Question:
What is Life?,
What are we in this life for?w
Answer:
What Is Life?
The following answers to this fundamental question each win a random book.
Life is the aspect of existence that processes, acts, reacts,
evaluates, and evolves through growth (reproduction and metabolism). The
crucial difference between life and non-life (or non-living things) is
that life uses energy for physical and conscious development. Life is
anything that grows and eventually dies, i.e., ceases to proliferate and
be cognizant. Can we say that viruses, for example, are cognizant? Yes,
insofar as they react to stimuli; but they are alive essentially
because they reproduce and grow. Computers are non-living because even
though they can cognize, they do not develop biologically (grow), and
cannot produce offspring. It is not cognition that determines life,
then: it is rather proliferation and maturation towards a state of
death; and death occurs only to living substances.
Or is the question, ‘What is the meaning (purpose) of life?’ That’s a
real tough one. But I think that the meaning of life is the ideals we
impose upon it, what we demand of it. I’ve come to reaffirm my Boy Scout
motto, give or take a few words, that the meaning of life is to: Do
good, Be Good, but also to Receive Good. The foggy term in this advice,
of course, is ‘good’; but I leave that to the intuitive powers that we
all share.
There are, of course, many intuitively clear examples of Doing Good:
by retrieving a crying baby from a dumpster; by trying to rescue someone
who’s drowning. Most of us would avoid murdering; and most of us would
refrain from other acts we find intuitively wrong. So our natural
intuitions determine the meaning of life for us; and it seems for other
species as well, for those intuitions resonate through much of life and
give it its purpose.
Tom Baranski, Somerset, New Jersey
The ceramic artist Edmund de Waal places an object in front of him
and begins to tell a story. Even if the patina, chips and signs of
repair of the inanimate object hint at its history, the story is told by
a living observer. A living thing is an object that contains its story
within itself. Life’s story is held in the genome, based in DNA. Maybe
other ways for memorising the story may be discovered, but in
environments subject to common chemical processes, common methods are
likely to emerge.
Although we have only the example of the Earth, it shows that life
will evolve to fill every usable niche, and to secure and further
diversify those niches. This should not be thought of as purposeful.
Life embodies a ‘plan’, but one that does not specify ends, only methods
acquired iteratively. Inanimate processes can be cyclic but not
iterative: they do not learn from past mistakes.
Life exists at many levels. Life is also a process through which
energy and materials are transformed; but so is non-life. The difference
is that the process of life is intimately linked to story it contains,
whereas non-life is indifferent to the story we impose upon it. Yet life
is only a story, so it can act only through matter. Therefore life is
by nature a toolmaker. Its tools are potentially everything that exists,
and its workshop is potentially the whole universe. So why do humans
risk undermining the life of which they are part? Because they try to
impose upon it a story of their own making. Yet humans, the ‘tool-making
animals’, are themselves tools of life, in an unplanned experiment.
Nicholas Taylor, Little Sandhurst, Berkshire
First the technical definition. Life is self-organising chemistry
which reproduces itself and passes on its evolved characteristics,
encoded in DNA. In thermodynamics terms, it has the ability to reduce
local entropy or disorganisation, thus locally contravening the third
law of thermodynamics.
But what is life really about, if anything? The two
possibilities are, life is either a meaningless accident arising from
the laws of physics operating in a meaningless universe, or it is a step
in a planned ‘experiment’. I say ‘step’, because this cannot be the
end. The current state of life is as yet too unstable and undeveloped
for it to be the end. And I say ‘experiment’ because the evolutionary
nature of life suggests that its future is not known. If therefore the
universe itself has a purpose, it seems most likely to be to explore
what the outcome of the evolutionary experiment would be.
But what will be the outcome? If, as many physicists now believe, the
universe is only information, then harnessing all the resources of the
universe in one giant evolutionary process could plausibly provide a
useful outcome for a species clever enough to create the universe in the
first place. On this interpretation, life will ultimately organise all
the physical resources of the universe into a single self-conscious
intelligence, which in turn will then be able to interact with its
creator(s).
Dr Harry Fuchs, Flecknoe, Warwickshire
Life is the embodiment of selfishness! Life is selfish because it is
for itself in two ways: it is for its own survival, and it is for its
own reproduction. This desire is embodied in an adaptive autocatalytic
chemical system, forming life’s embodied mind.
Anything that is not itself is the other; and the collection of
others constitute its environment. The organism must destructively use
the other to satisfy its reproductive desire, but on achieving this, it
produces an additional other – but now one that also embodies its own
selfish aim and the means to satisfy this aim. Therefore, even by an
organism satisfying its desire, it makes the continuing satisfaction of
its desires ever more difficult to achieve. A partial solution to this
dilemma is for genetically-related entities to form a cooperating
society.
The underlying mechanism of evolution is therefore the iteration of
the embodied desire within an ever more complex competitive and social
environment. Over vast numbers of iterations, this process forces some
life-forms along a pathway that solves the desire for survival and
reproduction by developing ever more complex and adaptable minds. This
is achieved by supplementing their underlying cellular embodied
chemistry with a specialist organ (although still based on chemistry)
that we call its brain, able to rapidly process electrical signals.
Advanced minds can collect and process vast inputs of data by
‘projecting’ the derived output back onto its environmental source, that
is by acting. However advanced it might be, an organism is still driven
by the same basic needs for survival and reproduction. The creative
process, however, leads the organism towards an increasingly aesthetic
experience of the world. This is why for us the world we experience is
both rich and beautiful.
Dr Steve Brewer, St Ives, Cornwall
In our scientific age, we look to the biologists to define ‘life’ for
us. After all, it is their subject matter. I believe they have yet to
reach consensus, but a biological definition would be something like,
‘Life is an arrangement of molecules with qualities of self-sustenance
and self-replication’. This kind of definition might serve the purposes
of biologists, but for me, it has five deficiencies. First, any
definition of life by biologists would have little utility outside
biology because of its necessary inclusiveness. We humans would find
ourselves in a class of beings that included the amoeba. ‘Life’ would be
the limited common properties of all organisms, including the lowest.
Second, the scientific definition of life is necessarily an external
one. I think that knowing what life is, as opposed to defining it,
requires knowing it from within. Non-sentient organisms live, but they
do not know life. Third, in the scientific definition, there is no place
for life having value. However, many would say that life has value in
its own right – that it is not simply that we humans value life and so
give it value, but that it has value intrinsically. Fourth, there is the
question of life as a whole having a purpose or goal. This notion is
not scientific, but one wonders if the tools of science are fit to
detect any evolutionary purpose, if there is one. Fifth, for the
scientists, life is a set of biological conditions and processes.
However, everywhere and always, people have conceived of a life after
biological death, a life of spirit not necessarily dependent on the
physical for existence.
The scientific definition of life is valid in its context, but
otherwise I find it impoverished. I believe there is a hierarchy of
living beings from the non-sentient, to the sentient, to humans, and
perhaps up to God. When I ask, ‘What is life? I want to know what life
is at its highest form. I believe life at its best is spirit: it is
active, sentient, feeling, thinking, purposive, valuing, social,
other-respecting, relating, and caring.
John Talley, Rutherfordton, NC
I listen enthralled to scientific debate on what, how, when and where
life was created. However, questions remain which may never be
resolved. In this vacuum, philosophers and religious thinkers have
attempted to give meaning to life by suggesting goals: Plato suggested
the acquisition of knowledge, Aristotle to practice virtue, and the
Stoics, mental fortitude and self-control. Today’s philosophers echo the
existentialist view that life is full of absurdity, although they also
tell us that we must put meaning into life by making our own values in
an indifferent world. But if life is just a journey from womb to tomb,
will such ‘meaning’ be sufficient to allow the traveller at journey’s
end to feel that it was worthwhile?
Perhaps the hypothesis upon which Ivan Tyrrell and Joe Griffin have based their therapy could help (see Human Givens,
2003). They describe that we are born with evolved needs that seek
satisfaction from our environment. These are physical and emotional
needs, which, when enough of them are met, ensure the health of the
individual, maximising his or her ability to achieve meaning in life.
Griffin and Tyrrell have proven empirically that when sufficient needs
are met an individual will enjoy mental and physical health, unless
there is damage or toxicity in the environment. Some of these needs were
identified by Maslow in his ‘Hierarchy of Needs’ in his 1943 paper ‘A
Theory of Human Motivation’, Psychological Review, 50 (4), but Griffin and Tyrrell focus more clearly on emotional needs such as:
• To achieve, and to feel competent
• To fulfil our sense of autonomy and control
• To be emotionally connected to other people and part of a larger community
• To have a sense of status within social groupings
• For privacy and rest, to reflect and consolidate learning
• And yes – to have meaning in one’s life
Meaning becomes difficult, if not impossible, to achieve if these
needs are insufficiently satisfied. Unfortunately, modern society seeks
meaning to life through materialism, to the detriment of our biological
needs, leading to dissatisfaction and a consequent inability to find
meaning. The result is an exponential increase in mental ill-health.
Sadly, then, many of us will not experience the satisfaction of a
meaningful life journey.
Caryl A. Fuchs, Flecknoe, Warwickshire
Life is the eternal and unbroken flow of infinite rippling
simultaneous events that by a fortuitous chain has led to this universe
of elements we are all suspended in, that has somehow led to this
present experience of sentient existence. Animal life (excluding that of
humans) shows that life is a simple matter of being, by means of a
modest routine of eating, sleeping and reproducing. Animals balance
their days between these necessities, doing only what their bodies ask
of them. The life of vegetation is not far from that of animals. They
eat and sleep and reproduce in their own way, for the same result. So
life is a beautiful and naturally harmonious borrowing of energy.
Yet we have taken it for granted. We have lost the power to simply be
happy eating, sleeping, reproducing, believing we need a reason to be
alive, a purpose and a goal to reach, so that on our deathbeds
(something we have been made to fear) we can look back and tell
ourselves we have done something with our lives. Life has lost its
purpose because we have tried to give it one. The truth is that we are
no more significant than the sand by the sea or the clouds in the sky.
No more significant. But as significant.
No matter what your race, religion or gender, when you first step
outside your door in the morning and feel the fresh air in your lungs
and the morning sun on your face, you close your eyes and smile. In that
moment you are feeling life as it should be. No defining, no
understanding, no thinking. Just that feeling of pure bliss. For that is
what life is.
Courtney Walsh, Farnborough, Hampshire
Of all Webster’s definitions of ‘life’, the one for me that
best covers it is, “the sequence of physical and mental experiences that
make up the existence of an individual.” Indeed, life is a continuum of
accomplishment, failure, discovery, dilemma, challenge, boredom,
sadness, disappointment, appreciation, the giving and receipt of grace,
empathy, peace, and our reactions to all sorts of stimuli – touch, love,
friendship, loss… One can either merely exist or try to achieve,
working through the difficult times, perhaps learning a thing or two.
Everyone has a story. I’ve been surprised when learning something new
about an acquaintance or friend that must have been very difficult to
manage or survive; but there they are in front of me. It’s how you come
out on the other side of those challenging times that is important. How
you land, get on with it, and keep on truckin’.
Life cannot be planned: there’s fate, and there’s simple bad luck.
Failure can bring crushing disappointment, or you can try and make a new
plan. A person can waste an inordinate amount of time mourning what
they don’t have, or plans that don’t work out. But who wants to waste
that much time regretting?
Life has happy surprises, small moments to cherish. It’s a matter of
weighing the good and bad times – the challenge is to balance both,
ending up with a life looked back on that was worth the mighty effort.
I’m not meaning to sound like a Pollyanna – I assure you I’m not – it’s
just more pleasant to strive for a modicum of equilibrium. If I can
manage that, I’m good.
Cheryl Anderson, Kenilworth, Illinois
“Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.”
(Macbeth, Act V, Scene V)
These words of Shakespeare’s Macbeth summarize interesting ideas
about the nature of life. The first line expresses two of the three
marks of existence as per Buddhist thinking, Anicca, impermanence, and Anatta,
non-self: a “walking shadow” is as insubstantial and impermanent as
anything imaginable; a “poor player” neither creates nor directs his
role, and the character being played only exists because of an author.
Macbeth’s entire statement, particularly the last sentence, expresses
the third Buddhist mark of existence: Dukkha, dissatisfaction.
The stage metaphor in the second line represents boundaries or
limits. Scientific research into the nature of life often focuses on the
material, energetic, and temporal limitations within which life can
exist. The temporal limit of life is known as death. In the spirit of
this interpretation, the idea of being “heard no more” could imply that
life constantly evolves new forms while discarding older ones.
Macbeth hints at the wisdom of mystery traditions while anticipating
the revelations of genetic science by stating that life “is a tale”.
Now, this refers to the language-based, or code-based, nature of life.
Readers may consider this in relation to DNA and RNA, and also in
relation to John’s Gospel: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God, and the Word was God.” (The implications of the phrase
“told by an idiot” exceed the scope of this inquiry.)
In five concise and poetic lines, Shakespeare defined life as an
impermanent, non-self-directed, unsatisfactory, limited, ever-changing,
and ultimately insignificant code.
Devon Hall, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Life is the realisation of its own contingency. But that’s not the
end of it; it’s merely the means towards the creation of meaning. Life
is thus a constant process of becoming, through creating values and
meaning. Life is therefore perpetual transcendence, always moving into
the future, creating the present. Life is also acceptance: the
acceptance of finitude; acceptance of one’s responsibilities; acceptance
of other human beings’ existence and choices. Life is neither fixed nor
absolute, it is ambiguous; life is the possibilities entailed by
existence. Life is the consciousness of humanity; it is perception of
the world and the universe. So life is sadness; life is death. Life is
suffering and destruction. But life is also happiness; life is living.
Life is joy and creativity. Life is finding a cause to survive, a reason
not to die – not yet. It is youth and old age, with everything in
between. Overall, life is beautiful – ugliness is fleeting. Corpses and
skeletons are lugubrious; living flesh is resplendent, all bodies are
statuesque. Human life is love and hate, but it can only be life when we
are with others. Life as fear and hatred is not real life at all. For
some, life is God. We would all then be His children. We are
nevertheless the spawn of the Earth.
Human existence is freedom – an edifice of plurality.
Greg Chatterton, Cupar, Fife
If the ancients could do philosophy in the marketplace, maybe I can
too. So I employed some modern technology by texting the question ‘What
is Life?’ to all my contacts. I didn’t explain the context of the
question, to avoid lyrical waxing. Here are a sample of replies. Life
is: being conscious of yourself and others; a being with a soul;
experience; what you make it; your chance to be a success; family;
living as long as you can; not being dead; greater than the sum of its
parts; complex chemical organisation; different things to different
people; a mystery; a journey; don’t know; a quote from a song, “baby
don’t hurt me”; life begins after death. I asked a regular in my
favourite café. They said, “man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy
him forever.” A person suffering from a degenerative disease answered:
“life is sh** then you die.” Another with the same illness interviewed
in our local newspaper said, “My life is a mission to help other
sufferers.” A colleague said “some would want to shoot themselves if
they had my life, but I’m happy.” I posed the question at my art club
and we did no painting that day…
I was surprised to find that I had no immediate definition of life
myself (hence the idea to ask) and that there is no consensus (only one
reply was repeated), but then, that also is life.
I sometimes catch myself considering life when I arrive at the
turning point on my evening walk. It’s a dark spot which makes
stargazing easier, and the heavens are a good place to start, since life
as we know it began there (the heavier atoms like carbon which make up
our bodies initially formed in dying Red Giant stars). This makes me
feel two things about my life: it’s a dot because the cosmos is immense;
but it’s an important dot in the cosmos because I can consider it.
Kristine Kerr, Gourock, Renfrewshire
Next Question of the Month
Now we know what life is, the next question is, How Should I Live?
Please give and justify your ethical advice in less than 400 words. The
prize is a semi-random book from our book mountain. Subject lines or
envelopes should be marked ‘Question of the Month’, and must be received
by 9th June. If you want a chance of getting a book, please include
your physical address. Submission implies permission to reproduce your
answer physically and electronically. Thank you.
What is our Purpose in this life?
6 Quranic Verses About Our Purpose In Life
Alhamdulillah, Praise be to Allah (swt), we as Muslims have a clear purpose in our lives: to earn the pleasure of our Creator.
I read a lot of information about happiness for my work, but as
Muslims, our true goal is not “happiness”. Our true goal is to grow
nearer to Allah (swt).
Many psychology articles about happiness give great ideas and
techniques to follow, but few actually talk about Allah (swt). I am so
thankful to be a Muslim and to have a goal much greater than being
“happy”.
In my book, I say that the real source of our happiness is having a
positive relationship with Allah (swt). My book goes on to say that we
can learn other skills and techniques in order to cope with this
challenging world, which support our journey to Allah (swt). Feeling
positive feelings helps us to be better Muslims. Positive feelings such
as inner peace, joy, gratitude and hope all help us to do more good
deeds for the sake of our Creator.
Feeling happy is a great thing, but as Muslims, we must never forget our real purpose in life.
Here is a chapter from my first book, The Basic Values of Islam, about the value of “Purpose”:
Chapter 53. PURPOSE: Something set up as an object or end to be attained
1. Did you then think that We created you in vain, and that you would not be returned to us?
The Holy Quran 23:115
2. And I created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me (Alone).
The Holy Quran 51:56
The purpose of our life is the worship our Creator in the many
ways there are to worship Him (prayer, helping others, seeking
knowledge, etc.).
3. …Who has created life and death so that He may try you which of you are best in deeds…
The Holy Quran 67:2
The Holy Quran 67:2
Who will do the best works for the sake of Him?
4. And We have not created the heaven and earth and what is
between them in vain. That is the opinion of those who disbelieve. And
woe to such disbelievers, because of the Fire. Shall we treat those who
believe and do good deeds as those who spread corruption on the earth?
Or shall we treat the pious as sinners?
The Holy Quran 38:27-8
The believers will not face the same afterlife as the corrupters. The pious will not be treated the same as sinners.
5. And among the people there is he who sells himself for the pleasure of Allah, and Allah is kind to His worshippers.
The Holy Quran 2:207
The pleasure of Allah should be our goal.
The pleasure of Allah should be our goal.
6. There has come to you from God a light and a luminous
Book, through which God, by His grace, guides all who seek His good
pleasure on the path of peace, and brings them out of the depths of
darkness into light and guides them unto a Straight Path.
The Holy Quran 5:15-16
God has guided people to the purpose of life—worshipping Him and
seeking His pleasure—by sending His messengers, books and other means.
But we have to want to please God to receive this guidance.
No comments:
Post a Comment