Refutations



Other arguments


There are many other arguments that could explain the nature of consciousness and they can also be correct. I have spent a lot of time thinking about how I could be wrong as well. Here are some objections that I have come up with.

i. Separateness is real


There is an equal chance that consciousness really is separate and that death is not an illusion. Maybe in some universes death is an illusion and in others it isn’t and we are in the one where it isn’t. Perhaps there really is nothing irrational about an unequal distribution of luck. Some people get to be rich and die forever while some are not so lucky.

ii. The same life repeats


And there is also reason to suspect that the same life we live repeats and we are tied to one consciousness forever. In this case, separateness is not an illusion. Maybe this is why we get déjà vu. Obviously this would be bad for people who have miserable lives and good for those who have good lives.

We are living in a Perfect Simulated reality


Déjà vu may also be evidence that we live in a simulated reality. It could also be a sign of a “glitch in the matrix.” If a civilization advances far enough technologically it could eventually achieve immortality and become a god of its own universe or greater. It could create virtual realities and other virtual realities within those virtual realities ad infinitum and its members could live inside them. Such a civilization could make virtual realities into what they want, even a reality where recursive consciousness does not exist at all. Considering how long the universe has been around before we were here maybe we have already solved the recursive consciousness problem even if it exists. After we die it would be just like a coffee break. We’d drink coffee and play another game and every game is perfect. Every consciousness is the same but it is no longer a problem. Somehow our species evolved past this long ago and we don’t even know it.

We are living in a universe where god exists and is separate from us

Let us assume that anything is possible. We infer this from just how big the universe is. If anything is possible then it is possible that there are many existences where some type of god does exist and made everything and has control over everything. It is possible that out of all odds we live in one of these existences.

Time just goes backwards

A cyclic universe could also mean that after we die time just goes backwards and we live our life in reverse. There has been some speculation that this could be real.

Something else

Just about anything is possible given the infinite nature of the universe. Maybe only a higher species can truly know what consciousness is and what truly happens after death.

Conclusion


The short analysis here should make clear that the hypothesis that we may all be the same consciousness is a strong one considering all the logic supporting it.

1. There is an equal or higher chance that some kind of persistence occurs after death than nothing after death. Separateness and death may both be illusions. This conclusion is supported by mathematical probability, the law of conservation of energy, multiverse theory, the prevalence of many illusions, cycles throughout the universe, and just plain logic.

2. We should assume that every consciousness can ours and treat every conscious being as we would treat ourselves. Follow the golden rule. We should be following the golden rule even if my hypothesis is not true.

3. Fresh consciousness cycles would mean that everything we do is pointless. Nothing we do ever has a permanent effect. But if we can solve death we may be able to create a real sense of permanence for the first time. Every good deed we do can have a permanent effect on others. So it is rational to find a cure to death and solve aging and we should be making efforts to do this.

4. If you are believe in anything after death you are not an atheist. If you believe in nothing after death you are an atheist. The tenacity of this false dichotomy prevents us from understanding what really happens after death and the true nature of the universe.

5. To fully understand what consciousness is it may be necessary to assume that every consciousness is our consciousness. We may never fully understand how consciousness works if we do not think of consciousness this way.

6. It may be necessary to assume that we are the universe itself and that the universe is not separate from us to fully understand it.

What do you think? Are Separateness and death illusions?