A person traveled for many days to the Himalayas to seek ‘The True Meaning of Life’. He went to a sage, meditating in a cave. Tired from his journey, but eager and expectant that the ‘ultimate mystery of life’ is going to be revealed to him in the next moment, he asked the sage, “What is the meaning of life?" After a long pause, the sage said, "Life is a fountain." "What do you mean life is a fountain?" barked the questioner. "I have just traveled thousands of miles to hear your words, and all you have to tell me is that? That's ridiculous." The sage then looked up from the floor of the cave and said, "You mean it's not a fountain?"
( From ‘The Meaning of life’, 2001, David Schmidtz)
That is the irony of the quest for the enigmatic ‘meaning of life’. The more you search for it the more it seems to elude you. Perhaps that is what the sage meant when he called life a fountain which apparently doesn’t mean anything, thereby refusing to answer the question. The seeker was supposed to understand that he will never find the true meaning of life, not in spite of, but because of the great enthusiasm with which he has pursued the quest.
Life’s meaning cannot be sought, it has to be created. All of us were sent to this world with more or less the same basic attributes, and nothing else. Starting from that common zero position, our lives have evolved, each of which is unique and different from each other. Surely whatever our lives have turned out to be didn’t come attached to us like free gifts at the time of our birth, but have been created by ourselves thereafter, step by step. So when we really, actively search for the meaning, why do we expect that something will happen, someone will turn up to teach us the meanings of our lives?...And yes my friends, it’s meanings of lives, and not the meaning of life, ‘cause each life has a different meaning, and it is this meaning of one’s own life that one needs to create for fulfillment and inner happiness. For all of you who don’t think you are sure about the meanings of your lives, but feel the need for it-as they say, the journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. So what are you waiting for? Let’s take it.
Creating the meaning of your life starts with knowing yourself. Discover who you are-what are your most basic values and principles, your personality traits, your knacks and talents, and above all, your priorities-things that you consider most important in your life. Stop listening to others when they try to tell you the answers-listen to your inner voice. People pay to get their personalities tested, but can’t find ten minutes out of their daily schedules to spend with themselves! Who can possibly know you better than yourself? So instead of turning to the external world for direction and guidance, turn your eyes inside-Do you see the treasure chest that God has given you?
“In the long run men hit only what they aim at."
-Henry David Thoreau
Now that you know yourself thoroughly, your next step will be to spot your true passion-what do you love to do the most? Surely you know what that is, but might just be doing something else for making a living. For an overwhelming majority of people, the root cause of unhappiness and feeling unfulfilled is that they are not doing what they love. You can never give your life the meaning it deserves if you deprive your inner self the immense pleasure of making your passion into your job, and continue working for money or anything other than that pleasure. So discover your true inclination, and then make that sole the purpose of your life- be it being a loving spouse, an honest and hard-working professional, or the most ardent social worker.
“They can do all because they think they can."
-Virgil
Hey, now you’ve come home! You’re no longer in the foreign territory (of that job which was not truly ‘yours’) where you had to learn the rules and force yourself to abide by them, but home with your beloved sweetheart-your passion! You’ve actually started to create the long-awaited meaning.
So what’s there to be afraid of? Have all the courage and confidence and positive attitude and face your new life head-on. Whenever you have a negative thought regarding the past, about something you cannot change, tell yourself, like Scarlett, “I’ll think of it tomorrow." When you have one, which is of the I-can’t-do-this or what-if-I-can’t type, just stop wasting time thinking and get going-do something to increase your chances, so that you can!
“Have purpose in life and having it, throw into your work such strength of mind and muscle as God has given you."
- Thomas Carlyle
That is exactly what I mean. When you’ve found your purpose and have a ‘take-charge’ attitude, nothing should stop you. I suppose I’m not asking for too much when I say you should literally spend your every waking hour in pursuit of your goal. And I know that for those of you who have really found your true purpose, it is not ‘you should’, but ‘you cannot but’! For anyone who thinks that that is unrealistic-you have once again mistakenly picked up something which is not your true passion. Isn’t it natural that when you’re doing what you love to do, it’s fun, and there’s no reason why you should want to do anything else at all?
“Time slips through our hands like grains of sand, never to return again."
-Robin S. Sharma, ‘The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari’
Oh I know, I know. I’m sorry my friends, that was just a friendly reminder. I know that people like you who have by this time found the purposes of their lives as perfectly as to be able to devote all their time and energy to it, don’t need to be reminded the importance of proper time-management. Of course you’ve realized that though all your time is devoted to your work, you can make the most of it if you break your ultimate purpose up into smaller, daily goals for the achievement of which you need to attach a timeline to each of them. So you are writing down the routine for your next day every night, aren’t you? I’m sure you’re also putting tick marks against the tasks in your list as and when they are done, to give yourself the necessary positive feedback from your new life.
I apologize to you, my friends; I’ve made a terrible mistake. When I called these the “Five steps to ‘the meaning of life’!", how could I possibly miss the sixth and most important element-YOU? Following Craig Harper, I would like to say that even after you’ve read this article thoroughly, you’ve understood every point; you know what the right path is-nothing will change until you do something, until you really start to act. As you know, no matter how brilliant guidance, inspiration and advice you get, ultimately it’s you with who the actual duty rests!
But I trust you. After having told you to be positive and optimistic, I can’t be as negative as to think that you are not going to make these into real steps (not mere paragraphs!) by taking them. I know you will be pro-active, you will make real change, and eventually you will lead a successful, meaningful and deeply content life. So here’s wishing you all the best for your brand new journey!
Sulagna Dasgupta provides self-improvement related advice on her website www.changeyourlifenow.co.nr. She can also be emailed at sulagnaadasgupta@gmail.com with individual queries and requests for specific self-help related advice. She replies to every one of such emails, and all of this is free.
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