2006-08-22 00:33:54 · 16 answers · asked by markmcarthy 1 in Social Science ➔ Psychology
"What is the meaning of life?" is a question many people ask themselves at some point during their lives. Some people believe that the meaning of life is one or more of the following:
Survival and temporal success
* ...to accumulate wealth and increase social status
* ...to compete or co-operate with others
* ...to destroy others who harm you, or to practice nonviolence and nonresistance
* ...to die having succeeded in your purpose
* ...to live
* ...to protect one's family
* ...to gain and exercise power
* ...to leave a legacy, such as a work of art or a book
* ...to produce offspring through sexual reproduction or asexual reproduction
* ...to seek freedom, either physically, mentally or financially
* ...to seek happiness and flourish, experience pleasure or celebrate
* ...to survive, including the pursuit of immortality through scientific means (see life extension)
Wisdom and knowledge
* ...to be without question, or to keep asking questions
* ...to explore, to expand beyond our frontiers
* ...to learn from one's own and others' mistakes
* ...to seek truth, knowledge, understanding, or wisdom
* ...to try to discover and understand the meaning of life
* ...to expand one's perception of the world
Ethical
* ...to express compassion
* ...to live in peace with each other, and in harmony with our natural environment (see utopia)
* ...to give and receive love
* ...to seek and acquire virtue, to live a virtuous life
* ...to serve others, or do good deeds
* ...to work for justice and democracy
Religious, spiritual and esoteric
* ...to turn fear into joy at a constant rate achieving on literal and metaphorical levels: immortality, enlightenment and atonement
* ...to achieve a supernatural connection within the natural context
* ...to achieve enlightenment and inner peace
* ...to become God, or God-like
* ...to experience existence from an infinite number of perspectives in order to expand the consciousness of all there is (i.e. God)
* ...to follow the "Golden Rule"
* ...to produce useful structure in the universe over and above consumption (see net creativity)
* ...to reach Heaven in the afterlife
* ...to understand and follow the "Word of God"
* ...to worship, serve, or achieve union with God
Other
* ...to advance natural human evolution, or to contribute to the gene pool of the human race
* ...to advance technological evolution, or to actively develop the future human
* ...to contribute to collective meaning ("we" or "us") without having individual meaning ("I" or "me")
* ...to die, or become a martyr
* ...to find a purpose, a "reason" for living that hopefully raises the quality of one's experience of life, or even life in general
* ...to live, and enjoy the passage of time
* ...to have fun
* ...to protect humanity, or more generally the environment
* ...to pursue a dream, vision, or destiny
* ...to relate, connect, or achieve unity with others
* ...to seek and find beauty
* ...to simply live until one dies (there is no universal or celestial purpose)
* ...to participate in the chain events which has led from the creation of the universe until its possible end (either freely chosen or determined, this is a subject widely debated amongst philosophers)
* ...still some do not even think there is any purpose whatsoever (see nihilism)
* ...(This is actually an extension of the point immediately above) There is no inherent meaning to life, existence, the universe, etc. They exist because they can. However, humans appear to inately give meaning, usually many, often conflicting, to what they are conscious of. So, to each individual, the "meaning of life" is whatever they decide it is. In that sense, every point above is potentially valid.
2006-08-22 13:17:01 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Meaning of life.. Wow well, I guess I can answer this question only for myself because many people have a different reason why they are living on this earth. Take for instance the little 4 or 6 year old girl that survived after her whole family was killed in a freak accident on a highway in queens, ny. Theres a REASON why that little girl lived. Theres a reason why we are all here, the meaning of life *YOUR* life is what you make of it
2006-08-22 07:56:30 · answer #2 · answered by pretty_lesbiian 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The meaning of life is the question "why". Find the answer to that, and there is no meaning, for you will have no reason to live.
2006-08-22 09:09:52 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The meaning of life is a living source of all living things and this is what the lord gave us.
2006-08-22 07:52:54 · answer #4 · answered by Darky 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This question was asked a while ago... I answered...
I said something to the effect...
"The answer to this question is so personal that it's highly unlikely that my answer will match very many other people's..."
To me, the meaning of life is deeply spiritual/religious. There are a lot of facets to my meaning in life- gaining knowledge and wisdom, faith, love....
2006-08-22 14:07:19 · answer #5 · answered by Yoda's Duck 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
42
2006-08-22 07:47:58 · answer #6 · answered by brighty642002 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
To make the world a better experience for others through compassion and love.
2006-08-22 09:13:50 · answer #7 · answered by Texanole 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
To gain knowledge and promote goodness and help others selflessly and enjoy with causing harm to anyone including yourself ;o).
2006-08-22 07:56:46 · answer #8 · answered by Finally Creamed 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
"Life" itself has no meaning...life just "is"...the challenge is to live a "meaningful" life...for me, this is revealed in God's Word, the Bible.
2006-08-22 09:10:52 · answer #9 · answered by just me 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
"The only sin is to hurt another and the meaning of life is love." -Valerie Solanis
2006-08-22 11:41:49 · answer #10 · answered by Jenifer S 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My all time favourite Monty Python movie. A must see for everyone....
2006-08-22 07:46:17 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋