I can't make the jump from nihilism to absurdism (Update) (hexbear.net)

submitted 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) by Guamer@hexbear.net to c/chapotraphouse@hexbear.net

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Not for a lack of trying, I assure you. It's just that no matter how hard I try, my mind won't accept it.

The thought of life and existence being ultimately meaningless (Something else my mind fights against, despite knowing it's true) is too much of a blow to my psyche to overcome and look at light-heartedly.

I'm just so desperate to have a purpose and meaning in my life, but at the same time I can't sincerely believe in any religion or afterlife. I try to "live in the moment" and "be happy and make others happy", but it just isn't enough. I need something more.

Edit: Thank you everyone for their responses so far, I do read them all. They give me something to ponder and think about, maybe even leading to a solution.

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[-] AssortedBiscuits@hexbear.net 4 points 2 months ago

"Does life have meaning?" is a meaningless question and the answer to that meaningless question is a meaningless answer. How so? Let me ask a set of questions:

What is the consequence of life having meaning?
What is the consequence of life not having meaning?
What is the meaningful difference between the two answers?

Personally, my answer to all three is "nothing."

I'm just so desperate to have a purpose and meaning in my life, but at the same time I can't sincerely believe in any religion or afterlife. I try to "live in the moment" and "be happy and make others happy", but it just isn't enough. I need something more.

Your duty in life is to make the world a better life. It's to leave the world in a better state than when you entered it. You don't have to be the architect of some world-historic event like a socialist revolution. It can be much simpler things like feeding ducks at a nearby park or buying groceries for your aging grandparents or refusing to vote guilty in a jury. Your duty to leave the world in a better state when you leave the world can be fulfilled through individual acts as well as fulfilled through being part of an organization, be it a church, club, mutual aid network, or revolutionary party.

Don't be suckered into pondering on the alleged meaning or meaningless of life. There's much work to be done to make the world a better place, to right what is currently wrong, to beautify what is currently ugly, to feed what is currently starving, and so on.