Jessie Gambardella - No Better Off After Death

Doing research for my paper on the film What Dreams May Come I did extensive research on “New Age Religion” beliefs mostly on the afterlife. I read the book the movie was based on and there is one passage that made me think, “why would anyone choose to believe this?” Robert’s “Spirit Guide” Albert, is explaining to him, after Robert’s death, what it is like.

“Does a Man’s existence change in any way when he removes hi overcoat? Neither does it change when death removes the overcoat of his body. He’s still the same person. No wiser. No happier. No better off. Exactly the same. ‘Death is merely continuation at another level.’” P 76

This is the belief that a lot of "new agers" believe happens when you die. It is a religious movement where you can choose to believe certain things over others depending on what you like. This particular view of death where nothing changes makes me want to ask then what is the purpose of dying? If we only end up exactly like we were, “no better off,” then what is the point? What is there to look forward to? Now I know it sounds weird to look forward to death but let’s be honest that is where most of your time will be spent, there’s no avoiding it, so why dwell on it? I think many new agers settle on this because they try way too hard to be “realistic” and please everyone. I do agree that our bodies are just an “overcoat” to our souls which are our true essence and death is simply the removal of our body which is just a shell. But doesn’t this set our soul free? Just a thought.