Are you searching for the meaning of life? You might benefit from taking an existentialist viewpoint on your angst filled quest for your great grand purpose in this vast universe. Here is the secret to life, the universe and everything. There is no meaning; there is no purpose. Stop wearing yourself out. Instead of being a meaning seeker, which is ultimately fruitless, unless you are among the deluded who cling to supernatural mythologies to explain away the absurdities of life become a meaning maker.
Be a maker of meaning. You are important and your life has import because you decide it does and you take action to ensure its fulfillment. This is liberating. It should energize you and spurn you on. Are you depressed? That is understandable. If your depression is not clinical or medical then most likely this is just angst. You may benefit from rethinking your priorities. Life has depressing moments. The death of God or a cherished system of belief is as heartbreaking and debilitating as the loss of a loved one. But, as in these cases, your wounds will scab over. You will find the will to move on and get on with life. If not seek a doctor or counselor.
Life is absurd and it is unfair at times. Yet, we still find pleasure and joy in our existence. Just because life is absurd doesn’t mean you need to be a nihilist. You are here and alive. You exist so you might as well make each precious moment count. But, don’t fret time wasted either. Some of the most delightful moments in my life were stolen bits of time that I wasted. Albert Camus believed that suicide was ultimately the only real important philosophical question. Hamlet may have said it best:
To be, or not to be: that is the question: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;
I decide for existence. I say, “Yes” to my being. I will live a short time in comparison to the countless years I will spend dead. I say, “Yes” to the moment. I say, “Yes” to life now. Perhaps, a time will come that I may choose differently. But, for the moment I say yes. If I were to suffer a debilitating disease such as ALS I may choose suicide in the last months once I have become helplessly entombed in my body. But, for the moment I am healthy and well. Yes, yes and again a resounding yes.
If someone asks you to explain how you can find meaning in a godless universe simply tell them that whether god exists or not life is pretty damn miraculous. The fact that we are occupying adjacent space and having this debate is amazing considering the overwhelming possibility that we shouldn’t be here at all. If God exists then he didn’t have to create us. If it is just the result of the big bang, evolution and natural selection then the odds are also stacked against us in favor of being here. Yet, regardless, here we are. Science may explain it all some day. Perhaps it won’t. Life is miraculous regardless.
The problem with ultimate questions is we try to make sense out of the most mind boggling of questions, why does anything exist at all rather than not exist? For me the notion that God created ex nihlio is as absurd as the possibility that our existence was the result of a series of beneficial, but random events. Yet here we are. The mechanisms of natural selection work fine without introducing God into the equation. In fact they might work even better. But, that is to not say God doesn’t exist. Unfortunately, the arguments for his existence don’t add up. I have always found the Buddha’s advice helpful – “God exists; God does not exist. The problem of your enlightenment is still the same.”
Besides if God exists we have to face up to some pretty alarming truths. Original sin is outrageous. But, so is karma. I know many poor fools who choose to believe in karma because it seems gentler than the notion of being condemned at birth, bound by the death sentence pronounced on a mythological Adam and Eve. Yet, being reborn into a new life, a new body as an amnesiac to suffer the consequences of a previous life’s actions is equally monstrous and absurd. It’s not just, it’s cruel. You don’t rub the dog’s nose when he shits on your carpet after you clean it up. You rub his nose it in it first. Otherwise he has no idea why he is being punished. Besides spiritual punishment is part of a misguided effort to let mythologies solve your problems.
We choose karma because it seems more just than an intelligent God pronouncing eternal judgment. We deem it fair because it is impersonal. But, here is where the Christians have us beat. They have a personal God, who is merciful and loving. All you need to do is confess your sinfulness and all is forgiven. No need to live through countless incarnations hoping one day you may finally learn what you need to so you can jump off the so-called wheel of life. So I say Peee Yooo to Karma as I do to Original Sin.
If you want to see justice seek what is just now. Better yet, make an ethical inventory of yourself and see to it that you act justly. What comes around goes around is a fantasy. Sometimes it seems to be the case. But, sometimes good people suffer and bad people escape discomfort. We harm ourselves psychologically when we allow ourselves to indulge in fantasies of some after life retribution.
We will only pass this way once. There is no viable evidence for heaven, hell or even reincarnation. What is passed to us as evidence is often anecdotal and shaky at best. You will only have this moment once. Make use of it. There are no real correct answers to life, but we can judge if we are a success. Do we love and are we loved in return? Have I helped more than I hurt? Have I made amends when I was wrong? Did I seek to repair what I have damaged? Did another live and run free because of my own being? Then perhaps we might conclude that we lived rightly.
Meaning makers answer their own questions. They face the absurdities and unanswered questions with courage. They adjust their view to fit the facts. But, the meaning seekers make the facts conform to their beliefs, twisting and distorting as much as is necessary. Meaning makers don’t give up in the face of pain even though they may despair. They enjoy the good times even though they know they will not last for ever. Meaning seekers look for someone else to provide answers. They want some god, guru, self help teacher or sacred text to give them the pat answer for every situation. Meaning makers stay open to the moment and allows it to bring what it does. Meaning makers respond; meaning seekers react.
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