For other uses, see Immortal (disambiguation).

Immortality is eternal life, the ability to live forever.[2] At least one species has potential biological immortality: Turritopsis dohrnii.[3]

Certain scientists, futurists, and philosophers have theorized about the immortality of the human body (either through an immortal cell line researched or else deeper contextual understanding in advanced fields that have certain scope in the proposed long term reality that can be attained such as per mentioned in the reading of an article or scientific documentation of such a proposed idea would lead to), and advocate that human immortality is achievable in the first few decades of the 21st century, whereas other advocates believe that life extension is a more achievable goal in the short term, with immortality awaiting further research breakthroughs into an indefinite future. The absence of aging would provide humans with biological immortality, but not invulnerability to death by physical trauma; although mind uploading could solve that issue if it proved possible. Whether the process of internal endoimmortality would be delivered within the upcoming years depends chiefly on research (and in neuron research in the case of endoimmortality through an immortalized cell line) in the former view and perhaps is an awaited goal in the latter case.[4]

In religious contexts, immortality is often stated to be one of the promises of God (or other deities) to human beings who show goodness or else follow divine law. What form an unending human life would take, or whether an immaterial soul exists and possesses immortality, has been a major point of focus of religion, as well as the subject of speculation, fantasy, and debate.






See also: Soul



Main article: Alchemy

Physical immortality


Causes of death

Main article: Death

There are three main causes of death: aging, disease and physical trauma.[6] Such issues can be resolved with the solutions provided in research to any end providing such alternate theories at present that require unification.




Disease is theoretically surmountable via technology. In short, it is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism, something the body shouldn't typically have to deal with its natural make up.[9] Human understanding of genetics is leading to cures and treatments for myriad previously incurable diseases. The mechanisms by which other diseases do their damage are becoming better understood. Sophisticated methods of detecting diseases early are being developed. Preventative medicine is becoming better understood. Neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's may soon be curable with the use of stem cells. Breakthroughs in cell biology and telomere research are leading to treatments for cancer. Vaccines are being researched for AIDS and tuberculosis. Genes associated with type 1 diabetes and certain types of cancer have been discovered, allowing for new therapies to be developed. Artificial devices attached directly to the nervous system may restore sight to the blind. Drugs are being developed to treat a myriad of other diseases and ailments.



Environmental change



Biological immortality

Human chromosomes (grey) capped by telomeres (white)



Biologically immortal species


Evolution of aging

Main article: Evolution of aging

As the existence of biologically immortal species demonstrates, there is no thermodynamic necessity for senescence: a defining feature of life is that it takes in free energy from the environment and unloads its entropy as waste. Living systems can even build themselves up from seed, and routinely repair themselves. Aging is therefore presumed to be a byproduct of evolution, but why mortality should be selected for remains a subject of research and debate. Programmed cell death and the telomere "end replication problem" are found even in the earliest and simplest of organisms.[16] This may be a tradeoff between selecting for cancer and selecting for aging.[17]

Modern theories on the evolution of aging include the following:

Prospects for human biological immortality

Life-extending substances

There are some known naturally occurring and artificially produced chemicals that may increase the lifetime or life-expectancy of a person or organism, such as resveratrol.[20][21]

Some scientists believe that boosting the amount or proportion of telomerase in the body, a naturally forming enzyme that helps maintain the protective caps at the ends of chromosomes,[22] could prevent cells from dying and so may ultimately lead to extended, healthier lifespans. A team of researchers at the Spanish National Cancer Centre (Madrid) tested the hypothesis on mice. It was found that those mice which were genetically engineered to produce 10 times the normal levels of telomerase lived 50% longer than normal mice.[23]



Technological immortality, biological machines, and "swallowing the doctor"

Main article: Transhumanism



Main article: Cryonics

Cryonics, the practice of preserving organisms (either intact specimens or only their brains) for possible future revival by storing them at cryogenic temperatures where metabolism and decay are almost completely stopped, can be used to 'pause' for those who believe that life extension technologies will not develop sufficiently within their lifetime. Ideally, cryonics would allow clinically dead people to be brought back in the future after cures to the patients' diseases have been discovered and aging is reversible. Modern cryonics procedures use a process called vitrification which creates a glass-like state rather than freezing as the body is brought to low temperatures. This process reduces the risk of ice crystals damaging the cell-structure, which would be especially detrimental to cell structures in the brain, as their minute adjustment evokes the individual's mind.

Mind-to-computer uploading

Main article: Mind uploading

One idea that has been advanced involves uploading an individual's habits and memories via direct mind-computer interface. The individual's memory may be loaded to a computer or to a new organic body. Extropian futurists like Moravec and Kurzweil have proposed that, thanks to exponentially growing computing power, it will someday be possible to upload human consciousness onto a computer system, and exist indefinitely in a virtual environment. This could be accomplished via advanced cybernetics, where computer hardware would initially be installed in the brain to help sort memory or accelerate thought processes. Components would be added gradually until the person's entire brain functions were handled by artificial devices, avoiding sharp transitions that would lead to issues of identity, thus running the risk of the person to be declared dead and thus not be a legitimate owner of his or her property. After this point, the human body could be treated as an optional accessory and the program implementing the person could be transferred to any sufficiently powerful computer. Another possible mechanism for mind upload is to perform a detailed scan of an individual's original, organic brain and simulate the entire structure in a computer. What level of detail such scans and simulations would need to achieve to emulate awareness, and whether the scanning process would destroy the brain, is still to be determined.[27] Whatever the route to mind upload, persons in this state could then be considered essentially immortal, short of loss or traumatic destruction of the machines that maintained them.


Main article: Cyborg


Evolutionary immortality


Another approach, developed by biogerontologist Marios Kyriazis, holds that human biological immortality is an inevitable consequence of evolution. As the natural tendency is to create progressively more complex structures,[28] there will be a time (Kyriazis claims this time is now[29]), when evolution of a more complex human brain will be faster via a process of developmental singularity[30] rather than through Darwinian evolution. In other words, the evolution of the human brain as we know it will cease and there will be no need for individuals to procreate and then die. Instead, a new type of development will take over, in the same individual who will have to live for many centuries in order for the development to take place. This intellectual development will be facilitated by technology such as synthetic biology, artificial intelligence and a technological singularity process.

Religious views

Main articles: Afterlife and Soul

As late as 1952, the editorial staff of the Syntopicon found in their compilation of the Great Books of the Western World, that "The philosophical issue concerning immortality cannot be separated from issues concerning the existence and nature of man's soul."[31] Thus, the vast majority of speculation regarding immortality before the 21st century was regarding the nature of the afterlife.

Ancient Greek religion









N.T. Wright, a theologian and former Bishop of Durham, has said many people forget the physical aspect of what Jesus promised. He told Time: "Jesus' resurrection marks the beginning of a restoration that he will complete upon his return. Part of this will be the resurrection of all the dead, who will 'awake', be embodied and participate in the renewal. Wright says John Polkinghorne, a physicist and a priest, has put it this way: 'God will download our software onto his hardware until the time he gives us new hardware to run the software again for ourselves.' That gets to two things nicely: that the period after death (the Intermediate state) is a period when we are in God's presence but not active in our own bodies, and also that the more important transformation will be when we are again embodied and administering Christ's kingdom."[33] This kingdom will consist of Heaven and Earth "joined together in a new creation", he said.






That man indeed whom these (contacts)
do not disturb, who is even-minded in
pleasure and pain, steadfast, he is fit
for immortality, O best of men


An Indian Tamil saint known as Vallalar claimed to have achieved immortality before disappearing forever from a locked room in 1874.[35][36]




The only Hebrew word traditionally translated "soul" (nephesh) in English language Bibles refers to a living, breathing conscious body, rather than to an immortal soul.[37] In the New Testament, the Greek word traditionally translated "soul" (ψυχή) has substantially the same meaning as the Hebrew, without reference to an immortal soul.[38] ‘Soul’ may refer to the whole person, the self: ‘three thousand souls’ were converted in Acts 2:41 (see Acts 3:23).


The views about immortality in Judaism is perhaps best exemplified by the various references to this in Second Temple Period. The concept of resurrection of the physical body is found in 2 Maccabees, according to which it will happen through recreation of the flesh.[39] Resurrection of the dead also appears in detail in the extra-canonical books of Enoch,[40] and in Apocalypse of Baruch.[41] According to the British scholar in ancient Judaism Philip R. Davies, there is “little or no clear reference … either to immortality or to resurrection from the dead” in the Dead Sea scrolls texts.[42] Both Josephus and the New Testament record that the Sadducees did not believe in an afterlife,[43] but the sources vary on the beliefs of the Pharisees. The New Testament claims that the Pharisees believed in the resurrection, but does not specify whether this included the flesh or not.[44] According to Josephus, who himself was a Pharisee, the Pharisees held that only the soul was immortal and the souls of good people will be reincarnated and “pass into other bodies,” while “the souls of the wicked will suffer eternal punishment.” [45] Jubilees seems to refer to the resurrection of the soul only, or to a more general idea of an immortal soul.[46]



It is repeatedly stated in Lüshi Chunqiu that death is unavoidable.[47] Henri Maspero noted that many scholarly works frame Taoism as a school of thought focused on the quest for immortality.[48] Isabelle Robinet asserts that Taoism is better understood as a way of life than as a religion, and that its adherents do not approach or view Taoism the way non-Taoist historians have done.[49] In the Tractate of Actions and their Retributions, a traditional teaching, spiritual immortality can be rewarded to people who do a certain amount of good deeds and live a simple, pure life. A list of good deeds and sins are tallied to determine whether or not a mortal is worthy. Spiritual immortality in this definition allows the soul to leave the earthly realms of afterlife and go to pure realms in the Taoist cosmology.[50]


Zoroastrians believe that on the fourth day after death, the human soul leaves the body and the body remains as an empty shell. Souls would go to either heaven or hell; these concepts of the afterlife in Zoroastrianism may have influenced Abrahamic religions. The Persian word for "immortal" is associated with the month "Amurdad", meaning "deathless" in Persian, in the Iranian calendar (near the end of July). The month of Amurdad or Ameretat is celebrated in Persian culture as ancient Persians believed the "Angel of Immortality" won over the "Angel of Death" in this month.[51]

Ethics of immortality



Undesirability of immortality

Physical immortality has also been imagined as a form of eternal torment, as in Mary Shelley's short story "The Mortal Immortal", the protagonist of which witnesses everyone he cares about dying around him. Jorge Luis Borges explored the idea that life gets its meaning from death in the short story "The Immortal"; an entire society having achieved immortality, they found time becoming infinite, and so found no motivation for any action. In his book "Thursday's Fictions", and the stage and film adaptations of it, Richard James Allen tells the story of a woman named Thursday who tries to cheat the cycle of reincarnation to get a form of eternal life. At the end of this fantastical tale, her son, Wednesday, who has witnessed the havoc his mother's quest has caused, forgoes the opportunity for immortality when it is offered to him.[52] Likewise, the novel Tuck Everlasting depicts immortality as "falling off the wheel of life" and is viewed as a curse as opposed to a blessing. In the anime Casshern Sins humanity achieves immortality due to advances in medical technology, however the inability of the human race to die causes Luna, a Messianic figure, to come forth and offer normal lifespans because she had believed that without death, humans could not live. Ultimately, Casshern takes up the cause of death for humanity when Luna begins to restore humanity's immortality. In Anne Rice's book series "The Vampire Chronicles", vampires are portrayed as immortal and ageless, but their inability to cope with the changes in the world around them means that few vampires live for much more than a century, and those who do often view their changeless form as a curse.




The ankh



Immortal species abound in fiction, especially in fantasy literature.

See also


  1. Marshall Fredericks (2003). "GCVM History and Mission". Greater Cleveland Veteran's Memorial, Inc. Retrieved 2009-01-14.
  2. "immortality: definition of immortality in Oxford dictionary (American English) (US)". Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 Gilbert, Scott F. (2006). "Cheating Death: The Immortal Life Cycle of Turritopsis". Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  4. Hentrich, Michael (September 2015). "Artificial Neural Command Theory(American English) (US)". Retrieved 11 May 2016.
  6. Hayflick, L (2007). "Biological Aging is No Longer an Unsolved Problem" (PDF). Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. doi:10.1196/annals.1395.001.
  7. 1 2 Joel Garreau (October 31, 2007). "The Invincible Man". The Washington Post: C01.
  9. "Classification of diseases functioning and disability".
  10. Walker, Peter (1991). International Search and Rescue Teams, A League Discussion Paper. Geneva: League of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
  11. Lin Kah Wai (18 April 2004). "Telomeres, Telomerase, and Tumorigenesis -- A Review". MedGenMed. 6 (3): 19. PMC 1435592Freely accessible. PMID 15520642.
  12. "Aging and Death in an Organism That Reproduces by Morphologically Symmetric Division" (PDF).
  13. "Bacteria Death Reduces Human Hopes of Immortality". New Scientist magazine, issue 2485, page 19. February 5, 2005. Retrieved 2007-04-02.
  14. "'Immortal' jellyfish swarming across the world". London: Telegraph Media Group. January 30, 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-14.
  15. Gilberson, Lance, Zoology Lab Manual, 4th edition. Primis Custom Publishing. 1999.
  16. Clark, W.R. 1999. A Means to an End: The biological basis of aging and death. New York: Oxford University Press. About telomeres and programmed cell death.
  18. Williams, G.C. 1957. Pleiotropy, natural selection and the evolution of senescence. Evolution, 11:398-411. Paper in which Williams describes his theory of antagonistic pleiotropy.
  19. Kirkwood, T.B.L. 1977. Evolution of aging. Nature, 270: 301-304. Origin of the disposable soma theory.
  20. "Resveratrol may increase life span". Retrieved 2010-11-04.
  21. ":: compound resveratrol may turn off a protein that guards cancer cells from cancer-fighting therapies". 2009-07-13. Retrieved 2010-11-04.
  22. MacRae, Fiona (November 20, 2008). "Scientists are a step closer to creating 'elixir of life'". Daily Mail. London.
  23. Alleyne, Richard (November 20, 2008). "Scientists take a step closer to an elixir of youth". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
  29. "retrieved 23 October 2010". Retrieved 2010-11-04.
  30. "retrieved 23 October 2010". Retrieved 2010-11-04.
  31. Adler, Mortimer J., ed.; et al. (1952). The Great Ideas: A Syntopicon of Great Books of the Western World. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica. p. 788.
  33. Van Biema, David (February 7, 2008). "Christians Wrong About Heaven, Says Bishop ". Time. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
  35. "". 2010-07-07. Retrieved 2010-11-04.
  36. Adam Schroeder. In the Fabled East: A Novel. D & M Publishers. p. 174.
  38. . In the nt, ‘soul’ retains its basic Hebrew field of meaning. Soul refers to one’s life: Herod sought Jesus’ soul (Matt. 2:20); one might save a soul or take it (Mark 3:4). Death occurs when God ‘requires your soul’ (Luke 12:20). Missing or empty |title= (help)
  39. 2 Maccabees 7.11, 7.28.
  40. 1 Enoch 61.5, 61.2.
  41. 2 Baruch 50.2, 51.5
  44. Acta 23.8.
  45. Josephus Jewish War 2.8.14; cf. Antiquities 8.14-15.
  46. Jubilees 23.31
  47. Creel, Herrlee G. (1982). What is Taoism? : and other studies in Chinese cultural history. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. p. 17. ISBN 0226120473.
  50. Translated by Legge, James. The Texts of Taoism. 1962, Dover Press. NY.
  51. Hoshang, Dr. Bhadha.
  52. "Thursday's Fictions - Richard James Allen - Poems by book - Australian Poetry Library". Retrieved 20 April 2015. horizontal tab character in |title= at position 46 (help)
  53. "Scientists' Open Letter on Aging". Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  54. "A Single-Issue Political Party for Longevity Science". Fight Aging!. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
  55. Wilson, Ralph F. "Peacock as an Ancient Christian Symbol of Eternal Life". Jesus Walk Bible Study Series. Retrieved January 18, 2011.

Further reading

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Religious and spiritual prospects for immortality

In literature
