Block Universe Theory: What Happens to Consciousness?

[rayshillay]

block universe theory?

Sorry everyone but I guess I just don't quite get the block universe theory. If the past, present, and future are all existing at the same time (me being born, me sitting in second grade, my death) then what would happen if I were to die in let's say 5 minutes.. What would happen to my consciousness? Would I just sort of be living the same life at some point in the past not knowing what happened? I've read that in the block universe "the fear of death is irrelevant". How could it be irrelevant if consciousness doesn't somehow go back to one of the time slices in the past? So yeah I know my question is lame but I just don't get what happens once the time comes when you experience your last few minutes and then die.

 

[K^2]

Your consciousness only exists for an instant. It has neither a future nor a past. Only the fact that your mind can store information about past events, and more importantly, about past thoughts, keeps you under impression of continuous time flow. In reality, you could have been created along with the rest of the universe a second ago, and you wouldn't know the difference, as long as the memories your brain came packaged with matched what you think the past is.

Now, if you realize that you are only you at this very instant and that this instant always has existed and always will exist, fear of some event that will terminate this chain is really silly. It's no different than being afraid of your own birth.

 

[hy23]

DAYUMM, that's deep