Purpose?

cmi0616

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Are we, as humans, here for a distinct purpose? Do we each have our own purpose? It's something that's been eating at me recently. I have a theory, but it's a bit long and i'll post it later.
 

Vito

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Lately I've been thinking about this subject a lot. Thinking, reflecting, and meditating on a lifetime of challenges, struggles, and triumphs. I've come to the conclusion that my true purpose is to give rep points to everyone who posts on this thread.
 

KellyAssauer

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I do have my own distinct purpose!

-and I'm not sharing. =P
 

Silver King

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Death is the only purpose any of us will serve equally well. Everything before then merely leads up to our eventual demise. And the vast majority of us will be long forgotten within a generation, if not sooner.

On the bright side, we did live, after all, regardless of our paltry contributions to mankind, so that's saying something...
 

rhymegirl

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Lately I've been thinking about this subject a lot. Thinking, reflecting, and meditating on a lifetime of challenges, struggles, and triumphs. I've come to the conclusion that my true purpose is to give rep points to everyone who posts on this thread.

Ooh!

I'm posting on this thread.

My purpose in life is to post on this thread.
 

night-flyer

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Death is the only purpose any of us will serve equally well. Everything before then merely leads up to our eventual demise. And the vast majority of us will be long forgotten within a generation, if not sooner.

On the bright side, we did live, after all, regardless of our paltry contributions to mankind, so that's saying something...

That's kind of depressing, SK. I like. My thoughts exactly, but I hope to write billions of best sellers, that's the only chance that I have to be remembered. My kids will remember me, and grandkids, but what happens after they're gone?

I guess I could assasinate someone, or create some kind of scandal. President or inventing something is out of the question, so is movie star or finding a miracle cure for some disease.

I guess in the end, I'm doomed to be forgotten. Then again, as so many other people are, too. And ones that deserved to be remembered much more than me. It's a shame, but that's life and it goes on with or without us.

My purpose? To raise my kids to the best of my ability and prepare them for life. My mission has been accomplished, though they still seem to need me, so I'll be there for them until the end.
 

Ken

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... it seems to me that you're asking about whether each of us has their own personal fate. I don't believe so. I think each of us is fully in charge of their own destiny.

For instance, there is no decree in the Universe that says Ken will be a writer. If I do manage to become one decades down the road it'll be because I made the decision to become one and worked at becoming one. If I did not do that I would never have any chance of accomplishing that ... though in honesty I probably have little chance even with effort ;-)
 

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I wish i had my own porpoise. Oh, the fun we would have together.
 

DeaK

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As a human being I believe my purpose is procreation. Little 'uns just like me. I believe this, but I am still childless by choice at 30.

As Dea I believe my purpose is to live live live until I die.
 
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Bmwhtly

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Our purpose as a species?

It's probably some wishy-washy nonsense about the human spirit, being nice to each other, that sort of thing.

Although I live in hope that it's something to do with eating roast beef.
 

cmi0616

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There is no purpose. I think it's human nature to want to feel important or superior. Mankind, for some reason, has developed this mentality that he matters. There is, nor has there ever been, at least he assumes, a species so great as us, and therefore we matter.

I however, think man takes himself to seriously. We don't matter. There is no purpose. We live, and if we're lucky, we propagate more purposeless beings. But there really is no purpose that we are here for. And a lot of people, born into this "man is superior" way of thinking, would find this depressing. Most people have an inherent need to feel important and needed. I however, don't. It's freeing, actually.

We don't have any purpose, so we might as well enjoy ourselves. We don't have to strive for anything or become anything, unless, of course, we want to. Basically, we're here to have fun. We serve no more purpose then insects or rodents, we just last longer. Humans, in all honesty, have probably done more damage to the earth then any other species. I say we just take it all for what it's worth and celebrate our freedom to do anything or nothing at all.
 

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Originally Posted by cmi0616
Are we, as humans, here for a distinct purpose?
It's like this: Here follows the 'Drunk' theory of creation.

One day, an omnipotent being we shall call the Creator, for want of a better word, was coming home from the pub, much the worse for wear. And as we all know, things seem like such a good idea at that particular time, like that kebab you always regret the next day, or stealing a policeman's hat.

So, our Creator decides in his hazy state of inebriation that what would be the most awesome and splendiferous idea would be to make a little universe. And it would grow and make planets and things would evolve and he can poke and prod and make it so every little thing has a plan and purpose and it'll be great! Like Settlers III, only without those annoying geologists shouting yippee. Woohoo! So he pours another tequila and creates the universe, only mucking up a bit when the worm from the tequila bottle falls into the mix. and Lo! Behold, it was made. And he saw it and it was good, and he put it in his sock drawer for safekeeping. And when he awoke the next day and said 'I'm never drinking again, my teeth feel like they've melted and coated my tongue and where did this policeman's hat come from?', he had forgotten about the universe he'd made.

Every now and again he pulls it out of his sock drawer, says 'What the heck is that?' and, for some unfathomable reason that is part nostalgia for an idea he can't remember, puts it back.

And that is our purpose. We are a drunken experiment both gone wrong and unremembered. We were 'A good idea at the time'. And this is why omnipotent beings should not get drunk.
 
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whacko

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Assuming that humans have a purpose is to assume that homo sapiens sapiens is the arch triumph of evolution/Creationism. Which we aren't. We're just a baldy sideline of monkeys. Or something.
 

DeaK

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Assuming that humans have a purpose is to assume that homo sapiens sapiens is the arch triumph of evolution/Creationism. Which we aren't. We're just a baldy sideline of monkeys. Or something.

Depends how you define the purpose. If you assume that all living things have a purpose (through my eyes that's evident all around, as all living things multiply), then it follows that humans have that same purpose. That does not mean I think humans are the be all and end all, just that we are living things too.

However, one could also assume that evolution (itself) is the purpose of life, but even that does not necessarily mean the evolutionary course is always for the better – I mean, if it is basically random and then the outcome survives to multiply or not (survival of the fittest) then humans could actually be the result of a step in the wrong direction (we have just yet to be destroyed – in fact, we could be the biggest evolutionary f-up ever on the planet, if we succeed in destroying all the species on earth).

There are many different types of purposes – most people make up their own, and that works just fine to drive them til the end.
 

Silver King

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The only purpose we have in life, for sanity's sake, is to create elaborate illusions to give false meaning to our existence (having success, procreating, getting published, etc.) These delusions help us to cope with the realization that we mean nothing and keep us from going mad at every turn of thought that takes us beyond our carefully constructed selves.
 

DeaK

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The only purpose we have in life, for sanity's sake, is to create elaborate illusions to give false meaning to our existence (having success, procreating, getting published, etc.) These delusions help us to cope with the realization that we mean nothing and keep us from going mad at every turn of thought that takes us beyond our carefully constructed selves.

I don't see how you can lump procreation in there with success and getting published. I realize that I, personally, mean nothing to reality, or the universe in general, but it seems to me that procreation is the only constant for living things (besides death, which is the antitheses of life, not the meaning).

And why do you assume that other people would go mad at the thought that they mean nothing, if you don't?
 

Silver King

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...And why do you assume that other people would go mad at the thought that they mean nothing, if you don't?
I've already gone mad, which is the best escape possible, other than dying, and that will happen soon enough.