so what is the meaning of life?
I hope life isn't a big joke, because I don't get it. ~ Jack Handey
A fair proportion of we humans have been blessed, or cursed, with enough brain cells to be self-aware and contemplate the meaning of life and why we are here. Some like Kathleen Norris do this in a positive way, "Life is easier than you'd think; all that is necessary is to accept the impossible, do without the indispensable, and bear the intolerable". Others adopt the more pessimistic well known expression, "We are born wet, naked, and hungry, then things get worse". Many find the answers in their faith, but may backslide later as they question their faith.
The strange thing is often the happiest people seem to be those who mostly go through life without actually wondering about the meaning of life; something Christoper Isherwood referred to when he said "Life is not so bad if you have plenty of luck, a good physique, and not too much imagination".
At the other extreme, the Greek philosopher Socrates said "the unexamined life is not worth living". Mind you, he was feeling quite serious at the time as he was about to be sentenced to death for heresy, so the meaning of life was probably of some concern at that point in time.
So there are many approaches to the meaning of life. You can just not think about it, be immersed in depression and anxiety as you hotly pursue it, find concrete answers in a religious text, adopt any belief system that fits nicely then stop thinking about it, or try to come to terms with just not knowing anything for sure.The meaning of life can be broken down into what are sometimes called the big questions.
what are the big questions?
Why am I here? Obviously the biggy when it comes to the meaning of life. Is it to worship a deity who's really into being worshipped? Is there no ultimate reason, or is it impossible to discover? Can we just invent our own or choose one from the philosophical supermarket?
How and why did the universe begin? Is the universe just a rather odd cake baked in God's kitchen? If so, why did he, she or it, bake this cake? Or is the universe the mindless result of a big explosion because big things collided in an alternative reality?
What happens when I die, and should I be concerned? Is there an afterlife, then what is the weather like, and what should you pack? Will it be extremely hot, or just right?
Why is there suffering in the world? If there is a God with some interest in human affairs who is all-powerful then it would be good to know why babies die of disease and young kids painfully die of cancer. Are there some good answers to these kinds of issues?
Are there absolute moral values and truths? Humanism has been chipping away at things we once thought were universal truths. Most religions are reworking what they now consider to be absolute values, and those that have been determined by our culture. Do atheists believe in any absolute moral truths? Or is it anything goes? How do we decide between right and wrong?
Should the rich be concerned about the poor? Robert Brault once said "Life is not fair, nor has it ever been, but the morning seems determined to dawn until it is". If human beings are valuable, should we look after the less fortunate ones? Is God concerned about the poor, so should we be? If there is no God, does that mean it should just be survival of the fittest?
Are we alone in the universe? It turns out the universe is quite a bit larger than we figured a few hundred years ago. Is there other life out there? And if so why are they more interested in making crop circles and anal probing than meeting us for a chat?
Are we descended from apes? Science is keen on the idea that our ancestors dragged their knuckles on the ground. While the humanists are pretty cool with this, various religions have some degree of resistance to the idea.
Could a computer have a mind? And if so, will Apples go to heaven while PCs go to hell?
We'll try to answer most of these questions about the meaning of life for the major religions and schools of thought. There is a wide diversity of opinions and approaches within any of these so in each case only the mainstream beliefs will be looked at.
the answer to the meaning of life?
Do we have the answer? It's very likely. The idea of this site is to give you a broad overview of how some of the larger religions and schools of thought approach the meaning of life so there's a very good chance you will find your meaning of life within, but we can't do all the work for you - you'll need to work at it! If you feel you are having a crisis of faith, or backsliding, there's a good site here that may help you resolve issues and find your meaning of life and answers to the big questions.
So what does the meaning of life actually mean? It's a philosophical question concerning the purpose and significance of life or existence in general. Typically the main questions are "Why are we here?", "What is life all about?" and "What is the meaning of it all?" While many people usually give it about 18 minutes consideration in their lifetime, throughout history others have dedicated their entire lives to philosophical, scientific, and theological speculation about the meaning of life.
The meaning of life is deeply mixed with the philosophical and religious conceptions of existence, consciousness, and happiness, and touches on many other issues, such as symbolic meaning, , value, purpose, ethics, good and evil, free will, conceptions of God, the existence of God, the soul, and the afterlife. Scientific contributions are more indirect; by describing the empirical facts about the universe, science provides some context and sets parameters for conversations on related topics.
This information about the meaning of life is under the GNU Free Licence Agreement and is derived from pages at http://en.wikipedia.org
