Truth or Comfort?

[1137]

Existentialism is not saying to live a lie. It is saying to make the best out of meaningless existence, that is not comforting. What else is there to do but make something of yourself? You don't need to do anuthing, and through such (lack of acts) you become nothing. I still do not see the comfort in it. Life is meaningless amd absurd but that doesn't mean we have to be depressed, and not being depressed is not the same as seeking comfort.

 

[InChrist]

It should be obvious to any thinking person that life has meaning or humans would not even contemplate the question as to whether it is meaningful or not. Everyone searches for meaning because they know it is there somewhere. I believe the awareness that there is meaning to life is an intrinsic, unavoidable part of our being and attempting to deny this brings delusion and despair. True comfort is found only in acknowledging truth.


Remove from me the way of lying,
And grant me Your law graciously.
I have chosen the way of truth;
Your judgments I have laid before me. Ps. 119:29-30

 

[Wannabe Yogi]

Much of this Existential angst is due to our modern life style, being removed from nature.

In the West we have a long history that God is different then us and the world we live in. Meaning came through the supernatural. When the supernatural was taken away so was our meaning. Then add to the fact that we live in huge communities cut off from nature. We live stressful lives in nuclear families when humans for aeons live in small groups of under 250 with extended families. Engaged in a more simple life. Maybe, our Angst has nothing to do with what we believe but a life style out of harmony. Maybe there is no philosophical meaning to life because
Life Her Self is the meaning. Why do we need more then that.

 

[Me Myself]

I don't understand people who look for a meaning to life.

What meaning is outside of it? whatever meaning you find (wheter good or bad or neutral) is a meaning of life. Lack has no lack of meanings, Life has a monopoly on them!

 

[CynthiaCypher]

Much of this Existential angst is due to our modern life style being removed from nature.

Oh please. It was the anxiety that living within a natural environment that caused us to build civilization period.

 

[Me Myself]

Oh please. It was the anxiety that living within a natural environment that caused us to build civilization period.

You are oversimplifying.

 

[CynthiaCypher]

It should be obvious to any thinking person that life has meaning or humans would not even contemplate the question as to whether it is meaningful or not.

Just because we want meaning does not entail that there is meaning. We might just be fooling ourselves

 

[CynthiaCypher]

You are oversimplifying.

And so is he.

 

[Me Myself]

Hummm yeah I think you are probably right

 

[Twilight Hue]

It should be obvious to any thinking person that life has meaning or humans would not even contemplate the question as to whether it is meaningful or not. Everyone searches for meaning because they know it is there somewhere. I believe the awareness that there is meaning to life is an intrinsic, unavoidable part of our being and attempting to deny thisbrings delusion and despair. True comfort is found only in acknowledging truth.


Remove from me the way of lying,
And grant me Your law graciously.
I have chosen the way of truth;
Your judgments I have laid before me. Ps. 119:29-30

Actually I find no reasons to look for meaning in life. Life simply works, and as such suffices very well. My personal search for meaning had concluded long ago in light of realisation. So please exclude me from the list of " everyone" as there is no longer any need for me to search "there" or "somewhere".

 

[InChrist]

Just because we want meaning does not entail that there is meaning. We might just be fooling ourselves

Then this phenomenon of “fooling ourselves” has been very consistent through all cultures and history. I’d say such a consistent awareness and search for meaning of life demonstrates the reality that there is meaning to life.

 

[Me Myself]

Just because we want meaning does not entail that there is meaning. We might just be fooling ourselves

Meaning is around all there is unless you are dead or in nirvana or something.

I could dare you to spend an entire day without creating any meaning to anything, and I am sure you would lose before 5 minutes.

 

[1137]

Then this phenomenon of “fooling ourselves” has been very consistent through all cultures and history. I’d say such a consistent awareness and search for meaning of life demonstrates the reality that there is meaning to life.

There is no logic you could give to support that claim. The fact that we have and still are searching for meaning simply shows that we are not as intelligent as we think.

 

[Wannabe Yogi]

Oh please. It was the anxiety that living within a natural environment that caused us to build civilization period.

There is a good body of evidence that the more complex civilization becomes the more mental health issues become prevalent. I still would not trade my flush toilet in to live in a hut. Still it is a down side.

 

[Wannabe Yogi]

And so is he.

I don't think so. One study done in Thailand (Read it 15 years ago wish I could get my hands back on it)

Did interviews with folks in small Villages about their life, ethics, mental health ect, in the 1920's. After impact with west (early 1970's) and change in life style they did the interviews again. Out comes were shocking.

 

[Penumbra]

There is a good body of evidence that the more complex civilization becomes the more mental health issues become prevalent.

The simplest societies tend to have rather high death rates for children, though, and an overall younger population.

Most animals in nature have a pretty high death rate, especially among the young. Humans without technology still have a lower death rate than many other animals, in part because humans have a fairly small number of offspring (typically one at a time, sometimes two, rarely more), so it's not like the many animals whose strategy is to have a ton of offspring and have a few survive. But modern medical techniques improve childbirth survival rate, substantially increase the chances a child will make it to adulthood, and increase the life expectancy of adults.

So there's a trade-off. Technology and complexity brings blessings and curses. In addition to health, technology and complexity have given us things like telescopes, microscopes, safe travel, to allow us to learn more about our world.

I'm not really one to idealize extremely simple societies because based on how my birth went, I'd almost certainly be among those that didn't make it. So I kind of view it like, "Yeah, they do have some advantages. Some disadvantages too. And I'd be dead on arrival anyway. "

 

[Wannabe Yogi]

The simplest societies tend to have rather high death rates for children, though, and an overall younger population.

Most animals in nature have a pretty high death rate, especially among the young. Humans without technology still have a lower death rate than many other animals, in part because humans have a fairly small number of offspring (typically one at a time, sometimes two, rarely more), so it's not like the many animals whose strategy is to have a ton of offspring and have a few survive. But modern medical techniques improve childbirth survival rate, substantially increase the chances a child will make it to adulthood, and increase the life expectancy of adults.

So there's a trade-off. Technology and complexity brings blessings and curses. In addition to health, technology and complexity have given us things like telescopes, microscopes, safe travel, to allow us to learn more about our world.

I'm not really one to idealize extremely simple societies because based on how my birth went, I'd almost certainly be among those that didn't make it. So I kind of view it like, "Yeah, they do have some advantages. Some disadvantages too. And I'd be dead on arrival anyway. "

Well said. Still, I would like to see our selves plan our culture to help with the mental health disadvantage. By the way I would have also died as a child. So I see your point.

 

[Kerr]

I suspect this may be because you are selecting the lesser of two discomforts. You can't wrap your head around afterlife concepts, and that causes you greater cognitive dissonance than the choice of rejecting them. The discomfort of believing in something you think is a lie is greater than the discomfort of believing in what you think is the truth. Sort of a no-brainer, really, and I'd hazard to say the vast majority of people are more comfortable believing in what they think is true than what they think is a lie. This is why I think this entire thread presents a false dichotomy. People simply do not hold beliefs over long periods of time that cause them cognitive dissonance. They find some way to resolve it, often by finding comfort in what they perceive to be the truth of things.

I am terrified of death as a result of choosing the truth to the degree where I panic inside and can feel almost tempted to end it all just to get it over with (I am not suicidal, btw, I said "almost" for a reason), so I would not say it is the lesser discomfort.

 

[blackout]

Of course the two can coexist. But if it is a fact that life is meaningless, many will not find comfort. If there is a situation like this, truth or comfort?

I find comfort in the fact that I cast/create my own meaning/s.



This becomes a life that is full of meaning/meaning'ful.

 

[YmirGF]

Truth is relative; comfort is fleeting. I'll take change, whatever it brings.