Living Life With A Purpose
By Roshan
20 August, 2015
Countercurrents.org
Just as we cannot survive without food and
water, we humans cannot survive without a sense of the meaning or ultimate
purpose of life—of life in general, and of our own life in particular. Human
beings are meaning-seeking creatures. Starved of a sense of ultimate purpose in
life, we are doomed, sooner rather than later, to fall prey to alienation,
cynicism, anarchy and even worse—to madness and suicide.
Some weeks ago, I hit upon the idea of conducting a little
experiment. I began asking people I met what they felt about the purpose of
life. I put this question to people from different walks of life and from
various ethnic and religious backgrounds. I still conduct the experiment when I
can and remember to—and the insights I’m gaining from it are amazing!
Some of the responses I got to the question are as follows:
“The purpose of life is
just to live. To survive. To just be. I can’t seeq. Each of us is free to
construct our own purpose as we please. No one else can do this for you.”
“Don’t ask about the
purpose·
of life. No one knows. Some people make claims about this or that being the
purpose of life, but they are just that—claims, that cannot be substantiated.”
“There is no meaning of
life·
at all, really. It is simply impossible to make any sense of it. Life is
downright absurd, given that we all have to die one day. It’s a cruel joke that
the cosmos has played on us.”
“We are just a
collection of·
atoms and chemicals that came together by chance. Being a product of accident,
there is absolutely no purpose to life. Life is a drama. We play our part and
then we depart—where, we don’t know.”
“The purpose of my life
right now is to struggle to remain sane in a world that seems to be totally
mad.”·
“I’m living not because
there·
is any meaning to life, but simply because I can’t help but live since I’m too
scared to commit suicide. The ‘purpose’ of my life, if you can call it that, is
simply to exist till I die. I live only because I have to live, not because I
want to or because I find any meaning in living. It is only waiting to die and
to escape this cruel world that gives me meaning.”
“The only thing we know
for·
sure about the future is that we will die one day. Life is simply a prelude to
death, to being totally extinguished once and for all. That, as far as I can
see, is the purpose of life. It’s a doorway that you have to pass through to be
snuffed out for good. Life is just what they call ‘time-pass’, a means to while
away time till we die.”
“The purpose of your
life is·
to play the role that Existence or the Universe has chosen for you. You have no
say in the matter.”
“The purpose of life is
to·
prepare for death by living in the right manner so that the soul is not reborn
in this cruel world and it attains liberation from the cycle of birth and
death.”
“We are here because we
need to play out our karma of infinite past lives.”·
“The purpose of life is
to be as happy as you can.”·
“Oh, you may not believe
me,·
but I’ve never thought about the question of the purpose of life! It’s the
first time someone’s put it to me. I’m 35 now, but not once in all these years
did I hear anyone discuss it—not my parents, nor my teachers, nor my
friends….Okay, now since you’ve asked, let me think about it. Hmmm…Okay….I
guess I am living because…hmmm…because…well…because I have to. I don’t have any
choice. It’s as simple as that! I have to do all these daily-task sort of
things…like having a bath, gobbling down my breakfast, rushing to office,
picking my child from school, making dinner, chatting with my husband, watching
TV and then going to bed. I don’t know if you’ll call that a purpose in life,
but that’s really what life is all about for me…a whole series of things that I
do on an everyday basis.”
“Rising to the top of my·
career is my purpose in life. Isn’t that the case for most people? I think it
is. Like it or not, your career defines who and what you are, and through your
career you reflect the purpose you have chosen for your life.”
“The purpose of life is
to·
enjoy. To celebrate. To sing and dance. To have as much fun as possible. To
eat, drink and be merry, as they say. Indulge in the good things that the world
abounds in. I think we need to liberate ourselves from this sense of sin and
guilt that moralizing spoil-sports want us to wallow in. I love movies,
partying, holidaying, hanging out with friends, building up my bank balance,
dreaming of a nice, new house and a nice, new girlfriend! Doing all that gives
my life great purpose. Life is a great opportunity to have fun!”
“Having as much sex and
with·
as many partners as possible is the purpose of my life. Call it ‘hedonism’ if
you like—but that, really, is the purpose of almost everyone’s life, even if
they don’t admit it. At least I do and I’m honest about it, shocking though it
may seem to you.”
“The purpose of my life
is to·
gain as much knowledge as I can. I love reading books. Recently, I bought the
entire Encyclopedia Britannica! I wonder if I’ll be able to finish reading it
before I die, though.”
“I am addicted to
travelling. I·
wish I could see every nook and corner of this beautiful world. If I can afford
it and the means become available in my lifetime, I’d love to go tramping off
to Mars for a vacation! That would be really the ultimate, don’t you think!
Travelling really gives me purpose!”
“I live to eat and to
watch television. But don’t tell anyone that!”·
“I want to be rich,
powerful·
and famous. Life gives you the chance to do that. That’s what life is about for
me. As a kid I used to dream of becoming the President of America!”
“Life for me is an
opportunity·
to make it big. Yes, I want to become rich and famous. I want to go to America
and make it big there. That dream gives me purpose.”
“Earning enough money to
build·
up a decent bank balance and then retire to a quiet life in a Himalayan village
to grow carrots and tend to a flock of sheep is the purpose of my life.”
“Life affords me the·
opportunity to unfold my innate potentials, to do the things I want and be the
sort of person I would like to be. I guess that is what the purpose of my life
is.”
“I want to become a
famous scientist and to win the Nobel Prize.”·
“The purpose of my life
is to earn for my family so that we can eat two meals a day and pay for the
rent.”·
“My life revolved around·
earning for, and taking care of, my mentally-challenged brother and my aged
parents. You could say that this is my purpose of living, at least for the time
being. But our purposes change over time. Maybe if you ask me the same question
next year, I’ll see the purpose of my life very differently.”
“Being at peace with
myself and the world around me is the fundamental purpose of my life.”·
“Being able to help the
poor gives me a sense of purpose in what otherwise seems an absolutely
heartless world.”·
“Keeping myself busy
doing·
something or the other is what keeps me from going crazy. You might say that
this is the purpose of my life, at least right now.”
“The purpose of my life
is to·
bring joy in other people’s lives—even if it is by doing ‘little’ things, like
feeding a stray dog or smiling at a stranger. Giving and receiving love gives
my life a great deal of meaning.”
“I find meaning in doing
some·
good so that I will be remembered long after I die. Working towards leaving a
mark on history so that I won’t be forgotten by posterity gives me purpose.”
“Doing my bit to help
the country become a super-power is my purpose in life.”·
“Empowering my community
is my purpose.”·
“There’s so much
suffering in·
the world, such terrible oppression. Denouncing violence, terrorism and
conflict through my writings gives my life meaning. That’s what I am living for
really.”
“We are in this world to
unravel the mystery of who exactly we are. Discovering ourselves is, really,
the purpose of life.”·
“We humans are created
beings.·
The purpose of our life is the purpose for which our Creator created us. The
purpose He made us for is to worship Him. Worshipping God, loving Him, praying
to Him, surrendering to His will and seeking to live and die for His sake is
the purpose of life. If I am able to live as He wants me to, in accordance with
His Creation Plan, I may, if He so wills, live in eternal bliss with Him in
Paradise.”
The meaning or purpose of life is among the most significant
questions we could ever ask ourselves. And yet, as in my own case as well as of
almost everyone I have been putting this question to, rarely, if ever, do we
bother to seriously think about it.
Seeking to learn from others what they feel is the purpose of
their life is opening up to me new ways of understanding my own. Of course, I
do not agree with many of the responses that I received to my experiment that
I’ve mentioned above. And yet, even these responses, like the ones I can agree
with, provide me with useful insights. Hopefully, the lessons, positive as well
as negative, that I can draw from what different people regard as the major
purpose of their lives will help me live in a more meaningful manner than
hitherto.
You might want to try this experiment, too. It might make a
great difference in the way you look at, and wish to lead, your own life!
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