Is this the Meaning of Life?

Question

"Some help others in order to receive blessings and admiration. This is simply meaningless. Some cultivate themselves in part to serve others, in part to serve their own pride. They will understand, at best, half of the truth. But those who improve themselves for the sake of the world -- to these, the whole truth of the universe will be revealed."
--Lao Tzu (c.604-531 B.C.)

Your thoughts? Observations? Experiences?

Answer 1

This is very close to one of my favorite parts of the New Testament of the Bible:

1. Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.

2. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

3. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:

4. That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.

5. And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.

6. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

(Matthew Chapter 6, KJV)

While that passage speaks specifically of being rewarded by God for the good works that you do IN SECRET, I have always thought that the reward was not so much blessings and brownie points in heaven or in life, but rather a less tangible type of blessing; the blessing of understanding, the blessing of compassion, the blessing of an expanded soul. All of those seem, to me at least, to be a greater type of blessing than any other earthy reward, like riches or good health.

I know a lot of people who do good things because they fear they will be punished, either by God, or by karma, if they do not. I know people who do good things because it makes them very proud of themselves to feel they have a good and kind nature. I look at them, and I feel deeply that while their acts are truly good, they already have their reward, and are missing out on the really good stuff. It's like taking the cheap brass ring instead of the gold one just because you don't know what you are taking and think you are already getting the best ring available. (Does that make sense? It does to me, I hope it does to you.)

As I get older, and because of a strange experience I had once, I find that service to my fellow human beings is more and more important to me. I have asked myself many times if I am doing it because I think that it makes the Divine Creator happy, or because it makes me feel good. That used to be the case a lot of the time, but more and more often, I feel like every small kindness that I am able to do is simply putting good energy out there in the world. I don't know where that energy goes. I don't know if it touches anyone. All I know is that it requires absolutely nothing of me but to be vigilant and watch for opportunities, and that I hope it somehow helps to balance the negative energy in the world.

I believe that the key to a happy life is service. It doesn't matter if it's a small thing, like taking back someone's shopping cart for them at the grocery store, or something huge like giving your life for your country. I just think it's something we're meant to do. I feel like we're all here on this sphere, spinning through space, and that one of the things we are meant to learn is that we can help each other in our separate journeys, and that if we can learn to do it and leave ego out of it entirely, we will see and understand something amazing. I have no idea what that thing is, but I feel strongly that it's worth seeing and understanding. If it weren't, I doubt we'd have as many opportunities for kindnesses presented to us. The opportunities are so overwhelmingly common that I think it cannot possibly be an accident. I think we are meant to act on them.

And here's a funny personal observation. I mean funny as in odd, not funny as in ha ha. I have serious clinical depression, and I have had for about 20 years. It's due to a chemical imbalance in my brain. The docs know what my brain is not manufacturing correctly, and they think I will probably have to take medication for it for the rest of my life. When I am having a really bad day, the type of day when all thought is of dark things, if I do good, I get good in return. Sometimes it's just a tiny ray of light in the darkness. I believe Wiccans refer to it as the Rule of Three, or the Threefold Law. All I know is that it works. My only trouble is that when I am in that state, I have a hard time seeing the opportunities to serve. But if I see them, and act on them, I am always rewarded. I don't expect it, it just is.

Answer 2

The ability to speculate as a sapient being. The capability to deduct what actions are right and wrong and to act upon said conclusions is what makes us human. After understanding this all that is left is to live life to the fullest with no regrets.


You may say helping others to receive praise is selfish but I believe a self-sacrificing act regardless of intention benefits a lion's share of the people involved.

No matter the cost of the charitable, generous, compassionate, unselfish act, the contributer will gain the pleasure of knowing their actions made a positive impact in said person(s) life/lives.­

Answer 3

What If you discover the meaning of life and you don't like what you find? Are we meant to find it? The finding of self is a moving target as you keep evolving with each new experience. This search has to be done daily and tends to stymie even the boldest of us. Does faith in a Supreme Being, gives the insight to who we truly are or are supposed to be. Mother Tereasa in her diaries fought a fifty year battle of faith. She saw the worst of the world and even she had doubt in her faith. the Universal "How can God allow this was in her heart". I am troubled with what i know of myself. the thoughts of murderous rage when truly wronged. The "I will fix you, can creep in. We have so much of the animal inside, with the thoughts of self preservation as a natural component of the overall human animal we are. And yet there are some who willingly give there lives to save others they may never know. We may be too complex to find the meaning of life, in that We are easily led astray by wants and needs that we may not realize that we have until they run up against a part of us that finally tells us no. I don't think I'm strong enough emotionally to grapple with the Ultimate Question. The older I get the more insight I gain of my failings.I may someday, with the clarity of the Angels find my true self and accidentally trip over the meaning of life. But I doubt if I would recognise it.

Answer 4

I believe in this statement somewhat...but it's also contradictory - "Some help others in order to receive blessings'' and ''those who improve themselves for the sake of the world'' actually go together. How does someone improve themselves for the sake of the world?...by helping others... and what's wrong with doing it to receive blessings? I would rather help others in order to receive blessings [like gratitude for instance]...which would be better than not helping a poor person and then getting beaten up by him or her.

Answer 5

Those who have intentions to improve the world or "look at the big picture" are the ones who go beyond the logical train of thought and will comprehend and understand existence as a whole. A small process or peice in existence wont give you answer it will only give assumtions. Although, if you look at the entire puzzle then you can slowly put it together.

Answer 6

This is an excellent question, but one I can't respond to at the moment. Although I would say, (perhaps, more obtusely), that we get a bit more truth if we are doing it because it is our nature, than for the sake of the world.

Answer 7

I guess it begs the question whether there is true altruism or not. In this statement, would one be "improving themselves for the sake of the world" or would they be doing so for "the whole truth of the universe"?

Answer 8

the "life" that is in question encompasses much more than humans', it extends to animals and plants as well. thus its fair to say, that the meaning of life is simply to reproduce and preserve a species

Answer 9

I believe the meaning to life is in general... to live and that all depends on your definition on what living is.

Answer 10

LIFE IS A WORD WE CANT DESCRIBE,IT EXTENDS FROM SCIENTIFIC BACKGROUD TO PHILOSOPHICAL AND RELIGIOUS BACKGROUND.WE ARE,WHY WE ARE ETC. VARIOUS QUESTIONS ARE YET TO B EXPLORED TO THE BOTTOM.FOR ME LIFE IS EVERYTHING RELATED TO ME...........WHICH IS EXISTING WITH ME.IN UR CONTEXT I WOULD SAY THAT ITS U WHO SHLD DECIDE WHAT A LIFE MEANS TO U.........PERSONS BESIDES THEIR WORK TAKE TIME AND DO SUM HELP ETC.AS IT GIVES THEM JOY ND HAPPINESS...SO THESE R SOURCES TO B HAPPY BUT CANT B LIFE.THESE CAN B GOALS OF ONES LIFE.SO THERE IS A DIFFERENCE.

Answer 11

the meaning of life to me is relatively simple........life your life to love, learn and have fun......but always be prepared to accept the consequences of your actions.