Of course there are many ways to answer that question and many authors have tried. The answers all have value, although that are many.
This post looks at how many angles this subject can be taken from, showing how vast it is how a person has to define "meaning" first.
It also shows there are ways to approach the meaning of life other than these blog posts do.
Although the meaning of life does not have the impact on American culture that it does in others any "revival" of the subject likely comes from Anglo-American roots in the last 50 years or so.
Just how many angles of the Meaning Of Life are there? (with examples)
- Our relation to the Universe (life on other planets)
- What is our Origin and destiny? (where did we come from?)
- As a Scientific/ biological question (the complexity of the human body)
- Our chronological age (time, space and progression)
- Wisdom/intuition (what kinds of things should we learn?)
- The brevity of physical life (in relation to eternity)
- Philosophical (such as Immanuel Kant and the highest good)
- Unseen forces/Death (the meaning beyond human senses)
A Closer Examination
1. The subject could also be broken down smaller than these categories? For example, what makes action "meaningful"?
Why would a wedding be more meaningful than clipping your toe nails?
If a google search is done on "meaning" what is found? In the sense of the meaning of life (an adjective) it is "something not directly expressed." The 8 categories listed above seem straightforward, yet they all illustrate something that is not directly expressed. For instance, what is meant by the wonder of the body or wisdom?
2. The meaning of life could also be broken down another way.
Is one person's life more meaningful than another's, and why is that the case?
Is one part of your life more meaningful than another?
For more information on this angle please refer to http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/life-meaning/.
What Is This Leading To?
In order to define what is the most meaningful anything one must first define what "meaning" is. As stated above in these posts the word is an adjective (the meaning of life.) In this sense meaning is something that is not directly expressed.
This all could sound like goobldygook.
Going back to the example above a wedding has more meaning than clipping your toenails because it expresses something more than the act of what is happening.
A wedding has a spiritual meaning. It involves commitment, something without end and something that involves the unknown. Clipping your toe nails might represent growth, but it is more directly expressed by the act itself.
What this is leading to is there is no simple one-word answer to what the Meaning Of Life is.
Not only is the answer different between people but some definitions have to be agreed upon first.
The posts in this blog mostly represent the last two items of the eight categories above (philosophical and unseen). These are not the only ways to view the subject, nor are they any more right or wrong than the others.
A spiritual battle is ongoing and requires effort and evaluation. These posts are geared to the goal of doing these things.
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