If, as is suggested by astro-physicist, the universe had its beginning after the Big Bang,( with the exact nature of what initiated it still up for a lot of conjecture), the question needs to be asked: Did the the cascading events that emanated from the Big Bang that then ultimately led to life ( on earth, ---in the case of humans) have any direction, meaning or purpose beyond the happenstance and haphazard formation of "matter"?
If true, does man's existence on earth have any meaning or purpose beyond the material? Is man's formation (via the evolutionary process) no more than a "happy"(?) /"freakish"(?) ending to the unintentional mixing of atoms, that became molecules, that then spontaneously grouped together to become cells, then individual organs, then organ systems that make up the human body?
I'f man's existence does not go beyond the material and physical, then why even develop a multifaceted, multilayered organ ( the brain )of such complexity that it has made him a sentient, volitional, and creative being.
If the universe exist just for the sake of existing, why did its creation led to the formation of an entity(humans) that is capable of being aware that he and a universe that sorrounds him exist?
"The Universe and the Meaning of Life" have been created by Allah Almighty.He has not created all that as futile.It is with purpose.
According to the Holy Qur'an:
"Blessed be He in Whose hands is the kingdom of the universe and has power over all things. The One who created death and life, so that He may put you to test, to find out which of you is best in deeds. He is the All-Mighty, the All-Forgiving. The One who created the seven heavens, one above another, you will not see anyflaw in the creation of the Compassionate. Look once again, do you see any flaw?Then look still another time, yet again your sight will come backbewildered, and feel exhausted. We have decorated the heavens of this world with lamps and We made them as missiles for pelting the Evils and thus prepared for them the scourge of flames."
My post was not meant to ask these questions to the choir..i.e believers in a Supernatural Being, what in the Quran is called Allah. Rather, these questions were meant for those whose idea of the Universe and everything in it is lmited to what would neatly fit a purely astro-physical equation and formulation.
One of the most brilliant minds of our generation, the noted astro=physicist, Stephen Hawkings, in an interview on Time magazine stated quite stunningly that he is not one of those who believe that God does not exist; but then qualified his statement that there is no personal God, but an impersonal one. The impersonal God to his mind being the "laws of physics"
It is not enough to love life and ponder on its meaning - but to LIVE it! Life is for living!!
Get this concept and everything else falls into place - love, joy and abundance.
Love life... live life...and you'll find joy and abundance. Simple, safe, secure.
But... is that ALL there IS?
Is thinking, dreaming, or imagining part of the material/physical existence you are referring to? The brain it is said .....is the conduit by which these processes come into being but where do they originate? In a non physical part of existence.
Pennyof heaven:
It is the non physical part of existence that some people have a lot of difficulty conceptualizing. As earthbound are their thinking of what is real and unreal, the idea that there is more to material entities than their mere physicsl shape and form, totally escapes their spatial perception.
Villa:
I must be bluntly honest.
I hate to read your comments!
Your use of English is awful!
I've forgotten, did you say English is not your native language?
if it isn't I'll give ya a break.
If it is, you should be embarrassed.
The "devil" made me type that!"
Qwark
The "devil" made me type that!"
You may not be so far from the truth here - I write a bit about reality and one thing that is becoming clear is that when you think into someone else's reality everything reverses, not as in 'opposite' but as in mirror image, or like the controls of the first aeroplanes that went through the sound barrier - everything is the same but you have to steer up to go down. Our friend V appears to be in the mirror looking out and I guess 'normal' reality looks kinda turned around and requires convoluted words to try to describe what he sees. If you work it through, then whole paragraphs can normally be reduced to a few simple words, and they still mean very little.
China:
I don't get that far thru a reading to be able to make sense of it.
Qwark
Chinaman:
You've been in China for how long? and you still don't have any clue as to how the oriental mind works. A pity.
I have a very good idea of how the oriental mind works, it has one foot frimly in some kind of 'Romantic era' thinking that makes it impossible for it to see many modern concepts that require balancing two views at the same time, it likes to impose what it sees on the reality around it and is not as creative as the western mind.
Phillipino however is not really Asian, although it may have derived from the same ancient stock. With a history of only a few hundred years, and that steeped in the horrors, racism and domination of Spanish Catholicism, the Phillipino is still emerging from the thinking that came with its second class citizen status under the Spanish rule. But don't worry, I am sure they will catch up one day; however, I don't think that mimicking the convoluted mind bending twaddle of your previous Christian masters is helpful at all.
Chinaman:
I'm impressed!!!!. Not really. So do me a big favor and stop twaddling whatever miniscule twaddle you have about how the oriental mind works. You know nothing... nada.. zilts, zero.
Sorry I'm late but just found this -
I note you blabber instead of making any comment or offering your self impressed wisdom on the 'oriental mind' - ?
Trying to slide the outdated concepts of religion into threads and disguising them with long words is not very 'oriental', I find most of my oriental friends to be straight forward and honest.
China Man:
You certainly took that bait... hook, line and sinker. How can you have any understanding of something that does not exist. The "Oriental Mind" is a myth propagated by ill-advised westerners( like you) who soon finds out that their first foray into these parts of the world is usually their last. Asians are not a homogenous group, so you can not lump into one big heading "Oriental Mind" the Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Filipino, Malayan, Burmese, Thai psyche. Long words my foot...you must be delusional.
Qwark:
Thanks for the vote of confidence... coming as it does from you, it must not meaning anything much.
Villa:
You see what I mean?
Your comment:
"...coming as it does from you, it must not meaning anything much."
I can guess what "...it must not meaning anything much." means but don't you see these mistakes?
You attack me for pointing them out to you! Why?
Dubya was told many times that nuclear should be pronounced noo-clee-er, not nook-ya-ler. He was so ignorantly arrogant that he refused to pronounce the word correctly.
I'm trying to offer constructive criticism and you pull a dubya attitude on me.
Whew!
Qwark
Qwark:
Just thought I might give you more fodder for your careful consideration and constructive criticism. Well the bait wasn't that much but you took it hook, line and sinker.
Villa:
Time and reading more of your writings will tell me whether or not you were guilty of a "ploy."
I'm watching you
Qwark
Qwark:
You're very funny. Thank God your humour has not taken leave of all your senses.
I could say that it's the real part of existence that some people have a lot of difficulty accepting. As heaven bound, reality escapes their perception.
Would you feel a bit put off by that? If so, then imagine for a moment how put off others might feel by what you wrote.
Sandra:
I'm as earthbound as you are, but I give myself the luxury once in a while of soaring out of my earthly shackles, to find wonders, of all wonders.
I'm reading a library book that answers this question really well: "The Atheist's Way - Living Well Without Gods" by Eric Maisel. Don't be put off the title if a believer - it is not a hate book. Very very interesting. Talks about making your own meaning and explains why believers have higher rates of depression than atheists.
Nope, and there is no need for direction, meaning or purpose behind our existence, unless one is inclined to philosophize them for their own personal satisfaction.
Nope, and there is no reason to to consider such things beyond ones own fragile ego.
You ask a "why" question where no "why" answer is required beyond the philosophical self-indulgence of the fragile ego.
See above, re: philosophy and fragile ego.
What is the purpose of having the brain that you mention and then not use it. Faith in something unkown, unseen, and not present in the world that we live in, also defeats the purpose of having intelligence.
It would be different if there was no mystery about what we are here for, and where we go from here.
There are enough mysteries on Earth that if solved could be beneficial to all mankind, but to sit about and wonder what we are here for is just a waste of the brain.
Mankind hasn't changed for the better since the beginning of recorder history, so having faith in the unkown, and waiting to find out where we go is a waste of time to be living.
The world and the universe don't appear to be designed, as we use the concept when we design products. It is more like how we invent a lot of things. Scientists trying to invent synthetic rubber during WWII, instead invented Formica.
Formica was a good product but it didn't work well to making tires.
The point is that it doesn't take intelligence to blindly follow the unknown. Domestic dogs are very faithful but not that intelligent, Cats are not very faithful and they use us to their benefit.
I believe in the phrase, "NO Good Deed Goes Unpunished".
Religion is not an answer to your question, and as you pointed out science doesn't answer the question.
Would it really make a difference if the entire universe was just our Solar System?
I don't think it would make any difference.
@ opinion duck:
I have always argued that man's existence on earth must have a higher purpose other than just what is so obvious to a lot of hubbers i.e. purely to fulfill the biologic need to eat, sleep, breath, urinate, defecate, procreate.
and to write gibberish posts on hubpages. If that is our only lot in life, then man's existence is no different from the rats that goes scampering in the garbage dump.
Man's higher purpose is to unravel the mysteries of his own existence and that of the universe around him. If that should sound too phantasmogorical to some of you.. then who am I to disabuse you from such a nihilistic impression.
The Universe and the Meaning of Life are two separate subjects.
One does not need to understand the Universe, it's origins or anything else about it, to create meaning in their life or for their life.
Cagsil:
You are absolutely right is saying one does not need to understand the nature of the universe to be able to perceive and or formulate meaning to one's life.
But wouldn't it be so incomprehensively satisfying to be able to capture and understand a grain or two of the truth of the universe, while in the process of formulating the meaning of one's life? The elucidation, illumination, and levitation one would get by weaving those two processes would be exhilirating, beyond words.
I meant to say incomprehensibly satisfying...
The question just illustrates the limits of thinking. There is far more that we do not know than we are even aware of.
Whatever thinking we use to deal with the unknown we are forced to look inward at our own place and everything relative to that. If we think of the Universe is a single entity then the evolution of life leading to conciousness could be thought of as the universe becoming aware of itself. This might partly explain the psychotic and childish nature of human society, the evolution of awareness looking for its absent father/mother as the inward looking view of our subjective coming into being.
An interesting thought: The universe becoming aware of itself.... in effect giving the same sentience, and volition that humans possess to what astro-physcists consider are but a conglomeration of atomic and sub-atomic particles.
I think the two are inextricably intertwined. man needs to connect with the universe in order to understand his own life, which is like a microcosm of the entire universe. I believe we begin to understand the meaning of life when we make this connection.
The connection being, not merely physical, but metaphysical as well.
I agree. Humans have been looking up at the stars and calculating the heavens since ancient times.
I'm not trying to sound all "The Secretey" or anything, but the Universe (to me) really is a self-fulfilling prophecy; an ever-expanding incomprehensibly large congregation of matter that may have no purpose outside of the realm of random events. Yes, that would suck if it were so, which is why I stress the importance of living forever. It just seems like it's better to be safe than sorry.
I believe the potential of human beings is truly amazing, and with the advancements in modern medicine it's actually possible for our lifespans to be extended by 50-100 years in our lifetime, and in that elongated lifetime who knows what could happen. What I'm trying to say is that we could potentially become so advanced/intelligent that virtually ANYTHING is possible. Anything in the realm of Physics, that is.
Amazing Things in the Realm of Physics:
1. Time Travel
2. Exploring the Universe
3. Higher Level of Consciousness
4. Traveling between Parallel Universes
5. DVRing 5 shows at the same time
6. Not having to shower.
Or maybe the Universe was created in 6 days about 6000 years ago. Either way, I'm very comfortable with my sexuality and I'm not ashamed to say that I really enjoy some good ol' Kanye West.
HHmmm not having to shower?
I don't know if ever I would take advantage of that one. Showering is one of the more pleasurable things that some of us still love doing, what with warm soapy water cascading down our back, tingling, and genly massaging our spines at the same time. Now if you tell me that water may not be available as a commodity to be used for that purpose in the not too distant future, then that doesn't augur well for man's continued presence on earth.
I thought that everyone knew that the answer to the meaning of life, the universe and everything was 42.
Incomprehensively satisfying? To satisfy oneself is always comprehensible. So, you using those together is actually quite irrelevant. In truth, it may seem like you've said something profound and full of meaning, but in fact- you haven't.
There is no need to comprehend the universe, because it makes no real difference on the outcome of one's meaning of life or even purpose of life.
But, you're welcome to belief what you want. My life rewards me as I expect it to, because there is nothing hidden within my life that I do not know of. My meaning is in place and my purpose is in place. Hence, there is no need for understanding the Universe or it's origins or anything else about it.
Well if you are quite satisfied with what you have formulated as tthe meaning and purpose of your life, who am I to disabuse you from it?
Go for it. Meanwhile, we, starstruck fools will go our merry way believing that being made of stardust ( Carl Sagan's contribution to human thought)ourselves, we can go forever reaching for the stars.
Since the Universe is Life itself,
whosoever understand Life will also
understand the universe.
When you come to such a knowledge you
are then One with the universe and
nothing will be impossible to you.
Pennyofheaven, you do not need to understand the universe to understand life. The vast majority of people do not think of the universe that way. Basically, we and other organisms on this planet happen to be here by chance because of the random events that took place after the birth of the universe. We were on the verge of extinction about 160,000 years ago. It was estimated the human population dropped to a low 10,000 because the climate became extremely cold and dry and people began to stay in clusters. Global warming saved us the first time back then. Again man faced extinction again during the last ice age about 23,500 years ago. The mammoths saved us that time, but the Neanderthals did not survived the 1,000 year ice age. Also, 98% of documented species are now extinct today because there have been several major extinction events since life first evolved on earth. We are simply here by chance because this planet is in what is called the "Goldilock Zone", it happens to be in the right place for life to exist.
Melpor:
I'm giving you a standing ovation!...and I'm screaming YESSS! and whistling!
You are an EDUCATED man!
There are so few of US!!!!
Qwark
Qwark:
Please control yourself.....your enthusiasm for Melpor's prosaic prose is not as contagious as you would like it to be. At least from my perspective.
I agree one does not need to understand the universe to understand life. Understanding life is on ongoing process and is highly subjective to each of us. Going back to our origins seems like a pointless exercise when now is all we have to live in. Unless the knowledge of our origins is able to give more insight into this very moment then the exercise may be worth while. Whether life exists because we are in the right place for life to exist or not we still only have this moment.
Melpor:
Did you say that there were 2 or 3 near extinction episodes for Homo Sapiens? and with nearly 90% of all "known" specie having gone the extinction route? Was it luck or Divine intervention?
"There is no solution; seek it lovingly "
— Socrates
How on earth is it possible to answer a question like that?
All that can come forth are a multitude of opinions, all of which are different depending on the particular religion of the person.
It's not even remotely possible to present any form of evidence, and if it doesn't have evidence that is scientifically verifiable, then it's not an answer.
Science, incidentally, only seeks to explain what is possible to explain. It cannot deal with things that it cannot explain.
I don't get it.
Meaning of life?
Do you mean a "sense of significance?"
To the "universe" we exist as a "happening." Nothing more.
Meaning takes a "conscious" mind to comprehend.
Meaning, then, can only be a "personal" concept.
Significance of life? Absolutely none.
Here for a moment, gone for eternity.
Qwark
Quark:
So you are still at it... plying your nihisltic view of man and his place in the universe, to unsuspecting hitchhikers(humans) on a planet(earth) that just was at the right place("goldilock zone) , and at the right time (oh a few million years ago, give or take) towards what... NOTHING?
So you posting all your silly notions on HubPages about the non-meaning of life is one supreme act of futility on your part?
Interesting concept... if I may say so.
I would say life has the signifance you attribute to it and therefore bring to it. But that is subjective.
Our universe is within a mass of 'universes'. This is the only thing that can be construed as infinity, because a universe has an outer limit. After the birth of a new universe there comes the subsequent birth of a 'first life-form'. The first of all beings in our universe (the beginning of cells, chromosomes, genes and DNA) is that which we know as God. The first being to come from God (known as the firstborn son [seed] of God) is known as Archangel Michael. This is where (if you are inclined) it all begins.
Interesting concept... one, which I have never heard before, being discussed in any forum. Please kindly give me some reference material on the idea you just proposed. Thanks
EnglishM is your reference, A Villarasa. If you are so inclined?
So kindly educate me on these interesting idea you have.
Not feeling the universe needs an excuse just to exist is not "nihilistic". In fact it is stating that simplying being has intrinsic value and we are under no implict obligations because we exist. I find it kind of optimistic and liberating.
I can agree with this - it is the other side of the issue facing the old ways of thinking - being over the chasm and unafraid. Religion is turning back and refusing to step out into the new era by dogmatically insisting that what we know to be untrue is true. By contriving and constructing any kind of mess as long as it looks like the past.
We are not even talking about religion here... and why do you always look at these things through the prism of a religious belief?
Psycheskinner:
Sorry but my not having any connection to the universe and my place in it having no existential meaning just is not my definition of being non-nihilistic.
Perhaps you need to think more about how people can see the world differently to you that is still positive, fulfilling and holsitic? Not finding meaning where you find it is not the same is not finding meaning full stop.
That's a big question. To me you look as a string of letters and a pic on a computer screen. I can easily write a program that does the same. Does this mean it will exist in the same sense you think you exist?
Hello Milla: Thanks for telling these too physically oriented hubbers that human existence should and must not be cocooned into a very strict, materialist construct. .. that man's life is not purely physical but spiritual as well.
The meaning of life is the same as the meaning of getting hungry:
"It's there, the energy worked itself into that frame, and it just happens"
Does this mean that life is pointless?
Nah, of course not! I LOVE eating steaks! I LOVE thinking about the finer things in life! I LOVE studying about how best to help my fellow man.
I just know that, one day, I'm going to die, and that'll be that.
"what's it like to die?" a man was asked. "I don't know, but I figure it'd be a lot similar to what it was like before I was born!" The man responded.
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