Discussion How are people ok with not knowing where the hell we came from?

[GoingHome11:11]

Our existence is incredibly weird.

I feel like whatever most people have that keeps them from thinking about this is broken within me. I literally think about this every single day and have for as long as I can remember, even as a child.

I never believed any of the religious stories because none of them have ever made sense to me. I was in catholic school up until high school and I was still never convinced. The big bang theory doesn't make sense either because where did the materials before the bang come from? The only thing that does make some sense (to me) is reincarnation, but there's still the question of why and it doesn't explain where we came from in the first place.

WHERE the hell did we really come from? WHY are we here??? Do normal people never think about this? It literally drives me mad and I can't take it anymore. I hate not having answers to anything, but especially this. We're just here, on this planet, doing these things, blindly living these lives.....how and for what? And knowing that there's actually some fascinating story out there about our creation and purpose that we'll never know is really hard to accept.

Some say we get these answers after death. I don't know if thats true, but it really doesn't matter if we do or not since it can't help us in this lifetime and if we really do reincarnate, we just forget it all over again anyway so it's of no use.

Whenever I try to talk to anyone about this, all I get is "why does it matter" or "I'm too busy/have too many other things to worry about to worry about that as well". People just don't seem to care about it and I don't understand how they can not?

Does anyone else also think about this daily?

 

[wildflowers1996]

I think about this so much too

Things don't necessarily have to have a cause. There may be no "how" or "why". The singularity which led to the Big Bang may have had no cause. It could've just come from nothing.

Either that or there was a cause that is outside of time and space.

I don't know which is more likely. Everything is so confusing. I hate not knowing too.

 

[Final_Choice]

I feel like most people at one point or another do have an existential crisis over this stuff, but it's just impossible to answer. There are so many theories and research into this stuff but because there's no new way to test if any of these theories are correct people have just accepted it and moved on, knowing that while they are still alive they will not get an answer, all they can do is theorize.

 

[UKscotty]

I think people ask this more than anything.

One thing governments have done well to be fair is invest in science and space. We spend hundreds of billions trying to work out where we came from.

 

[Forever Sleep]

I think it's because people know they won't likely get answers to these questions that they try to push them from their minds- because they know it will drive them nuts otherwise.

To me though- the big bang theory doesn't sound implausible if time stretches back infinitely. In an incredibly long period of time with stuff floating about in space, it seems like only a matter of time before some of it crashes in to other bits, chain reactions happen between chemicals and new things are formed.

I also don't see why there shouldn't always have been stuff floating about in space. I feel like linear time with a beginning, middle and end is a very human concept because we like to order stuff.

Once there is a world with even basic living organisms on, I don't see why evolution couldn't do the rest- again over billions of years.

I think it's just our brains that tend to want there to be sequences- a beginning, middle and end. A reason behind things etc. It's not to say there aren't reasons. Who knows? But then, I suppose I think- why should there be? We've only lived on this earth a fraction of the time the dinosaurs did. Were they also plagued by existential crises? I doubt it. I just think our brains are wired into fooling us into thinking how important we are. And- it's been successful. We're the most successful animals on this planet. We've worked out how to cheat all sorts of natural laws- to an extent.

 

[Aergia]

People just don't seem to care about it and I don't understand how they can not?

I think mostly either a) they're too focused on their personal lives and experiences to care (we didn't evolve to be philosophers, after all) or b) they've realised consciously that expending energy on the consideration of such questions simply isn't the pragmatic thing to do (it doesn't seem like we're getting any closer to an answer, after all).

 

[cantthinkofusername]

there is no answer
at some point u either have to accept that, or create ur own answer, or give up on life
still havent decided which tho

 

[divinemistress36]

Most people are focused on the materalistic world . Since I hate this world I ponder these questions a lot

 

[yeh it's all gucci]

I also don't see why there shouldn't always have been stuff floating about in space.

But then where did space come from!!!?

 

[sserafim]

I remember that when I was a kid, I thought about the universe and tried to comprehend how vast it was. I tried to grasp the concept of infinity. I couldn't get the concept of death, and the fact that things would still be here even when I ceased to exist. I tried to imagine what death would be like and what it would be like to be nonexistent forever. I considered it to be fade to black and then a black void. I also wondered how and why I got to be here and how and why this all happened (the creation of the universe). I still don't know the reason for all of this.

 

[divinemistress36]

But then where did space come from!!!?

The Aliens!

 

[davidtorez]

I think mostly either a) they're too focused on their personal lives and experiences to care (we didn't evolve to be philosophers, after all) or b) they've realised consciously that expending energy on the consideration of such questions simply isn't the pragmatic thing to do (it doesn't seem like we're getting any closer to an answer, after all).

I think this pretty much sums it up.

Our existence is incredibly weird.

I feel like whatever most people have that keeps them from thinking about this is broken within me. I literally think about this every single day and have for as long as I can remember, even as a child.

I never believed any of the religious stories because none of them have ever made sense to me. I was in catholic school up until high school and I was still never convinced. The big bang theory doesn't make sense either because where did the materials before the bang come from? The only thing that does make some sense (to me) is reincarnation, but there's still the question of why and it doesn't explain where we came from in the first place.

WHERE the hell did we really come from? WHY are we here??? Do normal people never think about this? It literally drives me mad and I can't take it anymore. I hate not having answers to anything, but especially this. We're just here, on this planet, doing these things, blindly living these lives.....how and for what? And knowing that there's actually some fascinating story out there about our creation and purpose that we'll never know is really hard to accept.

Some say we get these answers after death. I don't know if thats true, but it really doesn't matter if we do or not since it can't help us in this lifetime and if we really do reincarnate, we just forget it all over again anyway so it's of no use.

Whenever I try to talk to anyone about this, all I get is "why does it matter" or "I'm too busy/have too many other things to worry about to worry about that as well". People just don't seem to care about it and I don't understand how they can not?

Does anyone else also think about this daily?

Assuming you're a virgo by your username? Overthinking is a Virgo trait I would know .
I'm always thinking about this stuff . Every single day unfortunately, reading books and listening to scientists such as Sean Carroll and Neil degrasse tyson . There is a good philosophical book by shelley kagan called Death and looks at all the philosophical arguments for what happens after we die, the concept of personal identity and so forth.
I believe atm without the best of evidence, that the multiverse is a real possibility but can't be sure of course. I dont think there is any objective meaning to our lives, but only the meaning we give it. We're no different than other animals who eat ,shit ,sleep then die I think.

 

[yeh it's all gucci]

The Aliens!

But how did the aliens get there.. it's never ending, I can see why the OP is so worried about it.

 

[EmptyHeaded]

The big bang theory doesn't make sense either because where did the materials before the bang come from?

The theory explains this as well as we possibly can.

WHERE the hell did we really come from? WHY are we here??? Do normal people never think about this? It literally drives me mad and I can't take it anymore. I hate not having answers to anything, but especially this. We're just here, on this planet, doing these things, blindly living these lives.....how and for what? And knowing that there's actually some fascinating story out there about our creation and purpose that we'll never know is really hard to accept.

I don't believe there is a reason. Humans developed by chance and now we're here.
People don't care about where we come from because it's more or less well known. For the vast majority, thinking about where we come from is about as interesting as thinking about why we need a heart or why we can see through glass.

 

[sserafim]

The theory explains this as well as we possibly can.

I don't believe there is a reason. Humans developed by chance and now we're here.
People don't care about where we come from because it's more or less well known. For the vast majority, thinking about where we come from is about as interesting as thinking about why we need a heart or why we can see through glass.

Do you think that there's life on other planets?

I think this pretty much sums it up.

Assuming you're a virgo by your username? Overthinking is a Virgo trait I would know .
I'm always thinking about this stuff . Every single day unfortunately, reading books and listening to scientists such as Sean Carroll and Neil degrasse tyson . There is a good philosophical book by shelley kagan called Death and looks at all the philosophical arguments for what happens after we die, the concept of personal identity and so forth.
I believe atm without the best of evidence, that the multiverse is a real possibility but can't be sure of course. I dont think there is any objective meaning to our lives, but only the meaning we give it. We're no different than other animals who eat ,shit ,sleep then die I think.

I'm a Virgo too lol btw, and I can confirm that I'm an overthinker

But then where did space come from!!!?

And why was it created? Who created it?

 

[EmptyHeaded]

Do you think that there's life on other planets?

I guess it depends on how you define "life". IIRC there's been a few reports of bacteria on the Moon and Mars, but neither have been fully confirmed yet. As for more complex life, probably. It would be rather strange if only Earth hosts complex life.

 

[sserafim]

I guess it depends on how you define "life". IIRC there's been a few reports of bacteria on the Moon and Mars, but neither have been fully confirmed yet. As for more complex life, probably. It would be rather strange if only Earth hosts complex life.

I guess I mean life as well as intelligent life. I always thought that there must be something else out there, but where, and why haven't they contacted us yet? Maybe they don't want to? I guess the universe is so vast that they could be anywhere

 

[mtoro998]

Because everyone knows its a question they wont be able to figure out. Maybe thats why the government wont let us explore Antartica maybe the answers we need are there.

 

[sserafim]

Because everyone knows its a question they wont be able to figure out. Maybe thats why the government wont let us explore Antartica maybe the answers we need are there.

What's special about Antarctica?

 

[Oliver]

Because everyone knows its a question they wont be able to figure out. Maybe thats why the government wont let us explore Antartica maybe the answers we need are there.

Agartha?

What's special about Antarctica?

Lot's of theories. There is the inner-earth theory about there being a secret "portal" to the inside of the earth, where there is a secret world called Agartha.

 

[Tears in Rain]

The big bang theory doesn't make sense either because where did the materials before the bang come from?

Good point. Scientists just ignore this, and focus on how things developed after the Big Bang. But how can something come from nothing?

WHERE the hell did we really come from?

You possibly came from nothingness/consciousness, and will go back to nothingness/consciousness.

WHY are we here???

Maybe to provide drama/amusement for consciousness.

Do normal people never think about this?

Maybe at some points in their life, if they live long enough, they may question what the hell this thing called life is all about. But for the most part, everyone's caught up in their daily dramas. Constant everyday distractions and carrot-chasing.

And knowing that there's actually some fascinating story out there about our creation and purpose that we'll never know is really hard to accept.

What do you mean by 'some fascinating story'?

 

[mtoro998]

What's special about Antarctica?

All of these countries that cant agree on anything else all agreed on the antartic treaty. You cannot go there aside from a small area where tours are permitted. If anyone tries to explore the rest of the continent they are met with military force. Something is definitely being hidden there.

 

[EmptyHeaded]

I guess I mean life as well as intelligent life. I always thought that there must be something else out there, but where, and why haven't they contacted us yet? Maybe they don't want to? I guess the universe is so vast that they could be anywhere

There are different views on it. Lack of intelligent life (besides humans) could mean that either all intelligent life gets wiped out or wipes itself out after a certain amount of time. It could also mean that we're simply the first intelligent lifeform. Assuming that there is other intelligent life, it's likely that they haven't discovered us either.

Good point. Scientists just ignore this, and focus on how things developed after the Big Bang. But how can something come from nothing?

They don't "ignore it". It's as well explained as we can explain it with out current understanding of physics.

 

[escape_from_hell]

I am prepared to accept that we will not have the answer to these ultimate questions.
Be suspicious of any human claiming they have such answers.

Why?

Simulation theory is a pop topic now. Explains nothing. Same recursive problem, turtles all the way down, but where did god come from etc. However, simulation theory can help us to imagine there is a system running with physics/rules within. The movie 'The Matrix' panders to our anthropocentric/narcissistic 'main character' syndrome where we are somehow more real or special than our surroundings and magically able to escape our predicament (to another layer of Matrix?).

But within a system of rules (physics, our human attempt to understand nature's rules), how would anything in that system transcend the system? Try this experiment: write a computer program featuring a cat that meditates so hard it is enlightened and and escapes its own code and can just stop working at its own will (which you totally didn't program...), maybe even magically transforms into a flesh and blood cat and sits on your lap as you type away at the very computer you programmed it on, like the movie Weird Science. Sound familiar?

But maybe the answers will come, we have cool AI and AGI is right around the corner. At what point are we able to solve the hard problem of consciousness through this means? Will we need to AGI to tell us what line of code or specific configuration of neural net did it? Hey, maybe. Some humans seem to think they have the answer to this already though, they are working on it after all. And if the AGI gives you that answer, what will it do for you? Will it save us, and can it save us, like maybe the same way we can save a cat we program described above?

This is not meant to a semantic game or teaser or rhetorical or anything really. I do not have the answers! Just guessing that being instantiated within something makes it pretty damn difficult to understand the thing within which you are instantiated. The matter and energy in our bodies seems to follow rules like those of the rest of the material world around us (gravity, chemical reactions, and so forth). Maybe god cannot even help us. Maybe this is what spiritual gurus mean when they say we do not exist. Plenty of gurus and answers and never any satisfaction other than the feeling of satisfaction and easing of anxiety in your brain.

Try as hard as you can, can you explain to a random cell in your body, say a cell in one of your leg muscles, that it is part of this human body interacting in this world right now and doing all these things and is important and helping you and that it may die from infection or be strained and all these things but is still important to you the system? It is you, literally you your very flesh and blood, and you cannot help it. Even if you could, it does not have the capacity to process or handle all that information, it is one of your building blocks. I am not saying this is analogous to our predicament, I do not know! But we are miniscule on the universal scale of which we are aware.

Now, to allow room for hope, just because we cannot program a cat that magically pops out of the computer, maybe there is a higher power that can. We have 3D printers and CNC machines and all that stuff. Maybe we are like Pinocchio and become real. Whatever real is. And finally have an answer. What will the answer do for us...or is it just the peace it would bring that we are after?

 

[theboy]

people don't ask themselves these existential questions (or at least not that often). they just don't care or are satisfied with not knowing.

 

[Gonnerr]

We are in hell , the real one. Being sentient is such a punishment.

 

[Forever Sleep]

But then where did space come from!!!?

Do you think it's impossible then, for certain things to always have existed? Random particles/objects and space in between them? Why does everything need to have a start date? A creation point?

Not to say that is more theoretically strong than there being an actual beginning but- it just strikes me as very human to want it all to be nice and neat. Because, we can't really comprehend infinity or forever.

I suppose the way I come to terms with it is that it's too big for me to comprehend. I can't envisage there not being a start date. Not being an end to the multiverse. But- when there is infinity- a whole lot of things seem more possible. Especially if the raw materials are already there, floating about.

The bigger problem- I feel is when we do start applying our own human theories. That everything has an absolute beginning and there is intention behind all of it. As in- Gods- because obviously- where did they come from? Where did they get the stuff to create with?

I think @Darkover would have some interesting things to say about this...

 

[yeh it's all gucci]

Do you think it's impossible then, for certain things to always have existed? Random particles/objects and space in between them? Why does everything need to have a start date? A creation point?

I uh, ummm... My brain just can't, it's too hard to think about like space had to start somewhere. I'm too dumb for this convo.

 

[Praestat_Mori]

Sure, it's be interesting to know why all that happened and whether or not there is a higher being behind all that. But what would be different if we had the answers? They'd probably won't change anything! Yes I would like to know where we r coming from and why the universe came into existence but it doesn't drive me crazy not getting an answer.

 

[Forever Sleep]

I uh, ummm... My brain just can't, it's too hard to think about like space had to start somewhere. I'm too dumb for this convo.

No, you're not too dumb. I think we're all really limited when trying to comprehend such huge concepts. We don't have anything to compare it to either. Most of what we are familiar with exists in life cycles. But then- I suppose- not everything. Water exists in some form or another I suppose. Can you destroy water? Isn't it always steam or water or ice some place?

There's that whole theory that energy can't be created or destroyed too- only transfered from one source to another. So that would suggest that something has always existed.

I suppose I also say to myself- if the multiverse is infinite. If you can never reach the edge of it, then that's enormous! Isn't it more probable in a way that all that stuff has always been there in some form or another? It's just that various events like The Big Bang created our known universe.

But yeah, I agree, it's a puzzle. It's scary too. I don't know how astronomers and physicists don't get freaked out by it all. Like black holes. They seem terrifying. But then- it does make sense to me that a universe could come out of a black hole. Imagine all that exists in our universe being sucked into a vortex and squashed down to a tiny ball. It makes a laymans kind of sense that if you put shit loads of volatile elements together under terrific pressure, they'll eventually explode back out again. I don't know if that's what did happen. I believe there have been connections made between black holes and the start of a universe though. Kind of like upcycling on a massive scale...