Life's Meaning

Much thought has been dedicated to answering the question "What is the meaning of life?"

We can never fully answer this question, though this does not mean we should stop trying to, for life ultimately has meaning.  The drive to live, and to perpetuate life, is so powerful and so profound that life must be meaningful.

My sense of it is that life's meaning is rooted in its cyclic nature.  As seasons change and return again and again, so too is life constantly re-born and never vanquished.  If there is one truth evident again and again it is that every ending is but a new beginning.  Though we are mortal, if this truth is all encompassing, and I believe it is, our death is but a new beginning as well.  In my mind, the idea of metamorphosis helps understand this notion.  We are all catepillars upon the earth.  However, like a catepillar who cannot understand what it is like to be a butterfly and soar, so too can we not comprehend what awaits us beyond death's door.

Within this idea of the cyclic nature of life lies a further truth: everything is connected.  We are all one, but are often so focused on self that we lose our connection with other.  This is a survival mechanism.  We must learn to distinguish and protect our "selves" from the threats of this world.  However, we are evolving to a point where this alienation of our selves will fade and the connectivity of everything in this world, in this universe, will open to us.  In fact, neurotheologists have studied the brain activity of those who claim to experience transcendental spiritual experiences.  Their findings show that the area of the brain responsible for distinguishing self from other is inactive during these moments of transendence, meaning that those experiencing this state are not filtering their experiences through the usually dominant lens of selfness.  Once we fully understand and embrace our connectedness, much of the darkness on this world will vanish as the sun of our compassion rises.  More on this in a later blog.

For now, let's think about what makes our individual lives meaningful.  We all search for meaning in our own lives.  However, it is important to understand that meaning, on an individual level, is not found but created.  If we want lives of meaning, we must create them.  We must become the people we need to be to live lives of personal meaning.  If we value artistic expression, we should create and appreciate art.  If we love others, we should live lives of service and compassion.  Our actions create meaning in our lives.  Our lives mean whatever we create.  Creativity, in the sense of building meaning and connection within our lives, is our birthright as human beings.  Thus, be open to discovery, but also understand your responsibility to live a life of meaning and creativity.