What is the point of living?

Question

I do not want any quotes from scripture, however feel free to be as religious as you like.

I suppose technically I'm an atheist (or perhaps a pantheist) and I can't see the point of living. If I only enjoy my own experiences, and when I die that's it - my memory and personality cease to exist. I become no longer conscious - I die. So, I take nothing with me from being alive - there's no where to take it - so what's the point of enduring a life of mysery? Why can't I choose to kill myself to end the torment? Does it matter if I kill myself - how will that affect anyone else? Should I care about anyone else when - once I'm dead - no-one else will affect me in any way?

Death From Above: I would appreciate it if you would not be judgemental about me. You do not know me at all, so I think you are not justified in calling me a 'bigoted anti-theistic atheists'. You do not know what research I may or may not have conducted. You also do not know what I believe. I said nothing 'bigoted'. Thank you.

Grotty Bodkin and mountainman: But what's the point when - once dead - those memories equate to nothing. Isn't living just delaying the inevitable with the constant threat overshadowing everything you do? As for the movie, after watching the movie I kept it in my memory. When I die, the memory of my life ceases to exist. So what if other people remember me, I won't be around to appreciate that - so what's the point?

Are we all only living to keep each other happy? If this is the case, why do people insist on making other people unhappy?

The HypnoPope: So why not kill them too? Why not kill everybody - then there is no-one left to feel pain.

be nice: No, I'm not Jewish.

The HypnoPope: EXACTLY - so killing absolutely everyone is the way to stop anyone being upset at anyone elses death. Of course, everyone has to die at exactly the same time or be kept in confinement such that they don't know who's died.

Answer 1

You might be surprised how your death would affect other people. I always loved the movie "It's a Wonderful Life" with Jimmy Stewart. It kind of shows the impact your life has on others that you may not even realize.

You should really talk to people. There are people that dearly love you that would be graetly affected by you death, and there are some that have never met you who would also be affected. Every life, even yours, makes a difference.

Answer 2

Life has no point Mawky....

But then nor does death.

Life is a selection of experiences, and whether those are positive or negative is entirely down to you. They tend to balance out eventually.
Death is a complete lack of all of the above, and as such is completely neutral.
Neither is honestly a preferable situation over the other. The only thing you should account for is that you are alive now.... and will inevitably be dead eventually..... so you might as well get through what you want to get through in life before you move on to death.


Misery?
Why should misery matter?
All emotions are simply tools of the body to aid us in living and reproducing. They are meaningless besides that simple function. "Misery" is supposed to be a trigger to get you to change harmful elements of your life to non-harmful ones..... but throw free will into the mix and suddenly pain itself becomes the enemy and death instead becomes the escape.
Either way is irrelevant though.
Misery is an experience. It is something you can appreciate sometimes in retrospect... and if you know that much then why not try to appreciate misery in the present? It doesn't matter a shred in the end anyway, so you might as well see it as an up rather than a down in the present.

Answer 3

That's not good. I'd strongly recommend you speak to a therapist.
I've had thoughts like this often enough, and I am not religious, but something I have come across has helped for me.
I believe we have chosen to be here, we have chosen to live the life we live for the experience of it, no matter how bad or how good.
This is not the only life we live, I believe we live many and have lived many (and no that's not a re-incarnation theory).
We don't remember what we have lived, because we don't want to, it would deny the purpose we are living the experience in the first place.
When we die do we just end? I don't think so. What are you made of ultimately? Energy. Can energy die? Can it be destoyed? You are an eternal conscious, in one form or another, sorry but you are.
Are you going to worry about mortgages, or what this person said or did when you become what you ultimately are, I don't think so. So why are you here? Why do these things happen? Things happen in your life because that is what you chose to experience when you decided to live again.
Taking yourself out is easy, life is problems, living is solving them.
Fear is something we all have, no one knows what is on the other side. I have also thought that we just cease and then there is no more, but something in me tells me that this is not true. There is something greater, this universe does not just spring out of nothing for no reason.

Answer 4

You have asked several deep questions. I am going to try to get to all of them. The point of enduring this life is to reach a goal at the end and help others reach that goal on your way. The goal I speak of is beyond comprehension in its greatness. There are thoughts in your mind about suicide, don't let them overtake you. If you were to kill yourself, you would be in a place of even more torment than where you are now. When you die, you do not just vanish. Your spirit, the real you, lives on. There is a plan and a purpose for your life; it will only be revealed to you by seeking someone (I know you have described yourself as an atheist, but please keep an open mind); the one you must seek is God. If you don't believe he exists, ask him to reveal/show you a sign proving his existence. If he doesn't exist, nothing will happen. There's nothing to lose in doing this. I would be greatly honored to speak to you more about this, if you wish.

Answer 5

From this "crazy" Christian perspective, hon, the purpose is to love and serve our God. We do this by loving and serving our fellow man - treating others with respect and compassion and dignity (even if they don't necessarily deserve it).

Although I have to say that even belief in God coupled with belief on the promises of Christ Jesus as our Savior does not make us "immune" to this line of questioning.

I'm sorry for the discomfort the questions you have seem to be causing you. Although I don't know how necessarily you can be any more certain that there is "nothingness" after death than others (including myself) can be that there IS life afterward - in the spirit. It is a "faith" issue to be sure. I have faith that when I pass from life on this earth -there will be a better life in spirit for me with my Father God. Your faith supposes that this is all we get and it doesn't matter. I used to wonder like you and think on such things - for me, it just worked out better and I felt more full of purpose when I came to understand that EVERYthing serves a purpose greater than myself. EVERYthing matters and has cause/effect relationships.

Again, I'm sorry for the trouble you are facing. It's a pain in the rear for sure. I pray you find the guidance and understanding to put the "meaning" back into your life. It ain't always easy - but it is ultimately good.

Jude 1:2

Answer 6

The point of Living is what you make it. I dont think your personality with cease to exist because other people will remember what you were. Thats why famous people like Shakespeare and Aristotle are still known. because they were remember ed through other people. You take what you give... and of course you can always have the experiences you've gone through. I have so many memories already and theres nothing greater than that. Of course you could always choose to end your life...but that doesnt mean you should.. other people will miss you not to mention you were gifted with life whether it be from god or evolution. Why not actually live it instead of wondering why it has no purpose. Of course if you were dead it wouldnt matter to you but it would still matter to them.. Theres so much here.... and what if there is nothing after?? Then you'll have wasted years of a precious life... millions of beautiful memories...love...kids...marriage.. I dont know theres just so much that one can experience. Just dont look at suicide...if theres anything more pointless than life its suicide...

Answer 7

Seeing all the different types of life that exist today, from leopards to ant to falcons. Everything perfect for the environment they are in!! Every animal knows its purpose and to see that is worth living for me. You need something that you feel passionate about. Find something that you find amazing today. Go with your inner voice/intuition/animal voice. Then it does not matter if God exist or not only that you do at this very moment in the Billions of years of creation and evolution.

Man does not know his purpose but think that he will stumble into it in the very near future (And woman of course :) ). We go against the whole ecosystem. And once we find a way of living with and contributing to it, then we will be happy and feel full - filled.

Just a quick observation on your question. No one knows what the point is, I think it is simple ... it is to live. Also you think too much. You dont trust your intuition and prefer your mind to your self. Stop tormenting your self!! And being so negative please.

If you are negative then you cannot be positive.

Good luck matey and let me know what you have found that makes life worth while for you. Please.

Answer 8

So, have you traveled the path from solipsism to depression, or is this merely hypothetical?

Maybe its me but the fact that I won't have anything when I'm dead (to be precise, there won't be a me to have nothing) doesn't bother me at all. Epicurus figured it out around 300 BC already: "Death is nothing to us, since when we are, death has not come, and when death has come, we are not".

That said, if you don't care to play at the game of life and it is "torment" as you put it, I see no reason why you should be forced to continue. Of course, that leaves the question of family and friends (who I am sure you care for as that is one aspect of being human) who will be severely traumatized. That might be a factor to consider.

Answer 9

The point of living today is to prepare for eternity. This life is a dress rehersal that each and every person who has ever lived is starring in. We are deciding through our every day choices who we serve and where we will live forever....heaven or hell. Torment? What torment?? If there is a empty hole in your heart, killing yourself will not end it, but escalate it because you will live in constant torment forever in hell when you reject Jesus Christ. Life is hard. We face many struggles, sorrows, hardships,disappointments,etc. But faith never gives up. Faith sees the invisible, believes the unbelievable and rejects all Satan's lies that our lives are pointless! You matter to God and so does everyone else reading this. We will never cease to exist...our souls will live on forever in Eternal Paradise or Eternal doom....Your choice.

Answer 10

Most people let time go by and the feelings of suicide tend to fade. It's that last look at a leaf or a cloud. It takes a mentally ill person to take their own life. And it would affect all those who love you if you were selfish enough to end the life God entrusted to you. Yes, that's right. That life doesn't belong to you. It is on loan from God. It is your temple and you should respect it and care for it.
God gave you life. He is the only one who can end it.
There is a better time to come when wickedness and evil are gone and any bad memories will be wiped out of our minds. Only peace and security will abound in all the earth.