Question for the Commentariat.

[silveradept]

Please answer the following two-parter, if you feel comfortable doing so.

(a) Have you successfully resolved the existential crisis of not only mortal life, but the likelihood that you and what you do will be essentially meaningless in the history of the cosmos?

(b) If so, please let me know your solution and its reasons. If not, please let me know where your difficulties are.

I'm still wrestling this one, and I have yet to find an acceptable answer in either religion or philosophy. A TARDIS and/or the ability to see what the post-life experience is like, remember it, return to life, and then evaluate by that standard is about as far as I've gotten for acceptable outcomes. I'm sure there has to be at least one that will click and fill the void of being able to conceptualize oneself in cosmic terms.

Comments

[milkymoon]

I don't know if I've successfully resolved it or not, but I'm an existentialist, and believe that even if life in itself is inherently meaningless, it's up to me to create my own meaning, as someone who is sentient and has that capacity. I can't exert influence over the entire universe, but I can over my little bit of it, and...that's comforting, in its own way? But maybe it's just me trying to meaninglessly wrest some control over my inevitable ending. As far as longer-term things go, I'll just be 'reincarnated' as other forms of matter until the universe ends, and...knowing that I'll still be a bit of the universe gives me a bit of comfort? Admittedly, it's really, really hard to deal with, but...it's something that I've learnt to cope with.

[silveradept]

Coping is good. That avenue often comes with a "and you, even in your monkeysphere, are meaningless and will be forgotten, so try however much you like, you're still going to be gone within a couple generations." which makes this particular method of cope a little more personally difficult. It's still a good answer.