If nothing happens after we die, what's the point of it all?
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
You are the Universe experiencing itself.
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
IIRC, the nihilist position is that there is no point, and the way I've chosen to interpret that is that it means we are free to personally define the point at any time, and for any length of time, as we please. The pointlessness lets us custom design life to fit our needs and desires, if we can minimize getting caught up in "you should do this and be that" external mentalities that may be incompatible with our natures. This seems like one of many correct paths to life satisfaction.
Of course, part of the battle is discovering what's in your(you in general not you specifically) nature to do and be, and then having the courage to see it through no matter what influences around you are saying or doing that may contradict it. The other part being unlearning incompatible mindsets that may have been fed into your mind when you were younger; authority figures anywhere in, and in any stage of, life are in dangerous positions to cause long term harm to impressionable, trusting minds, which is why I personally focus more on the "figure" and less on the "authority" part of "authority figure" when I'm dealing with people in those positions.
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it" - Aristotle or whoever actually said it.
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
Learn. Evolve. Improve one's mind. Understand more of the universe. Gain a greater understanding of one's place in the universe. Grow beyond what we understand and comprehend existence at this point.
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
Well, things do happen after you die, just not to you.
Compassion for those who come after us is one possible source of meaning.
One could also consider that having no afterlife makes this life more meaningful than it would be compared to an infinity.
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
There is no purpose but to be alive, or rather, you make your own purpose.
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
Because the alternative would be having no happiness at all.
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There's no meaning, no purpose. We're random life on a random planet. Try to have a happy life and try not to inhibit the happiness of others. That's it.
There’s no meaning, no purpose.
... That you don't provide yourself, and it could be anything.
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IIRC, the nihilist position is that there is no point, and the way I've chosen to interpret that is that it means we are free to personally define the point at any time, and for any length of time, as we please. The pointlessness lets us custom design life to fit our needs and desires, if we can minimize getting caught up in "you should do this and be that" external mentalities that may be incompatible with our natures. This seems like one of many correct paths to life satisfaction.
Of course, part of the battle is discovering what's in your(you in general not you specifically) nature to do and be, and then having the courage to see it through no matter what influences around you are saying or doing that may contradict it. The other part being unlearning incompatible mindsets that may have been fed into your mind when you were younger; authority figures anywhere in, and in any stage of, life are in dangerous positions to cause long term harm to impressionable, trusting minds, which is why I personally focus more on the "figure" and less on the "authority" part of "authority figure" when I'm dealing with people in those positions.
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it" - Aristotle or whoever actually said it.
Absurdism > Nihilism
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
Why does there need to be a point to it all. We exist, and we can set our own goals and create our own purpose in life. That's what self determination is. Personally, I find happiness in doing things that I find meaningful or interesting.
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVbKHNNWOUg
Give it a try of you really want to know...
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
While happiness might need reason, life doesn't. I find that, in a way, we live in a probabilistic universe with enough attractors that allowed things to form. Among them were humans, now also building some things with/against the odds, and subsequent self-image/sense of importance.
You can still suspend thinking about the inevitability of death and inherent lack of meaning to feel or create something. It does require one to choose and get comfortable making choices that are beyond right and wrong (not in a moral sense), however.
I don't know if there is one answer for why people can still feel happy despite it all, and I suspect there will be different reasons. One reason could be that they've just accepted the futility, focusing on what makes them happy. Or maybe they've accepted that pursuing universality/objectivism when it comes to subjective things is impossible. Or maybe even that no matter which option one takes to view life, one cannot escape delusions.
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You are the Universe experiencing itself.
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
If there's no point, why not have fun?
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
Thinking there's something after death seems to make people lose sight of this world and fail to see the beauty in it, IMO. When I hear religious people ask this question I think their god(s) must feel insulted. Doesn't really answer your full question but that's my thoughts.
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
I simply believe that it's not the destination what matters, but the journey and what you do in it.
I just got a haircut, ate an ice cream while listening to Lady Gaga, had a nice soup for lunch and tomorrow I take the day off after a long and stressful work week. My meaning is in those details.
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
A) There is no point.
B) The point is whatever you want, whatever you value.
C) Somebody keeps living after you, so "the point" is to pass things forward because "something" happens, to somebody else after you die. We inherit everything from our ancestors.
D) How should I know?
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There’s no meaning, no purpose.
... That you don't provide yourself, and it could be anything.
it could be anything.
But you have to actually believe it. So the trick is to find your purpose, as much as it is to make it up. There's something in you that wants to come out... or maybe not!
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
Why not? One good ability I've heard is why watch a movie or listen to music or play a game if you know it's going to end? No one and nothing is it's best all the time, just understanding that there are some things that can be worth experiencing is the best life has to offer, really.
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
Check out Optimistic Nihilism.
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We spend our days bound by endless obligations. Yet, even with loneliness, failed relationships, and soul-draining work, people still manage to catch a glimpse of happiness. Why?
Its like running a marathon: you do it for the journey, not for the medal at the end.
(Disclaimer: you do it for the medal. But you would do it anyway, even if there is no medal, because its the journey that makes it worthwhile)
