"The meaning of life," he said, "is to give life meaning."
The more I thought about his words, the more they intrigued me. According to this concept, the meaning of life is not something found on a mountaintop, or in words written by long-dead sages; it is something that is found within ourselves. It is not sufficient to drift along through life, steadily growing older; if our lives are to have meaning, then we must do things to give meaning to them, to become something more than random combinations of chemicals. We have the power to set goals for ourselves and to plan our actions; it is through the setting of these goals and the enactment of these plans that we create a purpose to our lives. Whether you choose to write an article, to counsel a friend, to have children, to create a work of art, or anything else, your life takes on meaning simply because you have done, said, and thought those things. The meaning of life is to give life meaning.
It is an idea I think many would find at once liberating, yet terrifying.
RANDOM MUSINGS |
THE TRANSPORTER ROOM |