Ultimate question of life, the universe and everything?

lobster

misecmisc1 asks an important question in another thread. Why were we born? Can that be answered? What is the ultimate question of life the universe and everything?


Is it to have fun and be happy? To make the world a better place? 42?

?

Is it to wake up? Can we formulate the right question?

Gui

You already have the answer to all your questions.
"I don't know."

Tosh

If everything is ultimately empty of inherent existence, the only meaning to life must be one that we attach to it.

Mine's to stay sober and help the still suffering alcoholic. That suits me, I've experience with alcoholism that may help others, and I really enjoy it too, which is always a bonus.

I'm not worried about getting enlightened or pleasing some God, but I would like to be happy and as peaceful as possible along the way.

So what's your meaning of life?

misecmisc1

ah, just now saw this thread

actually Ajahn Chah has already replied to this question, as i said in the other thread and the answer which Ajahn Chah gave was - why do we eat? the answer is - so that we do not have to eat again. similarly why are we born? the answer is - so that we do not have to be born again. so the answer is simple. but to implement it practically is the tough part.

Invincible_summer

Tosh said:

If everything is ultimately empty of inherent existence, the only meaning to life must be one that we attach to it.

Existentialism 101 :rockon:

Vastmind

Why were we born?

Do you think animals sit around the trees or
in the bush and discuss these things? hahaha

This is an imponderable.

taiyaki

‎"I want to conclude by offering a metaphor for this Mahamudra training.

Let us suppose that we are an eagle in a cage perched on the edge of a cliff. That we have been dressed up in clothes, we have a coat on, we have a hat, we have big mittens over our wings, we have boots over our feet. And we have come to believe that this is who we are. We're weighed down with all these dark coverings and we don't even know what our wings look like, we don't know what our claws look like. When we look in the mirror in our little cage all we see is these haunted eyes and this rather disfigured creature all dressed up in a kind of comical way. We think that the cage is the normal situation, our normal situation. That its our world, its how things are. Meantime, we can see through the bars and we look out and see this vast open space ahead of us. It goes to infinity and during the day we see the sun riding through the sky, we see the clouds and at night we see the stars and moons. And we feel such incredible longing in our heart. We almost want to throw ourselves into that space, we want to drink the sky, we want to touch the sun. We want to smell the moon and hold the stars. But of course we know thats not how things are. We're this weighed down, cloaked being in this cage. And even when we feel that longing we think we're insane. We think we're crazy. And if there were other similar eagles dressed up they'd be telling us no, no, no you can't do that, that's not what it means thats not what life is for. And then all of a sudden somebody throws open the door, somebody pulls the door of the cage open and without even thinking we throw off our boots and we throw off our gloves and we throw off our hat and our coat. And as we're doing it there's some kind of huge surge this kind of absolutely irresistible longing and urge to leap into the space. And we do. And we leap from the cage and there's a little part of us that thinks we're insane and we're leaping to our death. But then our wings open and they're huge and we feel the updraft and we spread our wings and we ride up on the wind. And we ride up into that beautiful huge sky. Up and up and out and out. And we look ahead and we see nothing but infinity. And we see the clouds and we fly up among the clouds. We feel their moisture and up higher we feel the warmth of the sun. And there is such joy in our being. We feel so free and suddenly our life feels so good. And we feel finally for the first time we actually know who we are and we know why we are born. To fly like this through all eternity. To enjoy and taste and touch all the things we meet on the way. And pretty soon those dark clothes and that tiny cage just seem like a distant memory. "

-Reginald Ray from "Mahamudra for the Modern World"

Daiva

Lobster, you have already solidified the answer in my previous thread: to be connected with the eternal and not fear life and death. Is there a need for the question when the answer is so obvious? Belief is easier than doubt. 42 works for me.