The Meaning of Life
I very often find myself asking this question. The answer I usually ascribe to it is that there is none. Morbid? Well…
Very often when dealing with the existential thoughts that rummage in my head daily, I attempt to balance the scales which assess determinism and free will. On one hand, I like to believe that everyone has a destiny, a road map for which their life should follow. A happily ever after as movies and books often aim to depict it as. However, on the other, I see the world around me and question how anything quite so beautiful can exist in our world of shame.
Religion likes to communicate the idea that we are doing this for a reason, that all our suffering somehow has a purpose and meaning to it. A story I could never quite bring myself to believe. In reality, I wish I did. I wish I could see the meaning and power of God in our world. I wish I could look at my life during a tough spot and say, “this is all worth it in his name”. But how can I? On my little island in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, all I see is corruption, poverty, insecurity, exploitation and quite frankly too much pollution to breathe. I recently had to consciously unfollow all news platforms on Instagram in an attempt to shield myself from the thick smoke of dread preoccupying the news. Everything I watch simulates an anger and unhappiness in me that I thought I’d never see. Do I blame our lack of political goodness, yes! Do I blame the failure of media outlets who care more so about bringing in brand deals to keep their incomes coming in than they do about the truth, justice and social movement? Yes! Do I blame myself for somehow caring about the little speck of dust we call home? Definitely! But how can I not care?
The human race is a failed species, that I recognise, but it is one with the most beautiful history and the strongest passion. This passion fuels me and makes me believe that we can be better. Perhaps that's all a dream is, a need to see things differently, the ability to picture something better, and above all else hope to see it come to life. In all senses of the word, we are dreamers, we dream of love through literature, beauty in architecture, passion through policy, and humanity through crime.
Perhaps that is the balance, the fine line between destiny and reality. Our ability to think of something better and our ability to make it happen, that's what fuels us and what creates what most associate with ‘purpose’. We want to make our dreams come true, but most of the time, our fatal flaw prohibits us from doing otherwise … our ego prohibits us from doing otherwise.
According to a google search, which just so happened to bring up the much studied ‘Simply Psychology’ website, ego is defined as,
A system which lives
“according to the reality principle, working out realistic ways of satisfying the id’s demands, often compromising or postponing satisfaction to avoid negative consequences of society. The ego considers social realities and norms, etiquette and rules in deciding how to behave.”
You see Freud defines ‘the self’ into three categories, the ID, Ego and the Superego. The ID, is our primitive instincts, what I would call our will and need to survive and also be comfortable. The Ego as defined above would then be our will to satisfy our Id, and our Superego is a part of the unconscious that is the voice of ‘conscience’ (doing what is right) and the source of self-criticism. Now what I am about to say Freud did not, but I find it to be a fair assessment. Our superego is our potential to dream and hope for bigger and better things, within the limits of our moral compass which is passed down and developed as we grow up. I know, big claims and big words, but here is how I see it. As a child your mind is capable of the unthinkable, it understands every possibility to be exactly that, a possibility (superego). As we grow up we are taught, because power and egos mix too well together, that our clay brains must be moulded into the exact same mug. It must work hard, struggle hard and aim to be economically independent. You must be a husband or wife, and you must give back to the state what it has given you. The state gives you protection, and the ability to become, but to do it needs money. ‘So why don’t you pay taxes’ says the state. Your Id comes in here, it brings out the desire to conform because if you conform then you are protected, and you are safe. And isn't the purpose of all of this for you to be safe? As time goes by your will ‘to be’ becomes polluted by your need to survive and over time your will ‘to be’ is lost.
“So, we, their hearts speak more and more softly”
The Alchemist for me was a big factor in these trains of thoughts. For those who
have not yet read the book, although I do very much recommend you do, The Alchemist follows a shepherd boy, ‘The boy’ as the author refers to him. The Boy is told by a King that a treasure awaits him in Egypt. At first the boy cannot believe that such a thing exists, such a quest would require him to leave everything behind in search for a treasure he knows almost nothing about. But in that moment the boy feels his “heart”, and at the end goes on this quest. As the quest goes on, and I must inform you that a slight spoiler is ahead here, the boy learns the ways of the world and above all else, he learns to listen to his “heart”. I won’t tell you if he finds his treasure or not, that is for you to read. However, the point of the book is not the treasure, but the ability for you to recognise the language of the world once you begin listening to your “heart”. In this context your “heart”, refers to your will ‘to be’. As the King says,
“when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it”…
A phrase I cannot deny.
So my conclusion on all of this, and perhaps the reason why I took such a winding road to answer the question at hand is this. Life has no meaning, but the one you set for it yourself. When you dream, in whatever area or field you dream yourself in, the only thing standing in the way of making that happen is you. Life will always be troubled, our humanities need to follow our ego and the Id solely prescribes it. But do not let those who are too scared to fully see their dream, keep you from yours. Life’s only purpose is to live and live with your “heart” … or your will ‘to be’, in all its clay-like glory.
“Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second’s encounter with God and with eternity.”
As mentioned, I don’t affiliate myself with religion, but I am growing to be more spiritual, perhaps that's why this book resonated so highly with me. Now all this is not to say that this rambling brain fart is fact. For all I know, I may be back in 10 years and say that I was wrong. But being wrong is the golden line of growth
Until another book or piece of art makes me think,
