Meaning or Randomness? Is our existence, our life, nothing but a random event, the leaf blowing in the wind, the ripple in the stream? If we suggest that there is a meaning or purpose superimposed on human life, what is the mysterious power that imbues our life with such a purpose or meaning? If this obscure power does exist, how does it manifest itself? If this obscure power does not manifest itself to humans in any objective form, it does not exist as far as humans are concerned. Therefore, it cannot convey a preordained or predestined meaning to our life. Biology defines human beings as animals. Do other animals have a meaning or significance attached to their life? If only human life has meaning, what is it that sets humans apart from other animals? The great apes are the first cousins of humans. Is there a meaning attached to their life? Does a cow, a pig or a monkey have a meaning or purpose ascribed to its life, except to serve as food for humans? How does human life come into existence? What is it that imbues human life with a meaning or purpose during this process of creation? Can life acquire a meaning subsequent to the creation of life? Is this purpose located in the human body, or is it similar to a soul, ephemeral, without location and without any evidence of its existence? Where was the meaning of my life before I came into existence and where will my meaning go after my death? What is the meaning of the thing we call life? The dictionary merely tells us that life is the state of being alive. When NASA sent manned rockets to the moon, their scientists had to concern themselves with the possibility of extraterrestrial life that might contaminate life on earth upon the return of the space vehicle. The first step in this analysis was to arrive at a definition of the term life. NASA concluded that life, all life, is the attribute of any system that is a. Capable of replication, b. Capable of energy conversion in order to offset entropy, and c. Subject to the process of evolution. All life on earth must replicate under the auspices of the process of evolution. The driving force for this basic mechanism of life is the survival instinct, which, in turn, is rooted in the pain/pleasure principle. This principle can be stated briefly: Every living organism, including every human being, always acts in what it considers to be in its best self-interest: To avoid pain and to enhance pleasure. Only organisms that perceive a threat to their existence as an unpleasant emotion, a perception of pain, can survive and replicate. The existence of this pain/pleasure syndrome in all living organisms does not imply that human beings always act in their actual best self-interest. The genes of every human being compel him to act in what he believes to be in his best self-interest. Any person, who does not act in what he considers to be in his best self-interest, is engaged in self-destructive behavior. Self-destructive persons are insane and society institutionalizes them for their own protection. To be selfish, in the sense of always acting in what we consider to be in our own best self-interest, is the ultimate imperative of all life. The essence of the process of evolution is the survival of the fittest: The ability of an organism to cope with changes in its environment in order to assure its survival and replication. Without this genetically imposed instinct for survival, an organism cannot perpetuate itself or its species and will thus eliminate itself from further replication and evolution In the perpetual struggle for survival, all living organisms are constantly engaged in a battle for limited resources. Lower life forms, such as bacteria or earthworms, have little control over their inherently hostile environment. Only man has evolved rational thought processes. Among animals, only man can utilize his rational mind to achieve a higher degree of survival and security in an inherently insecure world. In an effort to enhance his ability to cope with his environment by understanding the nature of his existence, only man has developed the mental faculties to pose the question: Why am I doing what I am doing? If there is a purpose to life, how can I comply with it or how can I enhance it? Conversely, if there is no purpose to my life, if life is completely futile, if human beings wander around without a preordained meaning or purpose, why not succumb to the adversities of life and resolve all potential future conflicts by committing suicide? "To be or not to be, that is the question..."
Posted on: Tue, 10 Sep 2013 10:02:26 +0000
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