What is the meaning of life? And what naturally follows

[intenex]

Almost as inevitable as a thread on Hitler and the Nazis.

I can tie virtually anything into this topic, and I plan to do so here as my philosophy on life gradually comes back to me. I don't see much as being off topic in this topic.

As directly as possible, my personal view is that there is no meaning to life. There is only a purpose - to live and let live more (survive [and reproduce]). What are your comments on this? Does this seem depressing to you? Why?

I see everything that we are (as humans, animals, living cells, everything beyond quarks) as inherently motivated by self-preservation and survival. I see everyone as hypocrites and racists. I started keeping small aphorisms (being the pretentious 15 year old that I am) in text files last summer. One of the first went as follows - Hypocrisy is a pre-requisite to self-awareness. Racism (stereotyping) is in its purest sense good and necessary (all these assertions are just that, my beliefs). Step on a snake, get poisoned to the brink of death, better stay away from snakes. Screw giving them a second chance. Defense for this stance comes in the form of mimics (harmless snakes who imitate the truly potent).

Altruism to me is simply indirect selfishness. Survival of the whole for the individual, or simply the best bet for the continued propagation of your genes.

Religion is necessary for survival.

Love lasts one to three years.

I am immortal (many-worlds interpretation).

I am greatly tempted to remark on something else (crucial) as well, but I can't remember what it is. Hopefully it'll come back to me when someone replies to this. If not, well, that's why I try to keep most of my stuff preserved in text files. Because I don't sleep and my memory has gone senile and has Alzheimer's.

[oiwio]

firstly, its 42!!!

But if we're talking serious, Id have to say that, like you said, life has no meaning, but we're just here to give more life, not neccassarily live it

[callumacrae]

Life is just the time for choices.

You choose to go to heaven or hell...

[noerrorsfound]

Life is just the time for choices.

You choose to go to heaven or hell...

I completely disagree with this, and you need to elaborate more since this is in Crossfire. The rules say there are no "one liners" and just because you put 1 sentence on each line doesn't mean you've evaded the rule. It just means you need to be detailed and explain your answer.

Life's purpose is to create more life. However, then the question becomes: What's the point of creating new life? If you think it's to continue the human species, the question becomes: What's the point of continuing the human species? And I'm not sure about the answer to that one. Once you're dead, you no longer think. If you actually contributed something significant to the human species, why will it matter when we're probably going to all kill ourselves, or, less likely, die from something we didn't cause? Obviously, when everyone's dead, it won't matter how great you were since not even yourself will know what you did while alive.

I believe this is exactly why we created religions. We needed to know how we got here, and why, and we needed to know we had a purpose. Humans want to know everything, and that's why scientists study things--to figure out one more piece of the puzzle. However, with what we've discovered through scientific research, these religions are getting harder to believe as their stories and our research start to contradict each other.

[intenex]

Noerrorsfound - I'm with you on most of that post. I believe everything can be traced back to survival, as I've already stated, and thus religion and all that follows is for that purpose. Our innate 'curiosity', too, stems from survival - the more we know, the better the chance we have of surviving.

It's quite effective, actually. Our ability to live comes from our ability to ignore selective truths, and our ability to survive comes from our knowing of those truths.

The question is, in its basest form, why is life's purpose to create more life? And thus - to continue the human species (if human life is at question here). Why is the purpose of human life to continue the human species? Because if it were anything other, we wouldn't have come into existence to begin with. Thus, the purpose of all 'living creatures' must be existence (of course that's not true).

[vidprog]

Just a quick question about purpose -- Why do you think we have a purpose? If life is simply a great accident (big bang, evolution), why should there be a purpose to it?

Or, if there was a greater being involved in the creation of life, wouldn't that being have had a role in defining a purpose for our lives?

Could it be that the great human quest for purpose might, in fact, actually point to the existence of a greater being?

Just wondering.

[Spartan Erik]

I believe the meaning of life is to live successfully (not necessarily weathily), be happy, and procreate, thereby passing on the family name. Afterwards, I don't believe anything follows, as the concept of "heaven and hell" is a bit too abstract for me. Ideally everyone would donate their organs upon their death (it is very wasteful to embalm and bury) to give others a second chance at life!

[b0bv1la]

First off I cant say I completely disagree with your concept. Im of no devout religion and have had my doubts on life in general somedays, but look back on this post in 20 years and tell me if you think the same way. I cant tell you the purpose of my life but I can tell you that I have been led down a path by something. Whether it be fate or Human Nature I cant tell you but to each his own opinion and this is mine.

As for what follows I dont know if there is Heaven and Hell or maybe we are already living in Hell until we get life right or get right with the Man upstairs and then he comes to take us home.

Hope that leaves you some food for thought.

[cowctcat]

personaly my view on the subject is that the purpose of life is to find out the meaning of life so if any of us found out the meaning of life life would have fulfilled its purpose and cease to exist as anything does after its purpose is fulfilled.

So there are two obvious conclusions that can be drawn from this
1. None of you have guessed the meaning of life- were not all dead are we
2. We should stop trying to figure out the meaning of life unless destroying life is your goal

[Sohail]

The purpose is life is to follow your religion don't you think. And while you do that you can enjoy life too with family, friends ect...

What do you think?

And this isn't an easy question to be answered you know as i don't think anyone would know the answer :P.