Memory is not magic. It is a physical process rooted in the structure of the brain. We know this because brain injuries, tumors, and diseases can erase memory, change personality, and reshape identity. If damage can erase who you are, how could death preserve it
Reincarnation assumes that memory and identity are independent of the brain. But every modern study of neuroscience shows the opposite. Thoughts, emotions, personality traits — all arise from brain activity. When the brain ceases, so does the person. And what do past-life memories really show People remember being warriors, queens, or victims of dramatic deaths. Why so few farmers, laborers, or anonymous villagers The pattern suggests wishful thinking, not cosmic truth.
We are story-driven beings. The idea that we come back again and again is appealing. It gives life meaning. But life can have meaning without myths. We can be kind, curious, and responsible even if this is our only life. And in fact, knowing this is our one chance might make us live it more fully.
Memory is not magic. It is a physical process rooted in the structure of the brain. We know this because brain injuries, tumors, and diseases can erase memory, change personality, and reshape identity. If damage can erase who you are, how could death preserve it
Reincarnation assumes that memory and identity are independent of the brain. But every modern study of neuroscience shows the opposite. Thoughts, emotions, personality traits — all arise from brain activity. When the brain ceases, so does the person. And what do past-life memories really show People remember being warriors, queens, or victims of dramatic deaths. Why so few farmers, laborers, or anonymous villagers The pattern suggests wishful thinking, not cosmic truth.
We are story-driven beings. The idea that we come back again and again is appealing. It gives life meaning. But life can have meaning without myths. We can be kind, curious, and responsible even if this is our only life. And in fact, knowing this is our one chance might make us live it more fully.