What's the point of life?
 

I'm not an expert on this type of thing, but I just wanted to share a few ideas.

What if the point of life is to unite people of all races, creeds, and backgrounds? What if the point is to hate everyone who is different than you, because you were each sent here by your own god. and all the gods are at war with each other?

Is there really a heaven, and if so, are there different levels of heaven?

Is there a god? Or have we all just miraculously cropped up here in this form of perfect timing and structure?

If there is a god? and if so is there a hell? Surely, a god wouldn't send us there. After all, he also gave us the capacity to do horrendous things.

There is no end-all answer to any of these questions. That's why I'm asking them. It's uncertain, like so many things in life. I don't have to know everything. You don't have to know everything. Let's take comfort in not knowing, and just wondering,

So my idea is this: I think there is a God, he is one ruling god of all the religions and creeds and races, and he knows that we are all right, but fear has kept us from uniting. Of course, that's pretty vague. Many other things have kept us from uniting, with fear at the root of it. But ultimately, I think the goal is for each person to try and see things the scope of another person, to try to understand someone different than you, and to love them. Also, I believe we are reincarnated. I believe that when we die, we temporarily go to a certain level or strata in heaven, depending on how good we were. Then, at some point, if we choose, we can be reincarnated into any form we want. And of course, once we are conceived in our mother's womb all recollection of past lives is forgotten. But anyway, that's my belief, or what I want to believe. Otherwise, how would life or life after death be any fun, if we were just stuck there, in that one place forever. I always feel the urge to escape, and by gosh, I'm going to want to escape even when I'm in heaven.

I don't know, sometimes I like to think there's a higher power and all but that's just hollow comfort so I don't think it much as much as I'd like to. It would feel really nice to believe there's some divine purpose. I think it all depends on how you define god to whether or not one or ones exist. To me god is like, the universe, nature and everything. I don't know if that answers your question, that's not really believing in god. I don't think that life has a point really. I don't really believe in an afterlife either. It's scary to think we just disappear that easily really and we're done but I guess it's true. This subject depresses me.

Nihilists unite, if there is a God I'd rather not be welcomed into his kingdom. He has a pretty bad résumé.

Big tits. Just throwin' that out there as an option...

oh boy, this is a bit deep for me, but anyways
as far as religion goes, i do not believe in it at all, but i think as a whole, it can be ultimatly a good thing or a horrible thing
when religion brings people togther and helps them through life and makes them want to do better and be a better person, thats wonderful
but i also think that god and heaven are all just comfort devices used by people who are terrified of dying, and ironically, thoose people then spend their whole trying to live perfectly to get in heaven, and end up wasting away their short time on earth
i dont know how many people have told me im going to go to hell for not beleiving in god, but if there is a hell (which i dont think there is) why would someone who is a generally good person be sent there, just for not beliveing in god? i dunno, it seems rather ridiculous to me
it would be nice to belive that their is a purpose for us all, and that we all have some meaning on this earth, but i dunno, it all seems rather doubtfull to me
(im very sorry, im sure this doesnt maek any sense at all)

to procreate

fascist

To respond to Wayfarer:
I believe in a collective consciousness, just like you, and that we are all connected beings. I certainly wouldn't deny that we have a 6th sense, which is not ESP, just plain instinct. Most of us have had unbelievable flashes of instinct from time to time. Not simply just knowing what someone might say in a situation, but somehow sensing certain goings-on in a completely different place than where you are.
To respond to Crowquill and Mockingbird:
That's an interesting point, because you both said that belief in a god is for people who are terrified of death, and I can't help but admit that I am terrified of death. Sometimes I feel like I witness special works, that make me believe, then there are so many awful things that make me doubt. One of my main arguments for an existence of God would actually be a scientific one. I'm amazed that we live on a planet, in which, on it's rotation around the sun, becomes somewhat farther out on its axis, and at those points, it gets so cold here that it becomes nearly uninhabitable, if not just very uncomfortable. (global warming not withstanding). But it's not quite too cold, the same way it's just not quite too hot in the summertime. Then I think about all that space, and all those thousands of miles in between the Earth and its neighboring planets-Mars & Venus, and how there is basically no possibility of human life there (while they have apparently recently found living bacteria on Mars) It just seems so improbable to me, that we could be that fortunate to get situated right here, without there being a god.
Also, I just can't help but feel like we were meant to get something. Think about it, we seem to be the only animals with a conscious mind. All other animals with a brain certainly feel pain, and some people believe that even plants feel pain, but we are the only creatures who have such a complex brain, and the ability to experience such a wide plethora of emotions. It just makes me feel like we're supposed to get something. And I think maybe what one generation and one country is supposed to get is not necessarily what is intended for the next generation, or people of other nationalities, creeds, whatever.
Of course, I understand there most certainly maybe life in other galaxies, and it is quite possible that our so called "god" is merely a race of aliens - so advanced that they created us as some sort of weird experiment and they subtly drop us hints sometimes of their existence, maybe a reward for something good we did. Maybe we all are reincarnated in this life until we all collectively come to a higher recognition of love and spirit, and then we may all be welcomed into their fascinating worlds or "heaven" as we know it.
Also sometimes I think that who we are reincarnated as may depend on how we performed in the past life. For instance, maybe Bush was some really great person in the past life, and in this lifetime, he just didn't get it, and he may be reincarnated into some sort of paramecium or something in the next life.
Ultimately this whole text may just symbolize my whole fear of death, and might be all hogwash, but who can blame me. I mean, as Crowquill said, we're here one day, and then we just vanish. Of course, then there would be no reason to do any good in life, and then you could say that the whole religion idea was contrived simply to get us to behave well while we're here, and could be argued for that it's a good thing in that respect.
This is getting into scary territory here, but I really don't want to live in a world where people feel they have no reason to do good, whether it's true or not. I guess what I'm saying is, if right now, it was revealed to me that I had no reason to do good, whatsoever, it would scare me about what I might do, so maybe that's the reason I want to believe in a God.

I can't believe I actually read all of that...I should've jotted down the few points I wanted to make as I read it now I have to re-read it again...

I believe that religion and believing in a god/faith are separate things. I don't think that god and heaven are just used by people that are terrified of dying. I believe it gives them hope and a reason to live and carry on. Most people view God and his existence as being related to "good" essentially. Based off of the bible God isn't "good" or "bad" but more so an omnipresent being that helped to spark life. If you read the bible, you can see his many examples of how he can be vengeful despite his good intentions for his creation. I don't even agree with most of the context in the bible anyways because the bible is based off of interpretations of different men and their encounters during a certain period of time. Later on, someone discovered these old text and decided to translate it for us. There definately has to be some material that was lost in translation or translated incorrectly based upon the person translating the text.

Someone mentioned we evolved from a bunch of monkeys but that's not true at all. We evolved from that species that predates neantherdals. I can't recall the name of them at this moment but their mind was very similar to animals, lacking a conscious mind. I don't think we are supposed to get anything. Species evolve over time to adapt to the changes in the environment they occupy. I believe we are here to create a legacy, another notch in history and to procreate, leaving behind us a lineage of our dna.

existentialism <3


"we're nihilists, we don't believe in anything"

I dislike any religion based on the concept of faith very much. People just aren't seeing the difference between faith with a reason and blind faith. Its ridiculous to me how people don't see through the lies of church authorities.

I'm forced to be in a seminary class by my parents, and I just want to paraphrase something my seminary teacher said a few days ago that made me want to scream in the middle of class. "People who think that religion is blind faith don't realize that it is God commanding them, and that they should be obedient." What he completely ignored was that God is not giving us commandments. We are given "commandments" by people we don't know one goddamn bit. If there were a God, he wouldn't punish us for not trusting someone we don't know whos saying utterly ridiculous **** would he?

On a another note, I had a very eerie experience a few days ago that made me question whether there may be something higher other than what we don't already know. I don't really care to explain, but it was pretty weird.

Just for reference, I consider myself agnostic and buddhist (to some extent).

Does there need to be a point?

I wrote a very good paper on religion for school, and how i though the church was just brainwashing millions and millions of people into beliving ridiculous completly unlogical things and whatnot, and how it is consequently destroying our world. My teacher failed me, and i almost got suspended. how that for freedom of speach??

I'm forced to be in a seminary class by my parents, and I just want to paraphrase something my seminary teacher said a few days ago that made me want to scream in the middle of class.

That must be tough. I mean, I have to keep myself from getting brainwashed by people I bump into from time to time, and I don't even go to church. I respect you for not being brainwashed in that type of scenario. It must be very hard.

Also, let me say that I think religion can be good. But clearly in cases, like the one mentioned above, they're using it for propaganda. It's like, 'what are you people so afraid of that some people might not believe in organized religion.' I like to think of church as a place where people commune, and sing praises, and are greatful for their experience, but I can't but think it's just these terrified preachers, who just like having the power over who they're preaching to, and are absolutely petrified of losing that power. Then, of course, I have a problem with people who attend those churches. I feel a lot of them just grew up in a different age.

What most people fail to realize is that when they're young, their god is their parents. Their parents are telling them what to do, and a lot of parents tried to use fear to keep them in line. Well, we're coming into a different age now where not all parents are using fear, and it's cool. Yet, a lot of the older folks are terrified by it.

By the way, Mockingbird, that sounds like it really sucks, but you know, I care what you think, regardless of what anyone else does.

:) thak you very very much:) I agree with pretty much every thing you just said there, completly true

Sad thing is, he's a really nice guy.

point of life is to die, everything you do leads up to it.

Yes, and that clearly is the opinion of an atheist. If there is no afterlife, as you claim, then the last moment of your existence is the moment you die, and that would be the point. I believe there is an afterlife, and I don't know if god judges you or maybe your spirit just ascends accordingly to the level of your consciousness or mind-spirit, but I do respect your opinion, Kevorkian Logic.

I think it was Buddha who was asked on his deathbed
"Are you afraid?"
He responded,
"Why would I be afraid, when my whole life has been leading up to this moment?"

It would be to the extent where I respect his ideas, and try to follow buddhist teachings, but am not disciplined enough to do a good job at it. :)

Doesn't everything you do seem so vain, if there is no point to it?

As joseph Campbell most eloquently stated; the point of life is to "Follow your bliss". If your not doing what makes you happy, then you're a slave. To what, I don't know. That's up to the individual to figure out.

no, there doesn't need to be, but there is. I believe there is a point to everything no matter how dismal the point may seem.

Yeah, it's like that movie Butterfly Effect.
I think we have that butterfly effect on our collective conscious.
You might walk into a room somewhere, and there might be really drab energy,
but what you might not know is that someone in that room might have just had their car break down on their way to an interview for a job that they needed to be able to pay their month's rent for that month.
Then, he may have told everyone in there, and it brought down everyone else's energy.

you make everything much more complex than it needs to be.

I do agree with the idea "Follow your bliss", but I'm not sure that because you're not doing what makes you happy makes you a slave, and I'll tell you why.

Right now, I'm driving a truck, and it's not fun, but I want to save up enough money that one day I can pursue a dream of being a professional actor, or being a musician, or doing something really enjoyable. So, ya know, I definitely think there's something to delayed gratification.

I think the key is that, you can work jobs that you hate, but don't let it bring you down. If you find yourself whining about your job, you will attract others like that to you, like flies on #%^. Anyone can keep a positive attitude whether they are working in a slaughterhouse, or cleaning up animal *&^* at the zoo. It's all up to you.

I really agree with the first part, but I doubt the second part of your statement is true.

Also, I do believe in the theory, 'Only the paranoid survive'

I'm weary of what's going on around me, and it's not what people think about me, it's about not wanting to have physical pain inflicted upon me.

Yes, death is imminent, and life is imminent.
I could walk out the front door tomorrow, and start living that day like it was my last. I might get up, and go for an early morning jog. And then, along my jog I realize no one else has this attitude, and I don't like the world I'm in, and I don't like the way people are looking at me.
In fact I have so much disdain for our society, that I am fighting to live in it now, as a goal to become financially independent one day, so I can distance myself from society as much as possible.
If I was doing what I truly wanted to do in this moment, I would surely be living as a recluse, never going out in public, and when I did constantly mocking people for their ways. I can't think of a better word than just ways. I don't like our tao in this country. And I used to come on here all the time and just b*tch and b.itch and beotch about it. But I'm going to try to not do that anymore, I'm going to try to have a positive attitude, while understanding that our society may not be what I want, I've got to find a way to turn the tables on it, and spin it, and make it work for me.

...no? What? Why would it seem vain?

I'm still not sure why you're here for a reason, or to fill some funciton. And there can be a point to things even if you were put here to fulfill a point.

"We are put here for a reason"

I think sentiments like this arise from those disillusioned with their lives as a way to counteract the bleak reality in which they exist. On the otherhand, the notion that we are put here for a reason can be championed by the same group, but in more of an attempt to say that "Oh, well, everything I do now will amount to something".


The reality of it is that those who are well off, or are happy with their lives often do not question the meaning behind existence. I'm not saying that this is the case with everyone, just my point of view. Personally, I don't think the meaning of life is worth worrying about or pondering. I'd much rather be out living life than wasting it trying to figure out it's meanings.

I entirely agree. No one in the can say in all honesty that they know the meaning to life. If there is one we learn it sometime after death I think.

There's no universal meaning to life. People can create their own purpose, their own meaning, their own point. They can live their lives according to what they've defined for themselves, without needless speculation about some higher purpose behind human existence. We're capable of rational thought, so we must be special? Nope. That's called evolution.

If there really is some "higher purpose" then who has decided what that is? God? What is God? If there was some God entity who decided what "the point of life" is, he didn't make it clear enough for me so it's his own fault if I don't adhere to it. If he banishes me to eternal damnation because of this, then I wouldn't have been interested in worshipping him anyway.

there is no higher purpose, there is only us, only this, forget, regret, move on, or else your going to miss a helluva a lot in life.

i think the point of life is to find the point of life.. therefore there is no real point yet we all keep searching

As Oscar Wilde said "No theory of life seem to be of any importance compared with life itself"

What i say is just stop worrying about what life 'means' and just live it. dont waste it

The point of life is to keep your finger off the self-destruct switch long enough for someone else to take advantage of you.

The pont of life is binary. 01001001010101.
There u go.

"There was a message written in pencil on the tiles by the roller towel. This was it:
WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF LIFE?

Trout plundered his pockets for a pen or pencil. He had an answer to the question.

To be
the eyes
and ears
and conscience
of the Creator of the Universe,
you fool"

Vonnegut?

lol

awesome post fidocell, but not as impressive as your first post 'suks'...a whole letter more.