LIFE AND MEANING

 

LIFE AND MEANING

 

As a writer with a strong philosophical bend it would be presumptuous to change the heading to—the meaning of life.  There is no single, defining answer to that question.  For starters, not a single human being is the same, thinks the same or will formulate an answer to the heading of this article that is identical.  We do share similar opinions and beliefs because most of us are united by tribal origins or national ties, yet we’re all uniquely different.  Not a big problem if your numbers are relatively small and you’re unmolested by outside interference.  It becomes more problematic if you share the world with over 8 billion people and counting.  Tuning each other out is increasingly difficult to accomplish.  We would like to, but the pressing proximity of so many people in close quarters defies quiet contemplation and the perplexing complexity of defining your existence and to give it meaning.  We’re not inclined to retreat into an introspective fugue, into a meditative trance to look inward and figure out the seemingly innocent question of life and if it has a deeper, or a personal meaning.

NO BLANKET INTERPRETATIONS

Why worry about life and meaning when most of us are too busy scuttling around like busy bees to keep the hive in working order.  One day flows into the other and there are hundreds of little and big things that occupy our thoughts and attention.  The deep thinking is best left to philosophers and writers for whom life and all its ups and downs seems to hold an endless fascination.  When I’m in one of these infrequent philosophical moods I tend to throw out questions to see what they provoke.  Not in your mind, but in my mind.  I don’t know what goes on in your mind and to be perfectly honest, perhaps that is a good thing.  As it is a good thing that you don’t know what goes on in mine!  Writers and philosophers are story tellers and we all know that stories have a habit of turning into embellished tales, especially if they catch on and a retelling takes place.  They become the kind of stories that take on a life all of its own.  And that will be the crux of this tale.  We share this planet with millions of other lifeforms and isn’t it amazing that out of all those millions only one emerged with a dubious kind of intelligence.  We call it superior, although I have my doubts.

For those of you who closely follow my narratives you will have noticed my fascination with energy and origin.  Energy made life possible and life is energy.  Living cells are us and everything else is matter.  Atoms.  I explained in Energy & Origin that within the greater evolutionary scheme it was perhaps inevitable that sooner of later a species would emerge that would turn into a supreme hoarder of energy to improve its life.  A slightly higher level of intelligence made this possible as it allowed humans to take advantage of all other lifeforms.  To their disadvantage!  But energy is a totally random and relentless force that can’t be denied.  Forceful and demanding.  The ability to use and transform energy to astounding and invasive levels has set humans apart from all other lifeforms. 

THE NATURAL WORLD

In the natural world life simply is.  It is all about the here and now, about survival, about tomorrow.  It is about the moment and whatever the moment brings.  The natural world has an enviable permanence because it lacks permanent manmade structures.  There is no distortion.  Nature simply claims, reclaims, sculpts, responds, adapts and morphs.  Everything seems to belong and even the most desolate areas display an untamed beauty that takes your breath away.  Nature dazzles in ways that none of us can imitate.  Our structures distort and overpower and everything we construct devours and destroys the natural environment.

There is an honesty in nature that we have lost.  The hardships in nature are all too real and it acknowledges the daily struggle to survive.  And yet it has done so for billions of years.  And the shameful admission I have to make, and I will do so on your behalf as well; I can no longer survive without artifice because I don’t know how.  Bringing nature back into our lives would frighten beyond belief.  We connect through technology and in the process we use horrendous amounts of energy to sustain the level of artifice we’ve become accustomed to.  That we’re in trouble is beyond a shadow of a doubt, but we soldier on.  Put a brave face on it.

ASK YOURSELF!

Isn’t it amazing that out of all the millions of different species that we share the planet with, that only one turned out like us.  Only one species left the natural bonds of nature behind!  It makes you wonder.  Was it a good move?  Is intelligence a blessing or a curse?  We have turned life into a paradox of contradictions.  If I could pose the question of life and meaning to a lion—theoretically speaking—I would probably be met with a stare of incredulity and the answer more than likely would be something like this, “I just am.”  None of those millions of other species have ever considered engaging in the kinds of activities that we partake in on a daily basis.  Incessantly toiling away.  Building.  Destroying.  Wasting.  Throwing away.  Accumulating.  Hoarding.  We do thousands of things that would only induce a massive amount of headshaking in all other lifeforms, if . . . if only they could respond in a manner we are accustomed to, and . . .  if they could; man, we would be in big trouble. 

  

In the natural world it is all about eat or be eaten, fight or flight.  But it doesn’t engage in mass murder, genocide and ethnic cleansing, in blanket bombing, concentration camps, scorched earth tactics, slavery and all kinds of other sordid activities humans engage in on a daily basis.  No phony excuses.  No grandstanding.  We engage in thousands of activities that don’t make sense.  You may rightfully suspect at this point that when it comes to the meaning of life that my opinion, my thoughts and suspicions, won’t be kind or lean towards a divine explanation.  When it comes to the divine I am a tad leery as you have to die first before securing that promised eternal life.  Nobody has ever come back to wax about it in absolute ecstatic terms, so, it’s either too good to be true or it resembles the many promises we make on earth and never keep.  We’re good at that.  Sincerity at times is like honey dripping down in generous rivulets until it reaches our lips and it evaporates like snow before a hot sun or it disappears like a desert mirage.

That slightly higher intelligence of ours comes replete with an insatiable imagination and curiosity that allow the mind to wander and consider all kinds of fanciful options and possibilities.  It is the “intelligent” human mind that provides the fertile soil for all the things we imagine.  We consider ourselves far removed from the natural world, yet physically and mentally we’re as challenged by the uncertainties of life as our earthly companions, all the ups and downs and the realization that life is a crapshoot from start to finish.  We are all fragile and susceptible to disease and decay, to hardship and deprivation.  When it comes to life and living we are no different than any other lifeform we share the planet with.

OUR BELIEFS ARE SUBSTITUTES TO MAKE UP FOR WHAT WE HAVE LOST AND LEFT BEHIND

The big difference?  We try to give life meaning.  Not just life.  Everything!  It is like looking for bright spots in a world that can be dark, bleak and menacing.  Emotionally animals react to a threat in similar ways as we do; they are as vulnerable and scared when confronted by danger.  Animals however don’t provoke unnecessary confrontation or actively seek it.  No gratuitous killing or hoarding.  They take what they need and nothing more.  So, this ability of ours to take advantage of other species, to absorb and use more energy, that superior intelligence that gives us an edge, is that really such a good thing?  Is it part of the meaning of life or are we looking for excuses to give life meaning?

THE THINGS WE COME UP WITH!

I am not a fan of divinity or a divine destination.  I also don’t care for the explanation that we’re the product of divine creation.  I don’t think we’re special!  Our rather poor performance on the world stage should serve as a grim reminder that when it comes to redeeming and outstanding qualities when compared to the natural world, we probably come in dead last.  Those determined to elevate humanity into the realm of the supernatural will continue to hold on to those beliefs until the day they die.  I don’t deny that religious beliefs and spirituality can give meaning to a person’s life, a grounding they’re looking for; security.  An anchor.  Faith has helped shape and unite communities, as do borders, a flag and a national anthem.  For centuries communities were shaped and transformed from the pulpit or through a small cadre of autocratic leaders.  In the name of God and King, millions of people have been sacrificed on the altar of religious and political bloodlust.  Life, when it comes to interpretation and meaning, we’re all over the place, from absolute sincerity and honesty to the exact opposite, lies and murder.

“Religion is the ultimate form of crowd control; supported by the masses and funded by the masses, it doesn’t get any better.”  B.B

And the excuses!  Man, we’re good at those.  From the right to question to outright condemnation and everything in between.  In my own, perhaps limited point of view, I have always viewed faith and religion as an antidote, a form of protectionism.  Especially in trying times, when everything appears topsy-turvy and little makes sense.  Religious settings can provide people with a sense of belonging and comfort.  A spiritual and higher celestial authority carries a welcoming appeal and softens the blows dealt by a society that increasingly behaves hedonistic and out of control. 

WE ARE NOT THE UNIVERSE, JUST A PART OF IT 

The celestial fireworks that we’re a part of have gone on for billions and billions of years and space cannot be defined by anything humans can measure or interpret with certainty.  It is a constantly evolving and changing process.  Within the vastness of the universe it is quite possible that other potentially, life-providing, solar systems and planets have formed.  Our own solar system will eventually disintegrate as the sun slowly dies and everything will be obliterated.  Whether other or similar lifeforms exist elsewhere in space is a rather moot point as distance, ability and technology render this a virtual impossibility.  We won’t be meeting whoever they are and they won’t be seeking us out.  I look around me and it saddens me how much we have destroyed and how much we ignore.  Any philosopher worth his salt would come up with a fancy ism to describe life and its meaning.  Something profound is my guess and so profound that hardly anyone gets it.  I’m a bit like the lion and when it comes to life and meaning I would like to respond with, “I am, and that is all that matters.”  Evolution has not been kind to human intelligence; few of us excel and most disappoint.  My suggestion:  Instead of looking for an answer, be the answer!