Should We Live Forever?

Just this morning, I heard a reference to the idea that death might be optional in 100 years time. This book asks if it would be desirable to extend life indefinitely, detaching it from its organic base. What would then become of the relationship between the generations, the stages and shape of life characterised in the Hindu path? Life renews itself, so reincarnation corresponds more closely to what happens in the rest of the organic world. The author uncovers some of the assumptions underlying life extension, including that consciousness is an epiphenomenon that can be simulated on a computer programme, and that there is no essential difference between organisms and mechanisms. An important concept is that of generativity derived from Erik Erikson and which insists that each stage of life provides opportunities to acquire certain strengths as part of growth and development. As an elder, one of our prime responsibilities is the guidance of the next generation. A certain patience is also associated with wisdom, and contemplation has its own place in the journey of life. The book concludes with a profound thought from Pope Benedict XVI when he says that the cure for death is not so much an indefinite prolongation of this current life, but rather the transformation of life from within: 'it would need to create a new life within us, truly fit for eternity.'