The Many Benefits of Knowing About the Afterlife

Xuefeng

There is a story about two like-minded explorers on an adventure in a desert. After losing their way, they found that the water they carried was only enough to sustain them for half a day. They were left with a dilemma: they could either share the remaining water and eventually perish together, or one person could stay behind while the other took all the water to search for a way out and find a new water source, promising to return for the one who stayed.

Since death seemed inevitable, they decided to take a slim chance at survival. One person stayed behind and the gun was left with him. They agreed that the one who stayed would fire the gun every two hours to help the other person determine their direction and eventually find him.

At first, the person who stayed behind still had hope. He lay in a sandpit and fired the gun every two hours, but each time he was met with endless silence. After four shots, his spirit was on the brink of collapse, with only one bullet left. His thoughts wandered to his home and loved ones, and an overwhelming sense of helplessness seized his heart. How he longed to live!

However, he thought he was being "rational." He believed his companion would not return. If he fired the last shot into the air, he would eventually die of thirst. He did not want to endure such suffering, so he "bravely" placed the gun to his head and fired, ending his precious life.

Half an hour later, his companion, carrying enough water, found him, guided by the sound of the final gunshot. A tragedy that could have been avoided occurred because the one left behind could not see what the future held. If he had known that his companion had already found water and was on his way back, the tragedy would not have happened.

Similar tragedies happen to humans every day, particularly to those who, under the guise of "rationality," believe there is no afterlife and hold no hope for it.

Whether from logical reasoning, global evidence proving the existence of an afterlife, the teachings of Jesus and Buddha, or the direct visions of those with spiritual insight, it is clear that LIFE indeed continues beyond death. The main reason most people do not believe in the afterlife is that they are overly "rational."

Clearly, the companion was coming with water, but the person left in the desert could not see it. Because he could not see it, he "rationally" refused to believe it. Isn't this a tragedy?

If we do not believe in an afterlife, then our only choice is to make the most of this life, to strive and toil in the present. If life has no afterlife, then all morality is hypocritical. Whoever can live better than others is deemed successful. In this view, fighting, robbing, oppressing, and coercion become justified. It becomes a matter of survival of the fittest; the successful are heroes, the failures are fools. It is about who is more cunning, who can outwit whom: "the victor becomes the king; the defeated, a bandit." What use is there for conscience? What use for morality?

If we do not believe in an afterlife, then in times of success, one might become complacent, arrogant, and lawless; in times of failure, one might blame the heavens, the earth, and their parents, becoming irritable and hostile towards society and nature. When all other options are exhausted, the only path left may be to point the gun at one's own head and pull the trigger, ending one's life.

However, if we understand that life has an afterlife, we can leisurely enjoy life, whether this life is marked by success or failure. This life is merely one journey in the continuum of LIFE. Why be overly concerned? In the end, heroes and fools alike are reduced to dust, leaving behind just a mound of dirt covered by grass, " — only LIFE continues to move forward.

If we know there is an afterlife, we will not be distracted by fleeting illusions, but will view life as a process of profound transformation, focusing on how to shape a better future for our LIFE.

A life with hope and a life without it are fundamentally different. Those who do not acknowledge an afterlife face only a dead end, without hope. Facing death, they are left with helplessness and endless fear. But those who believe in the afterlife see a brighter future. They face death calmly, gracefully, and with optimism. Such a life is beyond the reach of those who live merely to survive.

Some say: "Even if there is an afterlife, we do not know it in this life, so it has no meaning for the living. It is better to live each day as it comes and make the most of it."

Without hope or faith in an afterlife, how can we live well? Even birds seem to live more joyfully than humans. Are we to live like animals?

A person who believes in the afterlife has a fundamentally different inner world than one who does not. Noble ideals and the highest moral values are pursued and upheld by those who firmly believe in the afterlife, while inhumane laws and crimes are committed by those who do not.

Is there an afterlife? Ask Jesus Christ, ask Buddha Shakyamuni, ask Xuefeng, and you will find the answer.