Why are we sent to live in this awful world? What is the very purpose of life and suffering?

[Darkover]

55 million people die every year. That's about 2 deaths per second. In the time I took to write this sentence, 10 people have died. By the end of today, 150,000 people would have died. Every six weeks, the entire population of Singapore of 6 million people is wiped out.

The total number of humans in history is estimated to be 100 billion. That means only 7.7% of everyone who has ever lived is alive today. 92.3% are buried under our feet.

Behind each of these deaths was a father, mother, friend, lover, son, daughter, brother, sister, musician, doctor, teacher, inventor, business tycoon, king, emperor, thief, robber, rapist, murderer, dictator, lawyer. Behind each of these deaths was someone who lived a life not unlike yours. Each with his or her own struggles, dreams, hopes, fears, dissapointments. Yet what's left of these 100 billion lives?

Perhaps life is about your personal impact on others rather than humanity as a whole? But is that so? You probably remember your grandfather but what can you tell me about his father? Does anyone still remember him or has he faded into oblivion? That even his name has been forgotten much less his deeds? And why would it be any different for you or the 150,000 that will die today?

 

[Meditation guide]

It's not just humans, it's everything that ever lived.

Perhaps it's no more mysterious than simply the right mixture of chemicals, under the right conditions, spawn life in all its forms, just as stars and planets are born and die. We are simply in a soup called life.

 

[MiMif]

55 million people die every year. That's about 2 deaths per second. In the time I took to write this sentence, 10 people have died. By the end of today, 150,000 people would have died. Every six weeks, the entire population of Singapore of 6 million people is wiped out.

The total number of humans in history is estimated to be 100 billion. That means only 7.7% of everyone who has ever lived is alive today. 92.3% are buried under our feet.

Behind each of these deaths was a father, mother, friend, lover, son, daughter, brother, sister, musician, doctor, teacher, inventor, business tycoon, king, emperor, thief, robber, rapist, murderer, dictator, lawyer. Behind each of these deaths was someone who lived a life not unlike yours. Each with his or her own struggles, dreams, hopes, fears, dissapointments. Yet what's left of these 100 billion lives?

Perhaps life is about your personal impact on others rather than humanity as a whole? But is that so? You probably remember your grandfather but what can you tell me about his father? Does anyone still remember him or has he faded into oblivion? That even his name has been forgotten much less his deeds? And why would it be any different for you or the 150,000 that will die today?

Honestly I've come to the realization there is no meaning to life. People just live to live because that's the instinct their born with theirs no point...people.can.say to leave a legacy or whatnot but nothing ensures that legacy won't fade. Their is absolutely no meaning to this life. I do belive God exists however...though I doubt I'll be taken to his kingdom

 

[Deleted member 65988]

It's not just humans, it's everything that ever lived.

Perhaps it's no more mysterious than simply the right mixture of chemicals, under the right conditions, spawn life in all its forms, just as stars and planets are born and die. We are simply in a soup called life.

True, it's a brutal contest for the survival of life, pitted against each other over millions of years until the earth itself is destroyed one day by the sun. It's all totally pointless outside of the meaning we give to anything.

Does anyone still remember him or has he faded into oblivion? That even his name has been forgotten much less his deeds? And why would it be any different for you or the 150,000 that will die today?

Shows how unimportant we are in the grand scheme of things. Even I don't know my grandmother's great grandfather, I don't know how they lived or died. Eventually it'll be very meaningless to care about what anyone ever did no matter how great of a legacy they try to leave behind.

 

[ringo99]

I honestly didn't feel like this at first. There was optimism at the start and a feeling that I'd make something good out of my life. It took years of bad luck and my own stupid mistakes to break that illusion.

 

[FuneralCry]

I find it comforting to think of how eventually I'll just be forgotten about, that's all I wish for. It's just cruel how life had to be forced here in the first place when nobody could suffer from not existing. All that life is, is just a futile process of waiting around to die all while existing beings suffer so senselessly, there is no point or purpose. All we know will inevitably be forgotten about in death as by that point we simply won't be able to experience anything.

 

[Meditation guide]

I watch two youtube channels on birds of prey, one nest of bald eagles in California, and one nest box of Perrigrine Falcons in Australia.

Their lives are simply programmed by nature, and yet there is such beauty and a mystical sense of destiny, tied to Mother Earth, the pairs of birds show much love and devotion to each other, and affection, as they go about their daily lives of hunting, mating, raising their young every year. There is something I can't describe that is majestic and meaningful.

I also think about all the living creatures in the oceans over millions of years. Each grain of sand is made from ancient life. As I faced death one day in an angry ocean I had an overpowering sense that the ocean is alive and everything, all life in it that ever was, is one unit that makes up the living entity called ocean. It's alive.
It's a thinking feeling entity.

There is beauty, and tragedy, and consciousness. It's all connected. It's not us as individuals. Everything is literally one and this idea we are separate is an illusion. Everything is one big idea in someone's mind. I'm just a tiny speck of that in a meat suit. I'm no more important than a blade of grass, or the starling a Perrigrine Falcon had for lunch.

 

[Forever Sleep]

Unless you believe in a God, then- life was inflicted upon you by your parents. They may or may not be able to give you a reason why they thought it was a good idea. Beyond that- it's religion, spirituality and belief. Depends on what you believe as to 'who' you can blame for all this.

If we are just sentient sacks of meat that evolved to be like this- rather than being designed to be like this, then- our suffering doesn't need to be justified or rewarded. It is simply a mechanism to tell us something is wrong in our lives and we need to try and fix it. Either biologically, psychologically or emotionally. Doesn't mean we can fix it of course...

The main problem with all sentient life is it can experience suffering. The far worse problem with our particular species is that we are also aware that we are sentient! So- we suffer on multiple levels. We feel pain emotionally, physically and psychologically and then- we start railing against the universe that we are able to see ourselves and everything else experiencing this pain. It's like we get stuck.

It always astounds me with animals. Maybe not in every case but certainly in some- they sustain the most horrific injuries. Open wounds, lost limbs but sometimes- they just seem to carry on regardless- as best they can. I think one of our worst traits is maybe our enormous ability to feel sorry for ourselves. I'm not convinced that animals do it. Maybe pets do but you have to wonder if that's because they've spent too much time around us. It's not to say we don't have the right to pity ourselves and others but- maybe life would be simpler if we didn't!

As for meaning and legacy- again- that's a very human concept to try and motivate us to do something 'useful' with our time. Making an impact on the world usually involves paying taxes in some form or another or being selfless and helping other people/society in general.

Depends what you want out of life really. Do you want to be famous? Do you want to be admired for something you're good at? Does it make you feel good to help others? I think the majority of people in life who do get remembered were probably lucky enough to be good at something that was useful. So- they could afford to devote all their time and energy to it- could be anything- sport, music, art, nursing, science.

Just because someone isn't remembered for more than a few years- doesn't mean they had a shit life though. There are people we remember even now who struggled immensely in life. Sometimes that's why we remember them. People like Vincent Van Gogh. Do you not suppose he'd trade all the fame he got when he was dead to have sold more than one or two paintings when he was alive?!! Whats the good of all that post mortem admiration when he's not alive to see it! I expect many other people who lived far more regular lives under the radar were probably a lot happier in life. I don't think being remembered is always a good thing either. You can be remembered for all the wrong reasons! Become infamous rather than famous.

My Dad gets frustrated with me because I get so bogged down by the big philosophical questions in life. He's much better at just trying to enjoy the time he has left. That's the thing really- it's not like we're ever going to find the answers and the questions themselves make us miserable. It's hard though when we don't experience joy so much to do anything else but try and work out why everything is so shit!

 

[jackrussell023]

How do we find a purpose when we don't have any connections with the world?