TL;DR: What are your opinions on life; What keeps you going through the day? Everything is opinion as far as these questions go. I'm asking your thoughts because what I've come to believe is impossible for me to cope with. There's a lot of suffering in the world, too much. To me one person's suffering is too much but no matter how many people suffer the world keeps spinning and everyone goes on with their daily lives. A person's entire life can be ruined in the blink of an eye and it doesn't matter how old they are, or what they've done. The worst part is that it's usually other humans who cause the damage. No matter who gets hurt the world will keep spinning and I don't understand it. What is life worth, what is life to begin with? The lessons I've learned, people I've met... the person I love the most. Do those feelings just disappear when I die? Are they worth anything after I die? I don't even know who I am. A brain injury, drugs, even my medication can change who I am and the values I uphold. My brain is what makes me who I am so what happens when it's damaged or dead? Am I just gone? Is there nothing I can do about it? Would I even know if it had happened... where's the justice in that? Life can't just be for nothing, people shouldn't be suffering for nothing. I don't know... I can't handle these thoughts. What are your opinions on life; What keeps you going through the day?
It's true that there's lots of sadness and anger and some pretty terrible things in the world... It's also true, though, that there's lots of happiness and forgiveness and some pretty sweet, nice, altruistic, and/or awesome things in the world. Here's a phrase that sums up my views nicely: you have to take the good with the bad. I live for the experiences that I know I'll encounter, whether those are totally negative or totally positive. Sometimes shortsightedness can be helpful. Taking it day by day can be less stressful than looking at the long picture of one's projected life every once in a while.
I think that life is wonderful! There are so many different things that you can experience, and I think it's really cool how diverse the general population is. I also think that one person can make a huge difference in the world, like Martin Luther King Jr or Ghandi. However, there is alot of suffering in the world due to various things like poverty and hatred, but I think everyone has a chance to help other people that are having trouble and get them through their problems. I think that the point of life is to positively impact everyone around you, and try to bring others up.
It took me a long time to warm up to life, but life and I are on pretty good terms now. What keeps me going is that I can be reasonably sure that there are good things in store for me.
What keeps me going is the thought that as long as I get up everyday, I can run, or I can weight lift. As I get faster and stronger, I will gain confidence. As I gain confidence, I can start my training to become the warrior I want to be. I want to participate in the struggle against evil and suffering, and in general, almost all of my thoughts in my free time center around that. Sister Adrian.
Wow, you bring up a very intriguing topic here, at least for me for what I'm going through. I'm really having problems finding meaning in life, I mean I used to know what I wanted to do, where would I like to be in a couple of years and so, but lately I'm clueless. I'd like to think that I'll overcome this soon and start enjoying life for once, I had a real bad time growing up coming out to myself and I think its only fair for me to be happy now, we all deserve it, we are all entitled to! Years ago I promised myself to! Not for anybody, just for me! As for you question, what really keeps me going atm is the memory of better times, and the hope that the best is yet to come. I mean it has to, right? I know I have to make it happen but its just fair! Lately I'm also so obssesed with the idea of how insignificant we are, I mean like there is no single person in this world who is indispensable, sure some will be remembered by many, some by just few, some will never be, but in the end, as my signature reads: Things change and life doesn't stop for anybody. I don't know why but this makes me sad. :icon_sad: I will stop here. Cheers.
I've always had a rather nihilistic point of view on life and the meaning of life. Still the case today, and one of the reason that only worsened my depression for some time. I eventually came to the conclusion that, while I may die any day and that there is nothing after life (I'm an atheist), well I'll just do whatever I want and enjoy the things I want to enjoy. That's basically what's kept me going, there's a lot of things I want to try, and I have no intention to stop until I've tried all of them (or some, got to stay realistic).
What keeps me going is the battle for individuation. I want to be a whole psyche and want to help anyone else on my doorstep to do the same. Otherwise, I want to experience life. Foxface
Honestly for the previous 8 years of my life what kept me going was having drugs that numbed me and made me feel better. Every day. Both wanting that feeling and not wanting the sickness that comes with withdrawal is all that kept me from doing something stupid like ending it all. Now, I'm driven by 2 things: 1) trying to pay my overdue bills/debts/etc - and trying to find a new job that pays better. 2 and most importantly) Loving myself and building a regular life. Physically and mentally. Repairing all the shit I've done to my body/mind over the past 8 years. Which is something I could never do until I admitted I was gay as gay can be. But now that I have, the reason I live is kinda just the dreams/daydreams I have of meeting the right guy and living a fairly simple life with him. I dont have vast aspirations, I just want an average life with someone I love and friends that accept me.
I don't know about life. I'm alive that here, but I don't know about much more than that. I'd like to do things, get out and see the world but the reality is that I just can't. Things get in the way, finances, mental state, anxiety, addiction, abuse, just stuff and it makes it hard to justify the struggle sometimes. I'm not an optimistic person, not really, I never was. Just dragging though here. Sorry bout throwing a kind of depressing view out there. Just being a bit down right now.
I came to an understanding about life a while back that completely changed me. You make the world. Everything that happens is all in your head, so it's up to you whether you live in a grave or a palace. Perception and reality are fundamentally the same thing. Sadness defines joy. One cannot exist without the other: if one had never been sad, one would never understand happiness. For someone who lives a harder life, smaller joys feel more powerful. I read an interview with someone who escaped a North Korean prison camp; to him, freedom meant fried pork.
OK, I agree, it is meaningless, but what is meaning anyway? Do you believe there should be an overarching story to a life, or is it really just moment after moment? More to the point, is there a great grand Goal, or a series of little goals, and is it that the journey to each little, realistic and modest goal is a set of moments, one after the other...perhaps with that point of view, it's the journey that counts, the way rather than the destination.... It has been my experience that even when sitting in a Laundromat, as I am doing now, I have the opportunity to expound on "the meaning of life" and that is a great delight, or maybe I have to chance to talk to that stranger at the table next to me...maybe he has a wonderful story to tell. Suffering exists, no doubt about it and I've had my share, but it is the full consciousness of suffering which is lacking, too much indifference because we are so focused on the future that we ignore the present.
Oh one other thing I wanted to add... since someone mentioned objectivity.. I was a straightup objective/materialist for quite a long time.. But the thing is, 'objectivity' is experienced subjectively. My current thinking (and I'm sure it will change as I grow older, but I've thought alot (and studied philosophy trying to find answers)) is that the only thing you can be truely certain of existing is your emotions... because they're experienced directly. The cause of the emotions could be an illusion, but they are real. Good feels good.
My point exactly. But about the emotions, we can't be too sure, you know. They might all be in someone else's imagination. /solipsism Not that I'm a solipsist. I'm just feeling cynical.
Heh... yes... damned illusions upon illusions! I find it pretty hilarious that I started studying philosophy in search of answers, and when I finished all I had was more complicated questions!
