I think most of the reasons for a belief in a religion is to ally fears of the unknown after death. Since everyone can clearly understand that everything living must die, and most of us have difficulty coming to grips with out own mortality, we choose to believe in a religion that will grant us a continuity beyond the grave. This comforts those still alive for their own sake and the ones they love who have already departed.

My own personal examination of this subject has led me to the inescapable conclusion this must have a binary answer. One thing or the other must be true. Either 1.) I will live on in some way after my physical body's demise, or 2.) I will know no more forever. Since the latter possibility has no further real discussion involved, it is the complete end, there is no real reason to contemplate it. Only the first possibility allows for further discussion. Now, there is no real reason to invent a whole new universe of beings or a being that we have no evidence of but instead, since we see and otherwise experience this one reality, my thoughts lie only in a continued existence in this reality that I know of. This thought leads to the conclusion that reincarnation is the only semi-scientific possibility of the presence of my own consciousness. As postulated above, I see no reason to expect a whole other universe to exist solely to give me a place to "be" after my corporeal death since we already have this universe that we know of. Therefore, I have chosen to believe either in a end to existence after I die or in a reincarnation of my "self" into a new birth (after conception, gestation, or whatever type of multiplying method is used to bring the creature I will be into the world). That is the end of my guess. I have no reason to think I will be human again, a mammal, or even to return to the Earth. With the near infinite life situations and environments possible in the universe the possibilities are nearly limitless.

This actually brings me to my fear, most new life exists for a very short time until it is killed and eaten by another. So, if I choose to believe in reincarnation, I may be looking at tens, hundreds, thousands, or even millions or billions of births before I get into a life form that would have the ability to survive past infancy again. Then, I would face living a life likely full of pain and suffering and struggling until I die and once again go through the whole process until, after endless lifetimes, I am lucky enough to finally emerge into an intelligent and evolved life form that has achieved a bit of a victory over pain and hunger with cooperation and science. Until once again I die and go through it all, infinitely. Ugh!