"The significance of our lives and our fragile planet is then determined by our own wisdom and courage. We are the custodians of life's meaning."
-Carl Sagan

As a non-believer and a proponent of secular humanism, I believe that we determine the meaning of our own lives rather than depend on others to determine it for us. We do have free will, after all.

Originally posted by PieKeeper
"The significance of our lives and our fragile planet is then determined by our own wisdom and courage. We are the custodians of life's meaning."
-Carl Sagan

it does bring one great joy to be a custodian of life...

The purpose of life is to increase love and decrease pain.
Everything we do is geared toward one of these goals, although we often fail to achieve them.

Ultimate meaning of life is to do the one thing that every single one of your ancestors did all the way back ca. 3.8 billion years: reproduce.

firstly - there is an extremely few number of people who would even consider thinking about this question. It is very frustrating the laziness apparent in the individuals.

Most people fall into these categories:
1. They searched quickly and took the easy answer - all that is - it is. don't look further, don't think further. Same issue as religions. You don't have the control, don't search, just follow your church.

2. Their arrogance (ego) has overwhelmed them - they don't need to know. All I need to do is feed the kids, do my chores - don't bother me.

3. Life is the physical and there is nothing more. They ignore the esoteric evidence. The intuition is suppressed. I am currently having a long term debate with a philosopher - this person has read almost every book on philosophy. The problem is that logic has suppressed the esoteric, occult and the metaphysical side of life. They are real and are totally ignored.

Now what are some of the major obstacles to finding the answer:
- mass media
- the churches although the religion has some hidden knowledge within it but you have to look deep
- yourself - your ego will not allow it. You need to find how to eliminate your egos


I am on the path to find the answer. Not everyone is on the same path. That is the way our world works. The issue is that we accumulate karmans if we force the questions on others.

There is ultimately no "point" to existing, no overall "goal," no "destiny," no "fate," nothing of the sort. We are not the grand gear of some perfect being's ultimate plans for the universe, and to imagine yourself so just speaks of a terrible state of insecurity and need for personal aggrandizement.

You are. You're born, you gain some weight, you lose some weight, you die. Of biology has its way, you knock some gametes together and pass some genes along, as well. What you do in the space between birth and death is entirely up to you, held to your goals, your standards, your desires, your fears, your vices, your ethics. Not some monstrous thing hiding in the clouds, not a magical cow, not a man with his face in his hat reading rocks. Just you.

For some people this notion is terrifying, especially to those who have devoted every waking moment to holding their sky-monster's hand, and fearing his wrath. if everything is up to us, they reason. then those decades of fear and reverence for Sky-Monster might have been utterly wasted! So they freak. They struggle and they scream, because they feel they've wasted their lives. Some may even feel that their lives have no meaning, and look with confusion on those of us who have accepted the basic truth of the universe.

"If there's no point to existing, no meaning to life, no ultimate goal," they ask, "why not just kill yourself?"

To which I reply, "Because tomorrow, I have a date with a pretty girl, and we're going to get some tasty food and watch a funny movie."

Acknowledgment of the lack of "ultimate purpose" in the universe is not nihilism. It's simply growing up, letting go of sky-monster's hand just like you let go of the hand of your other imaginary friends so long ago, and stepping into a world that is ultimately indifferent to you. It's freedom.

The ultimate meaning of life is:

1. LEARN
   
2. Leave the universe a better place than you found it.
   

Thank you very much.

That is all folks, Gandhi has left the building.

Life is the meaning.