Why is there something instead of nothing?

Question

For the universe to want to become self aware of itself through our eyes and the eyes of other living creatures great and small, why does life strive to find a way? What is this force that drives the desire to be, not just in complex animals, but plants and just about everthing else? Is it a force akin to gravity and the four forces that govern our particular dimesion. With all due respect, please leave "god" out of it, because I have no idea what you mean by that and I'd be quite surprised if you do.

Answer 1

I think that as you have narrowed the parameters in which your interlocutors are allowed to answer your question you will have to be content with not having an answer to this question. Here is my impression:

It would seem that since you have limited answers to the merely material, you are left developing some kind of theory of intentionality to material reality, as if it has, in itself, volition and will. In this respect, it seems, in attempting to evade the question of God, you have simply taken what would have formally been attributes of the divine nature and applied them to universal existence. God has simply entered through the locked, back door of your explanation. This is what seems to happen in many attempts at merely materialistic explanations of existence. Therefore you might want to change your approach. Perhaps you should conceive of existence less as a problem, and more of a mystery, something that defeats the desire of our rationality for a total explanation. It has been the conceit of modernity that one could, through a sheer act of will and reason, explain everything, but it seems in the face of the question as to why things seem to exist, rather than not exist, the materialist has no rational explanation. Things just simply are what they are and the best we can do is to describe them rather than really understand their ontology or teleology.

Answer 2

Because if there was nothing, we would not be here asking the question!

In any universe where beings are asking this question, the universe must look something like the one we see. The physical constants that allow organic life, and some other parameters.

This is known as the weak anthropic principle.
There are other versions, extensions and disputes around this idea:

Answer 3

Existence is the reason for there being something rather than nothing. Existence has three states... come into being, sustain being and end up being. As long as life is in the 'sustain being' state, there is the desire to be.... in fact this is what life is all about because the states of birth and death are merely starting and ending points having no time dimension.

Answer 4

What was it like prior to the big bang. Probably around -270kelvin, and real real quiet. It was that way till something had a change of heart and decided it had enough of vacume physics, and re-invented space/time with a way of running E=mc2 backwards and energy became mass. This event pumped enough energy into reality so as to fire up any system with the proper combination of atoms and light to produce large quantities of bio-mass. Evolution is the handywork of this event. Why produce life, cause its fun to watch.

Answer 5

What about matter & anti-matter? Looking into this is quite an experience. What about--simply--energy? I don't think that "energy" requires extensive research, nor can it be labeled by intellectual thought as to "why" anything "strives." What motivates the "desire to be" (in my humble opinion) is the human mind asking the unanswerable.

Answer 6

It is our basic nature """ LOVE""".

Love is that pure energy continuously in motion, not wanting to be alone, always searching for that total happiness (BLISS) which is our basic urge (want).

Kindly note that we all are originated from the source of bliss PURE ENERGY, CRYSTAL CLEAR LIGHT,

Bliss is the word given by us humans. It (bliss) is difficult to explain in words, as words are meaningful objects, feelings defined by humans. out there there is a feeling of only complete satisfaction and nothing else.

Don't be surprised Just step into the world of reality and experience it yourself """please leave "god" out of it, because I have no idea what you mean by that and I'd be quite""" surprised if you do.

Answer 7

It just is, because of the time factor. It's better to be productive than being bored, isn't it? Time must pass and we must endure it somehow. Cats chase their tails and dogs fetch. Staying busy makes us content because we seem to conduct time, but in reality we endure time and time conducts us.

Answer 8

Wow, I was thinking of asking the same question earlier today. Of course nobody knows, but man... it's pretty amazing. It shouldn't be, but it is. What the heck is with that? How lucky.

Answer 9

Is space something or nothing.If it is nothing there is a lot of nothing separating all the stars.So i would say there is more "nothing " than something. Or something like that?

Answer 10

there is no such thing as nothing.i mean come on.When you're talking to a best friend and they ask what you're doing right then,and you say NOTHING you're breathing you're talking to them you're blinking you're doing all sorts of things so,on my opinion i doubt there is actually,specifically NOTHING

-Cuz