Do you think life has a bigger meaning?

[Anonymous]

What do you think is the purpose behind life.

[zeitgeist057]

No, I don't. I was listening to a Sam Harris Podcast the other night: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/68-reality-imagination

The guest mentioned that humans have "a need for stories". We want to have a reason, we need a narrative. You see this throughout history with all the mythology. People create gods in order to give life meaning, to make sense out of chaos, to bring order and comfort themselves. But I don't think this means any of it is real. It's just comforting imaginative tales we tell ourselves so that we feel like we understand.

I think it's much more noble to admit you know nothing. That you cannot possibly know, and that a human mind in all probability can't even comprehend the information that is out there in the universe to be understood. It's braver to simply face the unknown and unknowable, and accept it.

But that's not human nature, and it's cool. Our desire to understand has led to a lot of really great achievements for us.

It also doesn't mean that your life has to be meaningless. Mine isn't. I give life my own meaning. I choose it. I decide. But I am under no illusions that my choices are in some way "The Ultimate Undeniable TRUTH". They are just the things in life that I care about. This is the downfall I see in many (often religious) people: they are completely convinced that their version of reality (their illusions) are NOT illusions, but rather "The Ultimate Undeniable TRUTH". Oh, and I would include atheists in that "religious" category; their religion is simply no god instead of one god or many gods.

So yes, my life has meaning, but not some objective "bigger meaning". Our whole planet could implode and the rest of the universe would not shed a tear or give a single care. We would just cease to exist and the rest of the universe would keep expanding along. The entire solar system, for that matter, could blink out of existence. All the meaning and caring we do only matters to us, to other humans. It's not important to anything else. Which is why the human imagination creates gods or other supernatural explanations: to make us important to something eternal, which comforts us that we really do matter, instead of accepting that we don't.

[CatVader]

Yes absolutely; life has a bigger meaning.
We may be top tier animals on this planet. However we are very limited in terms of universal principles and acknowledgement. So exactly knowing what that meaning is, is hard to pinpoint religiously.
Due to private experiences with Spirit and God I do believe in Jesus and God. It took a long row of years to arrive at that. I have considered many different religions and philosophies and taken what ideas i found to be genuinely universally good, In the end though I still find some major flaws with being human, we have a natural tendency to be never truly good never truly evil, but always sway in between those 2 extremes.

So I can't truly answer what the meaning of life is, though the bible and other philosophies do give me some guidance, which has been of great help to me.

[whistlingwh0res]

I think life is just hanging around.. most Europeans believe that. I am Asian but I think the same. Although having fun is important. If you believe Jesus pay our debt it won’t hurt to have some fun?

[Anonymous]

Used to but as I get older it is just a cycle of. living dying giving our places over to the next generations!

Nothing changed but how long we live from the 1800s

[AmeerX]

Why do you feel this way? We have a superior purpose. If you don't have a purpose except that then rest assured you should change your place because I think you have developed a comfort zone

[Opinion Owner]

@AmeerX purpose? What new job?
Led inspector electronics maker?

Still factory jobs making stuff to sell to others has not changed much besides what is being made or sold or repaired

[AmeerX]

Like I said, please take a break from what you do and do go somewhere different. Away from your city

[imran_]

As we understand, a created object cannot determine its own purpose. To illustrate this, let's consider a water bottle. This water bottle was designed and manufactured by someone, and that creator assigned a specific purpose for it, which is to carry water. Can the water bottle independently decide to transport a person from one place to another? No, it cannot. Created things do not possess the ability to assign their own purpose.

Now, take a moment to contemplate your own existence. Are you a created being? Certainly, if something comes into existence, it has a purpose. You are created, which means you have a purpose, and I assert that it is God who created you. Thus, it is God who determines your purpose.

Now, it's essential to reflect on and discover the true God and the purpose assigned to you by that God. In the world, we encounter various belief systems, each with its concept of God. Not all of them can be simultaneously true because they have fundamental differences. We recognize that Islam and Christianity boast the largest followings, and they, too, have distinctive beliefs. Therefore, both cannot be true at the same time. It is imperative to delve into these matters for a deeper understanding.

In Islam, the core belief centers around pure monotheism. God is perceived as perfect, all powerful, all knowledgeable, singular, and non-human. God possesses no weaknesses, does not experience mortality, and does not require sustenance through consumption. Additionally, God is believed to be infallible and never forgetful.

Conversely, in Christianity, one may encounter descriptions of God that include attributes traditionally viewed as weaknesses. These differences in attributes raise questions about whether such a depiction aligns with the concept of God.

In Islam, the concept of purpose is elucidated in the Qur'an. It asserts that the primary purpose of human existence is to worship, obey, and adhere to God. This serves as a test of one's devotion, as God grants free will, allowing individuals to choose whether they will follow Him or not.

Ultimately, the purpose of existence, as outlined in Islam, revolves around devotion and obedience to God. This concept is neither overly complex nor excessively demanding but serves as a test of an individual's commitment to their faith.

[Raaj4you]

God is the creator, protector and destroyer of the universe/ galaxies. We humans are predestined and we are just god's puppets. We think we can control our destiny/ life. But no our destiny is in god's control. More or less, everyone who is born has some purpose in life or tasks assigned by God.

[OddBeMe]

Purpose implies an intelligence behind the universe. Science has shown intelligent life isn’t needed for at least up to the Planck Time where time starts seconds after the Big Bang.

But we humans can give it purpose. I would say it’s leaving my area better than when I entered it.

[Jersey2]

It either has meaning or it doesn’t. If it does then everything matters. If it doesn’t then nothing matters.

If there is an afterlife then it all matters. If not, it won’t matter what you do, who you love, how much you love and are loved, your accomplishments, your family… nothing will matter, not even you being born or not or the world existing or not.

I truly believe it does matter. If I am wrong, it won’t matter anyway.

[jshm2]

The purpose of life is to live it, not suffer it, like mere animals have to.

[AnusNdaPainus]

Life is about people, Do what you can whenever you’re able

as for purpose

that’s for you to decide

[BarryLiverstone]

God gifts us life to love each other and serve Him. He’s got a bigger plan and we are free to follow Him.

[Marklaw12]

It always does. Just never take your life before it's actual end. People struggling think it's easier to off themselves.

"There's darkness through the tunnel but there's always light at the end of it"

[Kaamraj]

No life has to greater meaning than to pass our genes to the next generation and ensure the survival of the species from a biological point of view.

[HaveNoName]

Answer depends on your belief system so it is pointless to comment.

[HaveNoName]

If an inpunished serial rapist and a loyal family man die the same death and live the same lifestyle and have the same job and get the same rewards in life, where is the justice?

[Lara_Croft]

To fear God and keep his commandments Ecclesiastes 12 vs 13

[strateguy632]

yes we each have a personal purpose for using our abilities in this time when we are living

[DextroShade]

Our reality is either purposeless or was created as a sort of game by a capricious God/game dev. Either way it means we get to define our own meaning and purpose.

[AmeerX]

You can bet it has a bigger meaning. It's to defeat our lust and urges and fight against evil inside us and out in the world.

[KrakenAttackin]

Meaning of life is different for different people. For most people survival is the key meaning, with contemplation of anything further being a luxury.

[JimmyjamesB]

Life does have a bigger meaning life is all about. Love. It's not about material objects and stuff like that is about making connections.
Love is a one thing in life that is real

[OfDeath]

If you want the answer to this, go and watch Monty Python's The Meaning of Life.

[Taylor_C]

I don't think there is any purpose at all.

[Friendlybro79]

The purpose behind life is to live

[collie22]

I believe God is seeing what choice we make