Philosophy: The Meaning of Life

[Unkotare]

An awful lot of people disagree with you on that.

Basing the disagreement on faith, not evidence.

"Evidence" is a plastic term, and scientists are not without faith of their own.

 

[Delta4Embassy]

A thread in the CDZ bombed badly because the OP was determined that 'family' is the answer no matter what the question. I have come to the conclusion that passion is actually the right answer - and not in the tunnel-vision sense, but rather in the "Pleasantville" sense. Whatever you are passionate about, if you follow that passion, that is where you find fulfillment and happiness.

So - the next questions would be:

1) what is your passion, and

2) are you making an effort to fulfill that desire?

In my mind, that leads to my next question. Are you so single-mindedly following that chosen path that you are blind to what else life has to offer?

Only meaning of life is that thanks to gravity, matter crashes itno other matter forming more complex systems like stars, planets, and organic molecules. Over billions of years, every so often organic molecules become living things like human beings, whales, and koala bears. But life existing ultimately is no more remarkable or significant or meaningful than stars and planets existing. Because they can exist, they do exist. It's just the human brain and ego that makes a simple process and statistical probability into something spiritually significant.

When our star enters its red giant phase in 3 or 4 billion years and expands incinerating the Earth, all questions of how meaningful life is will be answered - it isn't. Of course, a big rock like Apophis could take us out in 2029 and answer things much sooner.

 

[syrenn]

A thread in the CDZ bombed badly because the OP was determined that 'family' is the answer no matter what the question. I have come to the conclusion that passion is actually the right answer - and not in the tunnel-vision sense, but rather in the "Pleasantville" sense. Whatever you are passionate about, if you follow that passion, that is where you find fulfillment and happiness.

So - the next questions would be:

1) what is your passion, and

2) are you making an effort to fulfill that desire?

In my mind, that leads to my next question. Are you so single-mindedly following that chosen path that you are blind to what else life has to offer?

Only meaning of life is that thanks to gravity, matter crashes itno other matter forming more complex systems like stars, planets, and organic molecules. Over billions of years, every so often organic molecules become living things like human beings, whales, and koala bears. But life existing ultimately is no more remarkable or significant or meaningful than stars and planets existing. Because they can exist, they do exist. It's just the human brain and ego that makes a simple process and statistical probability into something spiritually significant.

When our star enters its red giant phase in 3 or 4 billion years and expands incinerating the Earth, all questions of how meaningful life is will be answered - it isn't. Of course, a big rock like Apophis could take us out in 2029 and answer things much sooner.

good to know!!

so i guess your crap about the needs of the many out weighing the needs of the few is all just crap......

 

[Delta4Embassy]

"I shaII think of a sharp retort
whiIe I am getting your roast chicken."

"It's a wise man who knows
when to throw in the toweI."

"And it is a moron who gives advice
to a horse's ass."
- "Victor/Victoria"

 

[midcan5]

If I were pressed for an answer, I'd have to say community gives meaning to life. Consider only the dialogue in this thread. All that we are grows out of the community of life, of other people, known or studied or read, nothing important is missing from community, nothing matters outside it. Think about it for a few moments.

 

[Uncensored2008]

A thread in the CDZ bombed badly because the OP was determined that 'family' is the answer no matter what the question. I have come to the conclusion that passion is actually the right answer - and not in the tunnel-vision sense, but rather in the "Pleasantville" sense. Whatever you are passionate about, if you follow that passion, that is where you find fulfillment and happiness.

So - the next questions would be:

1) what is your passion, and

2) are you making an effort to fulfill that desire?

In my mind, that leads to my next question. Are you so single-mindedly following that chosen path that you are blind to what else life has to offer?

A rational debate in the CDZ is not possible due to the moderator of that forum. A debate will flourish more here, where there is no fear of politically motivated reprisal for holding views not popular.

 

[Delta4Embassy]

When explaining science to non-scientists simplifying things is the only way. Besides, if one can't explain his point succinctly and simply he isn't clear on the facts himself.

 

[Uncensored2008]

When explaining science to non-scientists simplifying things is the only way. Besides, if one can't explain his point succinctly and simply he isn't clear on the facts himself.

When explaining science to non-scientists, the first lesson to impart is that science is a process, a methodology for discovery, no a result.

 

[Quantum Windbag]

If I were pressed for an answer, I'd have to say community gives meaning to life. Consider only the dialogue in this thread. All that we are grows out of the community of life, of other people, known or studied or read, nothing important is missing from community, nothing matters outside it. Think about it for a few moments.

Your life is meaningless unless other people exist to validate it?

How sad.

 

[midcan5]

If I were pressed for an answer, I'd have to say community gives meaning to life. Consider only the dialogue in this thread. All that we are grows out of the community of life, of other people, known or studied or read, nothing important is missing from community, nothing matters outside it. Think about it for a few moments.

Your life is meaningless unless other people exist to validate it?

How sad.

Life without other people would not be life. There's is nothing sad about family, friends, and all the various things connected to each. You must not have those things if you really think outside of community you'd be self sufficient. Today our entire family gets together to watch the game, good food wine and beer, and family and friends, what could be better.

"Most interactions with people that you trust, people that you love, or people that just need to cooperate with on an immediate basis, take the form of “From each according to their abilities, to each according to their needs.” It doesn’t matter if you’re working for the government, working for a corporation, or working in your family; if you need to fix the toilet because it’s leaking and you say “Hand me the wrench,” the other guy doesn’t say “What do I get for that?” It’s not an exchange; people act according to their abilities to chip in. Ironically communism is applied because it’s the only thing that works; it’s the most efficient way to allocate resources. Thus I like to say that you could argue that capitalism is just a bad way of organizing communism." David Graeber


"Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control. ¶ Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection." Universal Declaration of Human Rights


"Libertarian solutions favored by the political right have contributed even more directly to the erosion of social responsibilities and valued forms of communal life, particularly in the UK and the US. Far from producing beneficial communal consequences, the invisible hand of unregulated free-market capitalism undermines the family (e.g., few corporations provide enough leave to parents of newborn children), disrupts local communities (e.g., following plant closings or the shifting of corporate headquarters), and corrupts the political process (e.g., US politicians are often dependent on economic interest groups for their political survival, with the consequence that they no longer represent the community at large). Moreover, the valorization of greed in the Thatcher/Reagan era justified the extension of instrumental considerations governing relationships in the marketplace into spheres previously informed by a sense of uncalculated reciprocity and civil obligation. This trend has been reinforced by increasing globalization, which pressures states into conforming to the dictates of the international marketplace." Daniel Bell in Communitarianism (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)

 

[editec]

Whatever you are passionate about, if you follow that passion, that is where you find fulfillment and happiness.

Don't we all wish such sappy sentiments were actually true?

I know I do.

But then I ask myself...

What if your passion is to torture kittens or bugger little children?

There is no single all purpose formula for a happy life.

We are not all the same, we do not have all the same choices.

NO offence but I just truly do get sick of these idiotic platitudes that are just wrong.

 

[Book of Jeremiah]

The best philosophical answer I've ever read concerning the meaning of life is by Victor Frankyl titled, Mans search for meaning. He was a prisoner in one of Hitlers' death camps and it was the experiences of his imprisonment and suffering that he encounters the truth meaning of life. For him.

There is no wrong or right answer to the question because it is posed to the individual. imo. For one person the word family might fit for another person that word might be something else which is where I believe the original blogger made their mistake. They want to answer family for everyone which obviously was a huge mistake. Same goes for the atheist who demands God be left out of the question in order to accomodate their angst over the mere mention of Gods name. Neither person is considering the individuality which God gave each and every one of us. The answer is as unique as a snowflake to each individual alive. imo.

My answer? The meaning of life is to know God. To have a relationship with my creator. That is where my passion lies. If you find a persons passion you'll find what gives meaning to their life because passion is the key - without passion there is only works and to me that is a very mundane existence. I bore easily. Without God there wouldn't be any meaning to my life. I would recommend reading Mans search for Meaning by Victor Frankyl to anyone questioning such things. His book is a masterpiece.

- Jeremiah

 

[Book of Jeremiah]

Whatever you are passionate about, if you follow that passion, that is where you find fulfillment and happiness.

Don't we all wish such sappy sentiments were actually true?

I know I do.

But then I ask myself...

What if your passion is to torture kittens or bugger little children?

There is no single all purpose formula for a happy life.

We are not all the same, we do not have all the same choices.

NO offence but I just truly do get sick of these idiotic platitudes that are just wrong.

Obviously not every passion leads to fulfillment and some will lead to a persons destruction. So what you've said is true. Which leads me to something which led me to choosing to live my life for God many years ago. What I did, Editec, was to say to live for Christ and to die for Christ promises the same reward. Nothing else will. Paul said for him to die was to gain Christ. Why? Because he lived for Christ now. So therein was his passion, purpose and meaning to life.

So let's do a word game and use a different word. To live for money and expensive baubles - to live lavishly - to die is to gain money, expensive baubles and live lavishly? No. It is over. You cannot take money, material goods, your flesh with you when you die. So for that person it is over. He or she got whatever they got here and lost it all the moment they left this earth. To the one who lived for his business, his work, his own happiness... when he dies? He cannot take the business, the work or his happiness... he died but didn't gain Christ. To live for Christ - can do - to die and gain Christ - can do - it is up to us to define what is most important.

It is a free will choice but ultimately the greatest meaning in life must transcend this dimension and go on to the next - heaven - so Christ is the only One who can do that for me. There is nothing on this earth I can take with me. Except Christ who lives in me today. - Jeremiah

 

[Delta4Embassy]

My only meaning of life is this: be an asset every day, not a liability. I like imagining my neighbors say of me, "He's just a really nice guy." That's all I hope for. If your ego requires you to overcomplicate something simple like that then you need to do some soul-searching and figure out what you really value in life, and whether it's something you're overvalueing or not.

 

[midcan5]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YubSGNk67zU]The Meaning of Life discussed at a Arkansas Society of Freethinkers Meeting - YouTube[/ame]