R.I.P. is wrong!!

[rickymooston]

Atheists are sometimes pathetically unimaginative in my based opinion ... 


Rest in Peace assumes an after life. The phrase is meaningless if you disbelieve.

I'm interested in tasteful alternatives.

"help the worms grow" isn't my definition of tasteful.

M.L.O - May his/her memory live on his my suggestion.

[kevinagain]

"entropy wins?"

[rickymooston]

"entropy wins?"

That's accurate but not very comforting. 

 

[lotanddaughters]

That's funny. I pretty much argued the opposite a while back.

<snip>

[rickymooston]

That's funny. I pretty much argued the opposite a while back.

But the thing is, your RIP is a tautology. There is no way a dead person could not be "in peace".

For the record, rest in peace is just short for "may he ...", isn't it?

IBA - might be an interesting one too. Its at least a polite form of feed the worms. "It begins again".

[lotanddaughters]

That's funny. I pretty much argued the opposite a while back.

But the thing is, your RIP is a tautology. There is no way a dead person could not be "in peace".

For the record, rest in peace is just short for "may he ...", isn't it?

Yeah, I was pretty much joking on that OP.

IBA - might be an interesting one too. Its at least a polite form of feed the worms. "It begins again".

That one ain't too bad. It beats "Feed The Worms". Even if someone requested "F.T.W." on their tombstone, many people might think it stands for "For The Win". 

[wright]

Interesting. Assuming the deceased left no specific request for an epitaph, there are many nonreligious options. Such as...

accomplishments / roles:

(name of deceased)
(DoB, DoD)
Brother
Uncle
Poet
Storyteller

Or for someone with strong ties to where they died:

(name of deceased)
DoB, DoD
California Son

I like such individualized epitaphs; that's my prejudice. For myself, I specify nothing in my will but cremation and internment in a specific spot.

[One Above All]

I like such individualized epitaphs; that's my prejudice. For myself, I specify nothing in my will but cremation and scattering in a specific spot.

This. I love fire (no, I do not set things on fire for shits and giggles) and, after my body is a pile of ashes, I want to be used as fertilizer (not kidding).

EDIT: To answer the OP: I always saw it more as a "respect for the dead('s bodies)" sort of thing. However, your post is nothing new to me.

[Traveler]

For the grieving: I'm sorry for your loss.

For the dead person: Who cares? They're dead. We cremated my dad (at his request). His ashes are scattered in a variety of places including the Grand Canyon, my brother's back yard, and other places. Spreading his ashes was for us. Dad doesn't care. He's dead. No headstone, no taking up space on the planet that could be better taken up by planting a tree or a rose bush.

[mrbiscoop]

  While we're at it let's get rid of many other colloquialisms also. Let's only use words and phrases that are literally exact.

[kevinagain]

i've asked my wife to hang me in a tree for the crows, but she tells me i won't have anything to say in the matter.

sometime next summer i'll take the kids down to the creek and we'll pick out a rock that i can grind my initials into. that's all that will be there.

[thunderridge]

How about...........  Thanks For The Memories

[Timo]

I'm not sure what the problem is supposed to be here.  As I'm fond of telling people, in Spanish, there is a phrase "ojala que" which translates to something like "I hope that...."  But literally, it comes from an Arabic phrase meaning "may Allah will that...."  I'm not sure that anyone so much cares that the expression originates from a time when the Muslims ruled portions of the Iberian Peninsula.  It's just an expression.

Similarly, I'm not sure that it should be so surprising that there are colloquialisms in English that reflect the fact that English has long been a language of some god believing folks.  I'm sure I'm not the only atheist that still uses phrases like "oh my God," "God knows" and especially "God damn it."

So people say "rest in peace."  Who really cares?  I've got five percenter homies that say "rest in power."  It's all whatever.  The dead are dead.  In any case, I always end my shit the same way:


Peace

[Iamrational]

D.A.G- Dead and gone. Now let's move on family. Who brought the beer?

[ButterFlavoredPam]

i've asked my wife to hang me in a tree for the crows, but she tells me i won't have anything to say in the matter.

sometime next summer i'll take the kids down to the creek and we'll pick out a rock that i can grind my initials into. that's all that will be there.

I read somewhere of a culture that buries their dead and plants a tree directly over the grave so that the decomposing body will help fertilize the tree.

Would that be legal today?

[kevinagain]

where i live there are various codes that dictate whether you can drop a body in the ground. sometimes the issue is that with all the dental fillings and embalming chemicals it's legally hazardous waste, even after you burn it up.

but i believe around here that you can bury somebody legally on your own property without too much hassle, so long as there is a valid death certificate.

[violatedsmurf80]

Could I just get a simple sky burial no tombstone no nothing....

[fishjie]

don't see what's wrong with RIP.

death is just a permanent sleep with no dreaming involved.   

[Historicity]

I read somewhere of a culture that buries their dead and plants a tree directly over the grave so that the decomposing body will help fertilize the tree.

Sweden.  You can find that in a book called Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers.  The body is freeze dried and ultrasonically shattered.

[Historicity]

I recall a book on epitaphs and a 19th century atheist had "A DREAMLESS SLEEP".

[jsmacks]

don't see what's wrong with RIP.

death is just a permanent sleep with no dreaming involved.

Agreed.

And if someone assuming that there is an afterlife, a much better saying would be "Happy next life".


It really doesn't matter though, R.I.P. is just a culturally nice thing to say that probably even helps comfort grieving people.

I really think anyways funerals are more important for the living than the dead.  It is basically a time to remember the life of a loved one and get a chance to see the body and bond with living people who are also connected with the deceased loved one.