@nameless,
nameless;70036 wrote:Reeeeeally?!?
"Must"?!?
Wouldn't '(a) reason' (a feature of the scientifically/logically obsolete notion of 'cause and effect'), if any, be in the eye of the beholder?
I see no "reason to exist". Nor do I seem to need one.
You are very clever according to you, why argue just for the sake of argueing, try to add some substance to your posts
You might not have any reasons for your existence, but I have and can list hundreds if you like
Is there a reason for our existence?
We all have of course self awareness, a feeling of 'self', of being aware of ourselves and our surroundings, and the only clear view that we can have of the world is, naturally, our own. We see the world as a sequence of events that happen to us and around us. We of course, from our own perspective, are very much central to all these events. It is not therefore surprising that we each consider our own existence to be important, regardless as to the actual reality of the situation.
Logic would dictate that if one of us was to cease to exist the world would carry on pretty much as it always has, apart from being missed by friends and family of course. But logic can be ignored when it suits us and the vast majority of us consider ourselves to be important to ' the great scheme of things' to some degree or other. Our egos are not keen to accept that in reality we may not be of any consequence to the vast universe in which we exist, or indeed to humanity as a whole. Our importance to family and friends is, naturally, accepted.
Following on from the belief of our own self importance it is, I suggest, only a natural step to assume that we are here for a reason, to serve some purpose, even though we may not know what it may be. I am not talking here of family commitment or of our duty to others, but a grander purpose in the 'great scheme of things'. But is it true? Is there really a need for us to be here? Do we have a purpose within this vast universe?
If we apply logic to the question, then if we are here for a reason, we have to conclude that our existence must be necessary, otherwise we wouldn't be here. That being the case our existence alone should satisfy the 'need' to be here because we do not ourselves know what that reason is or what it is that we are required to do. It would follow that if our existence comes to an end, then we have 'done our duty', whatever it was.
In other words, whatever we do, or don't do, however long or brief our lives, it was all part of the 'plan'. It seems to me then that no matter what we do, how we live our lives, it was meant to be, that was the 'plan', providing of course that you believe in a 'plan' in the first place.
On the other hand if we believe that we are here by chance alone, then again it doesn't matter to the 'plan' how we live our lives, because we don't believe that there is a 'plan' and possibly do not believe in God either for the same reasons. It will of course matter to others how we conduct ourselves. Great 'plan' or not it would appear that we are free to act as we see fit. This is assuming of course that we do in fact have
free will in our choice of actions, and there is no proof that we do.
There is however another way to look at the idea of a plan, a greater goal for the human race, that would give us a purpose, a reason for being, other than as described above which is based on each individual having their own reason for existence. We could take the view that the plan, or reason, applies to the human race as a whole, and that the actions, or even the existence, of individuals is unimportant to the overall 'direction' of the plan.
By way of example let's consider the route taken by billions of electrons following a path of least resistance. They reach a 'gate' that allows 30% to go left and 70% to go right. The path splits at the 'gate' and 30% go left and 70% go right as the 'gate ' intended. The 'gate' works on probability and does not, indeed can not, choose which individual electrons go left and right, it has no bearing on the result anyway, it's only the percentage that go left or right that matter.
When observing the electrons approaching the 'gate' it is impossible to predict which of the electrons will go left or right. The laws of
Quantum Mechanicswork on probabilities, but given a high enough number of electrons the outcome of such a 'gate' can be predicted with remarkable accuracy. So the selected percentage of electrons go where they were designed to go and our computer works.
We can imagine ourselves following a 'route', performing a function just like the electrons flowing through a circuit board. The electrons of course are unaware that they are part of a highly complex system and are performing remarkable feats of number crunching so that we can read a web page, they are merely existing and flowing along a circuit from which they have no escape, or even a notion of escape.
The existence of individual electrons is unimportant, the route they 'choose' to take is unimportant, and in fact each individual electron does indeed 'choose' its own route. It is only the overall outcome of the statistical probabilities that is important, that is what makes the computer work, and the electrons of course have no notion of a circuit board, let alone a computer.
Could we be like those electrons? Could it be that individually we are of no significance, that our individual actions count for nothing, that it matters not if we live or die, but collectively, as the human race, we do have a reason for existence, a collective goal for mankind that is beyond our comprehension?
Another way of looking at the problem is to take a more holistic view of the universe and everything that it contains. Everything is made of the same original elementary forces that coalesced from the big bang singularity, whether it be a photon, a star, a lump of rock or a human being. It is only the combination, the mix of things, that makes things different from one another.
When we peer millions of light years into the depths of space, we still see the same things, further back in time of course, as we find in our own galaxy and here on Earth. We, the human race, are as much a part of the universe as a spiral galaxy or black hole, and made of the same stuff.
Is it then fanciful to suggest that we, as sentient beings examining the universe, represent the universe examining itself? because in a manner of speaking it is. We are not 'different' to the universe, we are very much an integral part of the universe as a whole, we may be only a very small part, but we are a part of it, we do not exist in isolation.
So next time you look up at a dark sky and see those distant twinkling stars just remember that it was in those fiery furnaces that the first steps were taking in building up the atoms that eventually led to you. We are made of star dust, we are part of the universe. Perhaps we should be asking instead
Why does the universe exist?
Throughout history there have been great people that have made sacrifices for the benefit of others, they had a cause and made it the reason for their existence, even sacrificing their lives for the sake of their cause. Perhaps they died content knowing that they had made a significant contribution to the advancement of mankind. Some would have believed that this was the only reason they were born, to do this great deed. They were sure they knew what was required of them by whichever God they happened to worship.
They may be right, but what would have actually been achieved? A better life for those remaining, yes, for which all are grateful, but in 'the great scheme of things' merely a more comfortable existence for those that were going to exist anyway, (according to the 'plan') not a real change in the 'plan' itself, life goes on regardless, but towards what we do not know. Even the belief that we are 'heading somewhere' is entirely without substance, unless you believe in a 'plan' for reasons of faith.
When observing the electrons approaching the 'gate' it is impossible to predict which of the electrons will go left or right. The laws of
Quantum Mechanicswork on probabilities, but given a high enough number of electrons the outcome of such a 'gate' can be predicted with remarkable accuracy. So the selected percentage of electrons go where they were designed to go and our computer works.
We can imagine ourselves following a 'route', performing a function just like the electrons flowing through a circuit board. The electrons of course are unaware that they are part of a highly complex system and are performing remarkable feats of number crunching so that we can read a web page, they are merely existing and flowing along a circuit from which they have no escape, or even a notion of escape.
The existence of individual electrons is unimportant, the route they 'choose' to take is unimportant, and in fact each individual electron does indeed 'choose' its own route. It is only the overall outcome of the statistical probabilities that is important, that is what makes the computer work, and the electrons of course have no notion of a circuit board, let alone a computer.
Could we be like those electrons? Could it be that individually we are of no significance, that our individual actions count for nothing, that it matters not if we live or die, but collectively, as the human race, we do have a reason for existence, a collective goal for mankind that is beyond our comprehension?
Another way of looking at the problem is to take a more holistic view of the universe and everything that it contains. Everything is made of the same original elementary forces that coalesced from the big bang singularity, whether it be a photon, a star, a lump of rock or a human being. It is only the combination, the mix of things, that makes things different from one another. When we peer millions of light years into the depths of space, we still see the same things, further back in time of course, as we find in our own galaxy and here on Earth.
We, the human race, are as much a part of the universe as a spiral galaxy or black hole, and made of the same stuff. Is it then fanciful to suggest that we, as sentient beings examining the universe, represent the universe examining itself? because in a manner of speaking it is.
We are not 'different' to the universe, we are very much an integral part of the universe as a whole, we may be only a very small part, but we are a part of it, we do not exist in isolation. So next time you look up at a dark sky and see those distant twinkling stars just remember that it was in those fiery furnaces that the first steps were taking in building up the atoms that eventually led to you. We are made of star dust, we are part of the universe. Perhaps we should be asking instead
Why does the universe exist?
Throughout history there have been great people that have made sacrifices for the benefit of others, they had a cause and made it the reason for their existence, even sacrificing their lives for the sake of their cause. Perhaps they died content knowing that they had made a significant contribution to the advancement of mankind. Some would have believed that this was the only reason they were born, to do this great deed. They were sure they knew what was required of them by whichever God they happened to worship. They may be right, but what would have actually been achieved?
A better life for those remaining, yes, for which all are grateful, but in 'the great scheme of things' merely a more comfortable existence for those that were going to exist anyway, (according to the 'plan') not a real change in the 'plan' itself, life goes on regardless, but towards what we do not know. Even the belief that we are 'heading somewhere' is entirely without substance, unless you believe in a 'plan' for reasons of faith.
Anyway peace to you
