“Why are we here and what happens after we die?” is a question pondered by man for hundreds of thousands of years. Moving into the 21st century, science is still no closer to an answer. What is the purpose of life, is there life after death, reincarnation or do we just cease to be? Most people seek religion for answers but for those unable to answer such an important question with a belief, can faithless philosophies give structure, purpose and an explanation to our life’s we so desperately need?
WHAT WE DO KNOW
We do know that everyone exhibits their own personality from birth. That personality could be any part of genetics, our experience in the womb before birth, or if there is such a thing, our existence before conception.
From the moment of birth what we experience and learn defines who we become and how we behave. Even experiences that can’t be recalled cognitively end up deep rooted in our subconscious and effect who we are. If there is an afterlife then the effects of what we experienced in life not only become part of us, but part of our soul. Could, to learn and experience things in life be why we are here? If so even bad experiences as tough as they are to go through could be looked at afterward as being positive in a way that helps us understand and develop.
Most religions teach us to have good values, and ethics. Wouldn’t it be better if we did this not out of fear, or promise of rewards in an afterlife but because what we learned and experienced made us the kind of person that wants to.
THE UNIVERSAL PHILOSOPHY
My philosophy is simple and designed to give purpose and meaning to life with or without a spiritual outcome.
Imagine an empty circle. The outline of the circle represents you at conception and is made up of genetics, and if there is such a thing, our existence before conception and previous incarnations. The purpose in life is to learn and fill the circle with as many experiences as you can.
Should there be an afterlife the circle represents your soul. If you are doing a good job filling the circle you can take comfort that you are most likely living your life in a way that follows the teachings of any respectful God.
If after death we simply cease to exist, the circle represents your brain. In this unfavorable outcome you can still take comfort in knowing that you are living your “one life” in an ethical way and to it’s full potential.
Either way, What a full and satisfying life you will have!
Dave Lister
listerlogic.com
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS #1
HOW DOES THE PHILOSOPHY GIVE PURPOSE AND MEANING TO LIFE?
Constantly seeking new experiences that will be part of you for eternity gives both purpose and meaning to life. The more you learn and experience, the closer you will be to understanding yourself and life. It provides incentive for you to do more with your life, encouraging you out of your comfort zone and challenging you to achieve things you never thought possible.
The broader the range of experiences you have, the equally broader your perspective on life becomes. Because new experiences are infinite there is always something different to see or do no matter who you are or how old.
HOW DOES THE PHILOSOPHY APPLY TO EVERYONE?
The philosophy can apply to everyone and be followed by anyone able to comprehend it. Someone, for interest who has a mental illness may be limited as to what they can do and experience. But the illness also gives them an extremely unique experience and perspective of life the rest of us could never fully understand. No matter who you are, in most cases everyone is able to do and learn more.
Who knows, should reincarnation exist, the purpose of it may be to provide us with these unique experiences and perspectives.
DO EXPERIENCES EFFECT MORALS AND VALUES?
At a formal fund raising dinner, 3 people all of whom currently have the same financial status were asked to donate to help starving children in a foreign country. Who do you think would typically donate the most?
- Person 1 that had never been to a poor country
- Person 2 that had visited a third world country and worked with orphan children
- Person 3 that had come from a poor country and was once a starving child.
Although Person 3 has gone through the tragic experience of starving when a child, it has enabled them to truly understand the need. Because of this intimate understanding Person 3 is most likely to give the most followed by person 2.
In religions that believe we are judged in the afterlife by things like generosity, person 3 would most likely be better judged only because of an experience the other 2 didn’t have.
Like the example above the more things in life we can truly understand through experiencing them the more likely we are to naturally live a moral and understanding life. Even person 2, having experienced travelling to a 3rd world country to help children would have a much better understanding of the need then someone that’s never left the country. Without experience we are partially blind to the effects we have on the people around us for our every day actions or inactions.
Just imagine if everyone in the world could totally understood what every one else was experiencing and how they felt. We could create a society that is fair to everyone and have world peace.
HOW DO OUR PREVIOUS EXPERIENCES GIVE US A UNIQUE PRESTECTIVE?
A family of 4 traveling down the highway in a car skid out of control on some snow. The father driving has never been in an accident, with years of winter driving experience he feels mild nervous tension but confident he will have it under control shortly. The Mother in the passenger seat had been seriously injured in a traffic accident 2 years ago and experiences extreme fear. In the back seat their 10 year old son who has never been in a skidding car or an accident compares it to a amusement park ride and experiences a thrilling excitement. Their 1 year old baby doesn’t understand what’s going on and has no change in mood.
Even though all four members of the family have gone through the same event, depending on their previous experience, they all experienced it differently. The same variation of views apply to everything in our lives whether it be morals, politics or a skidding car. With an open mind the more things we have experienced in the past, the better our understanding will be of new ones.
WHAT ABOUT EXPERIENCES WE FORGET?
Although we may not be able to recall it cognitively, evidence shows any significant experience we’ve had remains in our subconscious and stays a part of how we act and who we are. With all the physiatrists in the world treating people for problems stemming from some experience they had in the past and could no longer recall, its reasonable to believe we never actually forget the effects of any experience.
Dave Lister
listerlogic.com