Searching...

admiral-bell said:
What am I put on this earth for. I am being plauged by this philisophical question: If am not merely a being of flesh and blood, than what am I? How, and to a lesser extent, why do I exist?

Well, technically, I can't prove with certainty that you (or I) exist in the first place. But then again, I can't prove that I can't prove that...

Edit: Thank you Eran for mentioning the greatest answer, 42.
 
That's an overgeneralization that doesn't hold water. One can just as easily say that athiests look at tomorrow because they know this is their one shot at life, while religoinists think about today because eventually they know they're going to heaven.
 
IMHO we are put on this Earth for 1 thing and 1 thing only.

To reproduce ourselfs.

The sole purpose of life is to generate more life. Look all around at all living things, their only goal ist to survive to find a mate and reproduce. If you crunch down human life to its simplest expression, we work our ass off all our lives to survive and find a mate and reproduce and then die after your offspring can get out of the nest. This is just normal.

We humans live so long now that we have time to imagine that we were put on this earth for some kind of divine purpose.
 
admiral-bell said:
bah, I'm talking more on the level of my conciousness existing, not biologically. (Don't give me a religious or scientific answer either. I'm looking for something philisophical).

Who cares why you're here - so have fun while life lasts!

You could narrow it down to "I'm simply a carrier for my genes, which are trying to survive and pass their genetic information on to the next host" or you could delude yourself into thinking that you have a greater purpose, but when it really boils down to it - it doesn't matter. So quit wondering why you're here and what your purpose is - because there is none.

The point is that you're here so you might as well make the most of it.
 
Cheezy the Wiz said:
oh, so THATS what the question is! and i was sure it was 6x7.. or 7x6.

No, the question is "What do you get if you multiply 6 by 9?"

The answer, 42.


We live now so we can die later. We are no more special than dogs or rabbits or ants, we are just better at killing things. Why does everyone need to feel like their life has a purpose? If you want your life to have meaning or a purpose, do something. Try to do everything you want to do and you wont die dissapointed (although i doubt you will know your dead or are disappointed with your life after you are dead)

And dont try and tell me to change to your religion. I am happy with the way my out look on life just the way it is.
 
I do believe that this is a personal question. In fact I believe I am the only one that can find that answer. I know there is a satisfactory answer out there, And I think I can find it. But, I know only one thing, it isn't 42 ;).

-Admiral-Bell
 
admiral-bell said:
What am I put on this earth for. I am being plauged by this philisophical question: If am not merely a being of flesh and blood, than what am I? How, and to a lesser extent, why do I exist?

You exist due to biological happenings.

Your prupose? That is for you to decide. Not anyone else.

The point of life is to live it as best as you can, and to progress.

How you do that is up to you....!

:)
 
Eran of Arcadia said:
I have a religious answer: we exist to develop and become like God, and in doing so to glorify Him. We can become greater than we can even imagine.

And become slaves to greedy and evil men who masquerade as voices for a god.
Or to live in quivering fear and guilt for imagined 'sins'.....No thanks.

If people choose that fate willingly, I really pity them.
The road to spirituality is not the path of grim servitude.

(merely my opinion)

.
 
CurtSibling said:
And become slaves to greedy and evil men who masquerade as voices for a god.
Or to live in quivering fear and guilt for imagined 'sins'.....No thanks.

My religion involves neither fear nor servitude. We are not big on guilt, just correcting the mistakes one makes. And our leaders are not greedy or evil. Maybe a few religions are like that, but you are caricaturing religion in general.
 
I don't really bother myself with questions the answer to which would be elusive at best.

But I do not think that we're here to reproduce. I sure hope we have made a bit of progress since our animal days on that matter. To me (and this really is a personal opinion), the day where we can freed ourselves from physical reproduction is going to be a great day. But that's a subject for another thread :)
 
Raisin Bran said:
IMHO we are put on this Earth for 1 thing and 1 thing only.

To reproduce ourselfs.

The sole purpose of life is to generate more life. Look all around at all living things, their only goal ist to survive to find a mate and reproduce. If you crunch down human life to its simplest expression, we work our ass off all our lives to survive and find a mate and reproduce and then die after your offspring can get out of the nest. This is just normal.

We humans live so long now that we have time to imagine that we were put on this earth for some kind of divine purpose.

This falls down on an indvidual by individual basis most people don't need to reproduce at all for the continuation of humanity, so as a philosophy of purpose it is meaningless. The fact is there is no reason to live if you accept God doesn't exist, should this be of great concern, not really, if there's nothing to live for make the most of it, have a bit of fun, stop forcing yourselves into social stereotypes about what purpose is and what you must do i.e. get married have kids, write the next great novel, fly to mars etc,etc. If you want to do these things feel free but don't fall into the trap of thinking you have to be marvelous and conform to an ideal to really exist, hapiness and enjoyment should be major parts of any existence based philosophy, what it is that you want not what is it you are expected to want. As long as your not hurting anyone then knock yourself out. :)
 
Raisin, if that's our only goal how come so many intelligent people choose NOT to reproduce?
 
"Raisin, if that's our only goal how come so many intelligent people choose NOT to reproduce"

Because birth control let's us satisfy physical urges while still not participating truly in reproduction.
 
It's not that we have to reproduce, it is just that the impulse is genetic and therefore those who have it will spread their genes while those who don't won't. That doesn't mean that the first type is more sucessful. For my part if I ever though that there is no life after this, given how unlikely it is that I will have children, I would still be able to find meaning in my life - if nothing else, I would find meaning in defying the meaninglessness of the universe.
 
Pyrite said:
"Raisin, if that's our only goal how come so many intelligent people choose NOT to reproduce"

Because birth control let's us satisfy physical urges while still not participating truly in reproduction.

I did not say its my only goal .... I just said that its the way I see the real reason for being on the earth.

I reproduced myself but I waited for the right time .... my gf used birth control before we had our kid.

to respond to your question I say that we lost our Family founding habits thru time..... the new society that we invented tends to limit birth .... and IMHO its not necessarly a good thing.
 
Top Bottom