why then conscious people truly want to live forever? It is because of fictional beliefs and greed.
From a conceptual point of view, that does not make it wrong; but from a moral and noble perspective, it does. In addition, should lots of people choose Immortality, Earth will not be able to sustain overpopulation – which seems to be inevitable anyway because of people's fictional beliefs and greed as well, so why accelerate the process? At this point, an overpopulated planet will amplify the scarcity of goods, inexorably leading to wars and eventually the establishment of totalitarian regimes – Happiness's nemesis. Nobody wants to live in 1984, I assume.
Ironically, current readers might not live enough to choose at last whether they want to live forever or not. Nonetheless, the answer to this question tells a lot about the reader's standpoint of Life, and helps in addressing future ethical dilemmas.
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