Original Post
so I received a PM about the meaning of life
No idea why they'd do it via PM but it's stupid and I'll just post it here since they obviously wish to discuss shit.
This was my response:
Originally Posted by anonymous PM
You know what is life? Or you know why we live? This is a philosophical question that runs through the centuries and great thinkers. I believe that when asked, we each have their own definition of life. Try to know what is your at least once.
But why to ask something so complex? Well, more difficult than explain the life, it's to try to explain our curiosity about it. Personally, question what is life helps me understand my own and the purpose that it really has.
Of course I'm not the only crazy spending time and neurons to elucidate this problem. Some users of Quora (one Yahoo! Answers intelligent people) have also been proposed to find a good answer to the question and, better than that, give us very clear reasoning about what is life.
1 - Always I wondered why beggars do not commit suicide, since they live in such terrible conditions. But even in such conditions they have a very strong desire to live. I used to wonder why we live? And I realized that in fact no one wants to die. Neither beggars nor the ants fighting for their lives because what really matters is our journey.
2 - The question itself is the answer: we are living. We are living to live, not to stay alive. Life is like a natural wave that comes from a distant, unknown place and move on, to reach the beach and get lost, or rather, mix with what we are seeking in our lives. Some waves are big and powerful, some small, some nerve, millions of different waves moving along this unknown ocean of millions of other people who are going for the same goal.
Not sure if this response answers the question because for me there is no question.
3 - We live to explorer new things, places and experiences.
4 - We live because of humanity, to help others, make people happy and to be happy too.
5 - Here are the two options in my opinion:
a) We are alone and this unique, incomprehensible and vast universe and therefore life on Earth is something that happened for a very specific reason we can or not be able to discern.
b) Life is a natural phenomenon that is inevitable in certain circumstances and lasts as long as those conditions continue to exist. And we are only asking this question because we have developed the ability to consider such things.
I choose to follow the latter, and although we may not be able to identify through a reductionist thinking which time the "life" came from the "non-life", just say that life is a natural phenomenon and that humans are the natural result of this process. We continue to live, as do all other forms of life, because of a biological imperative: to thrive, reproduce and sustain our species as a whole. Individually, we may need to look for specific reasons to go on living, or find meaning, but when looking at the world carefully and in depth, there is really no need to understand the whys of our existence.
6 - Life exists because it is life. That sounds stupid to consider life from a point of view that is not the human being. The other Earth million specious seek a reason to live or they just live?
7 - The scientific community says that life on Earth - or anywhere else - it's just a miraculous accident. But as I know you want a philosophical explanation, here's one: Life is a highly complex issue because it has many uncertain answers. One may say that God created, so there is life and so on.
We live because we were born and we adapt to the conditions. And the answer to "Why are we alive" is that life was created on Earth because the conditions were favorable to the existence of life. Sorry, I could not make a more spiritual response.
9 - We humans are on a secret mission to destroy all the natural resources of the planet. If you are wondering why you are not aware of this secret mission, then you are not alone. Aliens in programmed to believe that we are developing and deteriorating health of the planet is only a small price for it. And if I'm wrong about this secret mission, so that the ratio of humans to exploit both their home planet, which are supposed to live another few billion years?
10 - We live because life is worth living. Dying brings us to anything. Unless there are real, concrete evidence of the existence of paradise, it is stupidity die and you may live.
11 - Why not?
Be happy. Live your life intensely.
Have a good week, a good month, a good year and a good life!
Thank you,
This was my response:
Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent.
What you discuss is religion, not philosophy.
How are you?
Not sure what this guy wants us to discuss. Does he want us to discuss his 11 points? Does he want us to explain what we think the meaning of life is (which we've done before)? If he could post here and tell us that'd be great. Is this even about the meaning of life or more broadly 'what is life'... The PM doesn't really explain.
I'm procrastinating an assignment, so I'll comment on the 11 'theories' about the meaning of life (or 'what is life'... Whatever the question is).
I don't understand what point is being made here. The meaning of life is to live because nobody wants to die? Ok.
'We are living to live, not to stay alive'. That's some Deepak Chopra level mysticism right there. What does that mean? Ignoring the sermon about waves, does all this just mean that we shouldn't just be trying to subsist, but rather we should try to live every moment to its fullest? Is that what is meant by 'living' and not merely 'staying alive'?
If you don't know the question and I don't know the question, wtf is going on here?!
Ok - Seems like the 'live life to the fullest' point.
The past thousands of years of war and violence would likely beg to differ.
Yeah, I'd agree but... What question? Wasn't there no question?
Pasta exists because it is pasta. Zebras exist because they are Zebras. God exists because it is God. I don't buy this line of logic. The only this that 'A is A' ('The Law of Identity') tells us is that existence exists. What it doesn't do is provide us with any answers as to why existence exists - All it tells us is that it does.
'We exist because God'. This is an especially poor point.
Isn't this just point 5b again?
Finally, a sensible argument.
Ignoring the 'dying brings us anything' part, this is a repeat of point 1.
I don't know man, I don't even know the question...
-------
It would be useful if the sender of the PM could explain what this all means and what he wants discussed.
I'm procrastinating an assignment, so I'll comment on the 11 'theories' about the meaning of life (or 'what is life'... Whatever the question is).
Originally Posted by PM
1 - Always I wondered why beggars do not commit suicide, since they live in such terrible conditions. But even in such conditions they have a very strong desire to live. I used to wonder why we live? And I realized that in fact no one wants to die. Neither beggars nor the ants fighting for their lives because what really matters is our journey.
I don't understand what point is being made here. The meaning of life is to live because nobody wants to die? Ok.
Originally Posted by PM
2 - The question itself is the answer: we are living. We are living to live, not to stay alive. Life is like a natural wave that comes from a distant, unknown place and move on, to reach the beach and get lost, or rather, mix with what we are seeking in our lives. Some waves are big and powerful, some small, some nerve, millions of different waves moving along this unknown ocean of millions of other people who are going for the same goal.
'We are living to live, not to stay alive'. That's some Deepak Chopra level mysticism right there. What does that mean? Ignoring the sermon about waves, does all this just mean that we shouldn't just be trying to subsist, but rather we should try to live every moment to its fullest? Is that what is meant by 'living' and not merely 'staying alive'?
Originally Posted by PM
Not sure if this response answers the question because for me there is no question.
If you don't know the question and I don't know the question, wtf is going on here?!
Originally Posted by PM
3 - We live to explorer new things, places and experiences.
Ok - Seems like the 'live life to the fullest' point.
Originally Posted by PM
4 - We live because of humanity, to help others, make people happy and to be happy too.
The past thousands of years of war and violence would likely beg to differ.
Originally Posted by PM
5b) Life is a natural phenomenon that is inevitable in certain circumstances and lasts as long as those conditions continue to exist. And we are only asking this question because we have developed the ability to consider such things.
Yeah, I'd agree but... What question? Wasn't there no question?
Originally Posted by PM
6 - Life exists because it is life. That sounds stupid to consider life from a point of view that is not the human being. The other Earth million specious seek a reason to live or they just live?
Pasta exists because it is pasta. Zebras exist because they are Zebras. God exists because it is God. I don't buy this line of logic. The only this that 'A is A' ('The Law of Identity') tells us is that existence exists. What it doesn't do is provide us with any answers as to why existence exists - All it tells us is that it does.
Originally Posted by PM
7 - The scientific community says that life on Earth - or anywhere else - it's just a miraculous accident. But as I know you want a philosophical explanation, here's one: Life is a highly complex issue because it has many uncertain answers. One may say that God created, so there is life and so on.
'We exist because God'. This is an especially poor point.
Originally Posted by PM
8.We live because we were born and we adapt to the conditions. And the answer to "Why are we alive" is that life was created on Earth because the conditions were favorable to the existence of life. Sorry, I could not make a more spiritual response.
Isn't this just point 5b again?
Originally Posted by PM
9 - We humans are on a secret mission to destroy all the natural resources of the planet. If you are wondering why you are not aware of this secret mission, then you are not alone. Aliens in programmed to believe that we are developing and deteriorating health of the planet is only a small price for it. And if I'm wrong about this secret mission, so that the ratio of humans to exploit both their home planet, which are supposed to live another few billion years?
Finally, a sensible argument.
Originally Posted by PM
10 - We live because life is worth living. Dying brings us to anything. Unless there are real, concrete evidence of the existence of paradise, it is stupidity die and you may live.
Ignoring the 'dying brings us anything' part, this is a repeat of point 1.
Originally Posted by PM
11 - Why not?
I don't know man, I don't even know the question...
-------
It would be useful if the sender of the PM could explain what this all means and what he wants discussed.
dat trip
The 'final equation' to all the possible and impossible thoughts could be written in a phrase as "Life is eternal/Truth is a paradox". It doesn't matter what kind of explanation we find the best one, it will always be questionable.
The philosophical paths that keeps ourselves asking the same universal questions, could be something human, something from our perspective and time-space that we think it's fundamental to answer them.
Where I come from?
Why am I here?
What I should do from now on?
What is my purpose?
You see? All those questions that comes to us in different ways and moments, have the Time effect in them: Past(Orgins), Present(Past's results), Future(Purposes). With drugs or something similar you may "escape" from the sense of Time; but other than that, we can say that we are trapped in it.
The problem with it is that we have been so adapted to the sense of Time in our lives that we assume it as an ultimate truth, and from there is where arise those questions of our origins and purposes of life. Then, we really have this necessity to know the answers, which in a long view it brings us lots of religions and beliefs, which cause wars and quarelling.
As we can't really say what is truth and what is not, then we should look all the possibilities, like to think that it could be possible to be life which doesn't get affected by the Time(living outside of it). This will imply that the timed universal questions will be useless for a being living outside of the Time... And what does that means?
Well if that possibility could be real, then there's also another possibility emerged in which may state that the life has never had a beginning nor future. All the sense of traveling and time passing, will simply not going to happen, and by that we can say that the pure base of life, is eternity.
This could be translated as a God( which is a human concept and not even close to a logic-based thing). But basically what this logic is trying to conclude is that: the eternity has to exist in order to "create" the infinite(which is space, time, matter, etc) and the reason/purpose of the eternity is inexistent because the simple fact to question it, the question itself will influenced by an "inferior" sense, which is Time. That's why I "Life is eternal."
And actually, all this arguments will never assure any sort of truth, because of the always lack of valuable information missing that no one could really discover. That's why "truth is a paradox"
Don't know if it's understandable but, I tried.
The 'final equation' to all the possible and impossible thoughts could be written in a phrase as "Life is eternal/Truth is a paradox". It doesn't matter what kind of explanation we find the best one, it will always be questionable.
The philosophical paths that keeps ourselves asking the same universal questions, could be something human, something from our perspective and time-space that we think it's fundamental to answer them.
Where I come from?
Why am I here?
What I should do from now on?
What is my purpose?
You see? All those questions that comes to us in different ways and moments, have the Time effect in them: Past(Orgins), Present(Past's results), Future(Purposes). With drugs or something similar you may "escape" from the sense of Time; but other than that, we can say that we are trapped in it.
The problem with it is that we have been so adapted to the sense of Time in our lives that we assume it as an ultimate truth, and from there is where arise those questions of our origins and purposes of life. Then, we really have this necessity to know the answers, which in a long view it brings us lots of religions and beliefs, which cause wars and quarelling.
As we can't really say what is truth and what is not, then we should look all the possibilities, like to think that it could be possible to be life which doesn't get affected by the Time(living outside of it). This will imply that the timed universal questions will be useless for a being living outside of the Time... And what does that means?
Well if that possibility could be real, then there's also another possibility emerged in which may state that the life has never had a beginning nor future. All the sense of traveling and time passing, will simply not going to happen, and by that we can say that the pure base of life, is eternity.
This could be translated as a God( which is a human concept and not even close to a logic-based thing). But basically what this logic is trying to conclude is that: the eternity has to exist in order to "create" the infinite(which is space, time, matter, etc) and the reason/purpose of the eternity is inexistent because the simple fact to question it, the question itself will influenced by an "inferior" sense, which is Time. That's why I "Life is eternal."
And actually, all this arguments will never assure any sort of truth, because of the always lack of valuable information missing that no one could really discover. That's why "truth is a paradox"
Don't know if it's understandable but, I tried.
Truth is a paradox? wtf are you high?
We can tell pretty well if something is true by testing it with the scientific method. It is called trial and error.
Philosophy also does not concern itself with any of those questions you stated. They are all non-sense questions and more for religious folks.
We can tell pretty well if something is true by testing it with the scientific method. It is called trial and error.
Philosophy also does not concern itself with any of those questions you stated. They are all non-sense questions and more for religious folks.
How are you?
Originally Posted by Redundant
Truth is a paradox? wtf are you high?
We can tell pretty well if something is true by testing it with the scientific method. It is called trial and error.
Philosophy also does not concern itself with any of those questions you stated. They are all non-sense questions and more for religious folks.
Yo how could you be sure to know a truth?? That's how all religions begins.. Whatever you state, if it's from the scientific method, it will always be questionable.. Or are you going to tell that what you say is the ultimate fuckin truth?.. Theories and proofs evolve, because they will always be incomplete and someone has to add information to them, because no one could ever say "this is THIS" and done, because no one can know the truth.. It seems to me very simple to understand, because our limited experiences, thoughts and knowledge clearly are not capable to perceive everything.
So by that, the only argument that might "defeat" the search of the truth, is that no one can ever know, perceive, experience the truth, in which the sentence itself turns it into a paradox.
