If it isn't possible to surmise what the meaning of life is not, is the meaning of life all things, if there is in fact any meaning to life at all?
Basically, what is 'not' the meaning of life?
2006-10-15 16:20:53 · 17 answers · asked by Anonymous in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
Don't tell me what the meaning of life 'is', tell me what it's 'not'.
2006-10-15 17:02:01 · update #1
"What is the meaning of life?" is a question many people ask themselves at some point during their lives, most in the context "What is the purpose of life?" Here are some of the many potential answers to this perplexing question:
Survival and temporal success
* ...to accumulate wealth and increase social status
* ...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 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 gain and exercise power
* ...to leave a legacy, such as a work of art or a book
* ...to live
* ...to produce offspring through sexual reproduction or asexual reproduction
* ...to protect one's family
* ...to pursue a dream, vision, or destiny
* ...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)
* ...to complete your list of life goals
* ...to find something to believe
Wisdom and knowledge
* ...to be without question, or to keep asking questions
* ...to find out the meaning of life
* ...to expand one's perception of the world
* ...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 understand creation
Ethical
* ...to achieve a supernatural connection within the natural context
* ...to achieve enlightenment and inner peace
* ...to achieve rebirth in the Pure Land
* ...to become like God, or God-like
* ...to be rewarded for your deeds
* ...to experience existence from an infinite number of perspectives in order to expand the consciousness of all there is (i.e. God)
* ...to express compassion
* ...to follow the "Golden Rule"
* ...to give and receive love
* ...to live in a way that you don't harm yourself and don't harm your environment
* ...to work for justice and freedom
Religious and spiritual
* ...to be a filter of creation between heaven and hell
* ...to die and become a martyr
* ...to live in peace with each other, and in harmony with our natural environment (see utopia)
* ...to produce useful structure in the universe over and above consumption (see net creativity)
* ...to protect humanity, or more generally the environment
* ...to reach Heaven in the afterlife
* ...to seek and acquire virtue, to live a virtuous life
* ...to serve others, or do good deeds
* ...to turn fear into joy at a constant rate achieving on literal and metaphorical levels: immortality, enlightenment and atonement
* ...to understand and follow the "Word of God"
* ...to worship, serve, or achieve union with God
* ...to disprove the existence of a or all all gods
Other
* ...to find true love
* ...to achieve self-actualisation
* ...to contribute to collective meaning ("we" or "us") without having individual meaning ("I" or "me")
* ...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 participate in the inevitable increase in entropy of the universe
* ...to make the conformists' lives miserable (see non-conformism)
* ...to participate in the chain of 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)
* ...to relate, connect, or achieve unity with others
* ...to resolve all problems that one faces, or to ignore them and attempt to fully continue life without them, or to detach oneself from all problems faced (see Buddhism)
* ...to seek and find beauty
* ...as there is no intrinsic meaning to life, to each individual, the "meaning of life" is whatever he/she decides it is. In that sense, every point above is potentially valid.
* ...an answer to the question "What is the meaning of life?" is that it is just simply being able to ask the question, "What is the meaning of life?" (see Sri Sri Ravi Shankar below)
* ...to determine a set of goals based on an individuals belief in the meaning of life and work towards the attainment of those objectives.
* ...a combination of any of the above.
* ...42
No purpose, and therefore...
* ...to simply live until one dies (there is no universal or celestial purpose)
* ...just a series of events
* ...just nature taking its course
* ...the wheel of time keeps on turning
* ...the cycle of life
* ...whatever you see you see, as in "projection makes perception"
* ...there is no purpose or meaning whatsoever (see nihilism)
* ...who cares?
* ...because nobody will ever love you.
* ...life may actually not exist, this is all a surreal dream.
But most importantly
* ...not to die.
2006-10-16 03:21:31 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yeah, just start with the self instead of reverting to a higher power etc. Existentialist would believe that the meaning of their lives is determined by the self and if the meaning was determined by a religion it would still be determined by the self because the self chooses all things in existentialist philosophy. There are many other philosophys out there that would help you define the meaning of life, but the best way no matter what your philosophy is, I would say, is start with the self.
2016-05-22 05:25:36 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I've been told it is impossible to prove a negative, so if that is true then no one can correctly tell you what the meaning of life isn't.
The meaning of life is a term, which like other terms, is debatable re: absolute definition. Do you mean the meaning of life as you know it, life as it is defined scientifically, or something broader like the meaning of existence?
I think it is crucial for an individual to choose a personal meaning for their life... a "victory condition", to use game theory terminology. That gives us direction and some comparitives for growth.
Too many people either wander aimlessly or let somebody else interpret all the rules for them.
2006-10-15 16:30:20 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Meaning is subjective to each intellect. What has meaning for some, is relatively meaningless to others. The definitive parameters of importance and meaning depend on the specific mind of the beholder.
But for all life forms, existence is much more important than non existence because it is an inborn survival instinct.
Life is a driving force. It cares not for meaning.
2006-10-15 16:45:55 · answer #4 · answered by DREAMER 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Clearly there is meaning to life. In every thing one looks at there are signs and reminders of such things. One can determine by the process of elimination what the meaning of Life is not. But when determining what the meaning of YOUR LIFE is is another thing altogether. In the end there are the things were are destined to do and the potential we have, and what we actually do and the potenital we live up to. Very seldom do we see beyond the small things of our lives and look beyond to see the grand horizon that was laid before us.
2006-10-21 16:29:50 · answer #5 · answered by Little Wifey 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Oh, it is very easy to determine what the meaning of life is not !
Most people are 'live' examples !
Not much difference in terms of 'having evolved' over many centuries..... just that like cave men, bed time stories to children around fire, now it is more sophisticated, with room heaters, TV channels, remote, etc !
Birth, growth, procreate, die.. repetition of the same story is not just the meaning of life.
To go beyond nature, enhancing the levels of perception beyond sense organs, deepening of awareness, being alert, newer levels of consciousness open up, newer dimensions of life come within reach... this is the meaning of life.
2006-10-16 01:36:02 · answer #6 · answered by Spiritualseeker 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I love the way most people here manage to answer what the meaning of of life is, even after the questioner's specific instructions to only discuss what it isnt...
Maybe the meaning of life is not to not listen?
2006-10-15 18:53:51 · answer #7 · answered by methamphetamine_symposium 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Life has meaning whatever your purpose in life is or you want out of it Life brings meaning
2006-10-15 16:51:02 · answer #8 · answered by .................................... 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The meaning of life is up to the person comprehending it.
Personally, I feel it is to leave good impressions with those living past our deaths, to leave things better than we found them, and to not do harm. Oh, and to stay on top of the food chain.
2006-10-15 16:38:14 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
All the interpretations, statements, concepts, theory and all ideas created by our limited mind is not the meaning of life.
2006-10-15 16:27:48 · answer #10 · answered by ol's one 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
the basic meaning of life is essentially to propogate your species and make your species flourish. we see this in all forms of life from the tiniest of micro organisms to the largest of mammals. in my opinion . I feel that anything that prevents us from propagating and flourishing is NOT what life is all about.
2006-10-15 19:40:43 · answer #11 · answered by brooster 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋