I've figured out the meaning of life (ethical, religion, soul)
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I'm turning 40 tomorrow and all my life I have pondered and studied and learned and wracked my brain over big questions such as "What is life about? Why are we here? Where did we come from? Where are we going? What is the purpose of it all?"
Here are the conclusions I've come to, and of course I realize due to the nature of the topic, none of this can be proven, so it's mere hypothesis.
Reincarnation is real. Every living thing has a soul. Our souls are eternal. We've lived before many times, and we will live again many times. Our lives are sequential. Time on Earth moves forward consistently, so when our life ends, we are born into a new baby's body a little while after we died. The benefit of this is that as we live, we work to help civilization on Earth progress. In our next life we keep working to progress Earth further while enjoying and/or suffering the consequences of the good or ill we contributed to society in our past life. So it always behooves us to work hard, follow our dreams, make our dreams reality on earth. We leave our work behind when we pass, then we reap the benefits in our next life while continuing to move forward.
My background: I was raised by my parents who were lapsed Catholics. We went to church a few times before I was in first grade. Then my mom let the Jehovah's Witnesses visit her weekly. They gave me a children's bible. It was very colorful and I pored over it for years. When I was 17 my friend turned me into a Mormon. I let myself be brainwashed with that for 18 years. It had its magical moments but it clashed with the real world, so I suffered heavy cognitive dissonance. Then I discovered yoga. Yoga isn't a religion, but it originated with people of Hindi persuasion, so when I discovered the bliss of yoga asana (the physical fitness exercising aspect), there was an undeniable spiritual aspect too because with the action of bending and stretching your body to its fullest potential, you are brought face-to-face with wholeness and honesty. You come to a place of honesty and vulnerability, and when people are new to yoga and reach this point, crying tears of epiphany is not uncommon.
I studied to become a certified yoga instructor, and our assigned reading included the Bagavad Gita. Reincarnation is a philosphy accepted by easterners. It took a few years for me to let it soak in, but it resonates with me now. It makes so much more sense to me than the Christian philosophies.
In my leisure time I've stumbled on some accounts of people (usually children) who vividly remember a past life, and when adults have helped them get to the bottom of their mysterious memories, they've been able to verify the people, places, and events that the children recall.
I'm convinced.
Death is not the end. We are eternal. And we are earth dwellers, with some exceptions such as spirits who remain in the spirit realm for an extended time for varying reasons.
We may be reincarnated as humans again, or animals, or plants, I really don't know.
But in the coming centuries as humankind advances, we may venture to other planets to study and colonize them.
We are living now, and we will be living again in the future.
Reincarnation is something that appears to be for those who have not been able to figure out the meaning of their experience of life on earth, and so try again - thus having the opportunity to figure it out next time. [perhaps]
The idea would be to use the life you now have in order not to have to go through the process again.
Zelpha, you may have figured out the meaning of YOUR life, but it is proselytizing to try to apply that to the lives of all others.
Yes, I felt out of order after writing that, but it's uneditable now. It's just that these thoughts have been going over & over in my mind and I felt like expressing them.
Reincarnation is real. Every living thing has a soul. Our souls are eternal. We've lived before many times, and we will live again many times. Our lives are sequential. Time on Earth moves forward consistently, so when our life ends, we are born into a new baby's body a little while after we died. The benefit of this is that as we live, we work to help civilization on Earth progress. In our next life we keep working to progress Earth further while enjoying and/or suffering the consequences of the good or ill we contributed to society in our past life. So it always behooves us to work hard, follow our dreams, make our dreams reality on earth. We leave our work behind when we pass, then we reap the benefits in our next life while continuing to move forward.
In my leisure time I've stumbled on some accounts of people (usually children) who vividly remember a past life, and when adults have helped them get to the bottom of their mysterious memories, they've been able to verify the people, places, and events that the children recall.
I'm convinced...We are living now, and we will be living again in the future.
This is lovely and inspiring, the thirst and yearning you have for exploring and learning and discovery. It is said that searching and yearning and reaching for Truth are an actual source of vigor and vitality, it is evident in your post and what you describe of your own life so far. May you enjoy many more decades and adventures in the cosmic realms that span time and space!
for me, too, there were so many questions i had that were only answered in a framework of reincarnation. the soul is indeed eternal and vast and wise and sweeping in its scope. Happy Birthday!
This is lovely and inspiring, the thirst and yearning you have for exploring and learning and discovery. It is said that searching and yearning and reaching for Truth are an actual source of vigor and vitality, it is evident in your post and what you describe of your own life so far. May you enjoy many more decades and adventures in the cosmic realms that span time and space!
for me, too, there were so many questions i had that were only answered in a framework of reincarnation. the soul is indeed eternal and vast and wise and sweeping in its scope. Happy Birthday!
Love, love, love! Over the past few days I think about what you said here ^^^ as I go about my day.
Life is the most subjective experience you will ever encounter.
True!
It's fascinating and curious that as humans we all have the same biological and emotional needs, yet some people find fulfillment in one way, while others find personal fulfillment in completely different ways.
Then there are so many people who wander and want fulfillment but have trouble finding it. Some people along the way find temporary superficial fulfillment in unhealthy ways (chemical addictions, unproductive habits, etc) which end up compromising their overall well-being. Those kind of distractions have a way of pulling us away from our own unique ideal paths of deepest genuine fulfillment.
We are all born with unique personalities and unique paths, so the purpose of our differences is for everyone to contribute their uniqueness so that all of these millions of pieces when put together, make a whole! It's beautiful, like we are all individual instruments -- some of us are strings, some are wind instruments, some are brass, some are percussion, and when we synchronize our efforts into a common cause, we become a symphony!
One more thing: I won't be able to forgive myself if I don't say this: Yoga is truly for everyone. Yes, YOU reading this!
If you can only think and breathe, you can benefit from yoga.
If you can only sit in a chair, you can benefit from yoga.
If you have any physical and/or emotional maladies, yoga can help to heal you, if not heal you completely.
If you have an able body, yoga will enhance and increase your physical abilities, and you will awaken emotionally & spiritually too.
Yoga taps DIRECTLY into our most fundamental, basic aspects of being human. It helps cleanse out all physical, emotional, mental toxins, and brings out the best in everyone.
Yoga people are truly the healthiest people in the world because yoga is not only intense physical exercise for every muscle and joint in the body, but yoga also addresses mental, emotional, and spiritual wellness.
Other essential things are cardiovascular exercise and natural nutrition.
Our bodies, minds, and souls are reliant upon one another for well-being. For optimal wellness now & in our eternities, nurturing our physical wellness pays dividends in every other aspect.
Zelpha, you may have figured out the meaning of YOUR life, but it is proselytizing to try to apply that to the lives of all others.
That's a game of semantics and syntax. From a Cartesian perspective his/her assertion is perfectly sound. Depending on whatever current of philosophical thought one chooses to subscribe to there are ethical and ontological questions regarding whether the lives of others matter at all, or if others even exist independent of our observation.
As such you are proselytizing as much as Zelpha.
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