Chapter 1
The People of Conclusion One
Have you ever heard that expression “only the good die young”? Of course you have. It’s one of history’s most used statements, and has also been asked just as many times. The answer has been sought after for thousands of years, by all sorts of people. People who are educated in multiples of different demographics of intelligence; always coming back to the same two old and tired conclusions. Conclusion one, and conclusion two.
Conclusion one is based on the idea of faith, in saying that there exists an entity that is responsible for the creation of all things and people. An ultimate ruler of the universe and the source of all moral authority. A superhuman deity possessing power over nature and human fortunes, favoring all those who worship and live along the set laws and guidelines of whichever idea of faith has been chosen. Different ideas of faith represent different laws. Some ideas of faith have adopted multiple Gods, while some only have one. In some cases there have even been what can only be described as ranking systems involved in certain beliefs; implying that certain people hold higher grandiosity than other people. These people have been labeled saints, prophets, wise men, apostles and several other titles that represent many different things to the people that believe in them. The origins of conclusion one reside somewhere in the early centuries following the creation of mankind on Earth.
Most people of conclusion one claim that when this celestial spirit(s) or being(s) responsible for all creation has decided that it is your time- then it is your time. No questions asked, for the creator works in mysterious ways. It was all written in your very own specific and unique plan, designed just for you. Thy will be done. Over time, humanity theorized several other ideologies regarding faith by taking existing ideas and reinterpreting them, before respawning them into sub-ideologies. These ideologies and sub-ideologies multiplied, becoming countless amounts of slightly different and completely different ideas and beliefs. It is in human nature that difference creates dispute. With that being said, it was only a matter of time before these differences in the same ultimate idea became a breeding ground for dispute. For thousands of years, humans persecuted each other for their beliefs. Forcing their religious practices on other cultures, and killing all those who opposed. Those who refused to falter on their faith were thought to be martyrs.
The vast majority of the people residing in conclusion one will speak of wondrous places. They go on to describe eternities of time spent in a constant state of peace, love and all sorts of other exciting things. They believe they will exist out of body in these places. These places have many different names and many different promises. The Christian’s call it Heaven and the Buddhist’s call it Nirvana. Islam calls it Paradise and the Hindu’s call it Moksha. Several other ideas of what happens after death seemed to stray astronomically from the ultimate idea, such as in Norse mythology which believes in a place called Valhalla. Valhalla is believed to be a place of endless battle and war, in which you cannot die. Another being Greek mythology, which believes in three specific Gods above several other different Gods and demigods to be above humanity. The Greeks spoke of a place called Underworld, where all human souls enter after death. The Greeks believed that once a human dies, the body is to be properly dealt with in a very specific and ritualistic fashion. They believed that to enter Underworld they must first travel to it by ferry across a river called Styx. They believed that to travel by ferry across this river, the soul must pay a price to a Ferryman named Charon. The price being a coin or coins of a certain amount. Upon payment, Charon would take you across the river to enter into Underworld ruled by a God known as Hades. The Greeks believed that in order for the souls of the diseased humans to possess the coins they needed to cross over to Underworld, the bodies needed to be disposed of with the coins. They would place coins on the bodies either covering the eyes or under their tongues. The Greeks believed that if a body isn’t given the coins, then the soul in which it belonged to would wonder aimlessly in the waters of the river. Stuck in a state of purgatory for eternity, or until the body is given the coins.
A large portion of the people of conclusion one also believe in alternate places, polar opposite of the previously stated places of peace. Where only suffering and pain exists. It is believed that these alternate realms are saved for the souls of the wicked and evil. In several different religious ideologies there is a place called Hell, in which holds endless punishment for those who are deemed to be evil, wicked, blasphemous and impure. Balancing the Yang to the Yin of humanity after their death, Hell holds bad souls; while Heaven holds good.
It is all because of faith, religion, general beliefs and curiosity of a mightier being above all creation that conclusion one’s people can cope with going through their life on Earth in the way that they do. Seemingly at complete peace with their mortality; and in utter bliss of their final destination after death. What these people won’t speak of, or even acknowledge is that hidden in the backs of their mind’s imagination behind all this faith and belief, sits what would look to be like doubt- but isn’t quite as simple. Doubt is just what this part of their mind excretes, leaving trails. If these trails of doubtful excretion are followed back to its source, fear will be found cowering behind the previously stated faith and belief, using them as coping mechanisms. This is fear of the unknown and it masked behind faith, making it acceptance. Acceptance in understanding that there exists not a single way of knowing that if what they’ve invested their full and complete belief and devout faith in is the factual, end-all be-all answer to what truly happens after the death of a human. It is absolutely impossible for mankind to ever find and know the answer to this question- of course without dying themselves. The people of faith are all aware of this, whether they choose to admit it or not. Consciously or subconsciously, the fact that in life- humans will never truly know what happens after their imminent deaths, is instilled in every male and female human being. The realization of this unanswerable question instills fear of the unknown in its rawest form, and humans are left to cope with it in their own ways.
The people of conclusion one refuse to accept the existence of possibilities, which forever remain beyond their grasp of human understanding. They will never be comfortable in saying “I will never know the truth”, and then just leave the subject alone in complete content. They believe this to be utterly unacceptable, so they created faith, religion and spirituality to use as default answers to things they will never truly be able to explain. Several thousands of years later, conclusion one stills suggests its beliefs. Denying any other possibilities and relentlessly fighting against the acceptance of actual fact; the fact that there exists no facts. Always holding tightly onto their faith in order to cope with knowing that one day, it will be their turn to face the unknown. Labeling what mankind will never truly be able to understand or explain as “God”, or whatever else it may be that they hold holy. This is what gives the people of conclusion one the ability to cope, and to deal with their ever-present fear of the unknown.
On the other end of the spectrum are people who handle such questioning and its inevitable outcome of unknown conclusions in a difference of fashion so completely absolute, that both parties could be labeled polar opposite during in comparison to each other. These people who reside on the spectrum’s opposite end are the people of conclusion one. These people represent the other half (give or take to either side) of mankind’s overall consensus on the subject of dealing with life’s unanswerable questions. These are the humans who came to the second conclusion; these are the people of conclusion two.
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