What On Earth Are We Doing Here

What On Earth

Are We Doing Here?

Our Purpose in Life

KW.C

Contents

Preface

Why We Are Here

The Need to Connect and the Need to Perform Tasks

The Need to Satisfy Oneself

Our Need to Serve

PART I: SERVICE

Learning to Serve Oneself

The Limitations of Our Minds

Our Distinctive Characteristics and Traits

Learning to Understand Our Inadequacies

Our Limited Influences and Their Infinite Effects

Have the Mindfulness to Grow

Serving Others

The Need to Serve Others

Serving Others as We Would Ourselves

Be Open

Choose to Understand

Expect the Side Effects

Recognize Your Current Paths and Strive For Better Choices and Outcomes

Serving What We Do

The Underlying Definition of Work

How to Define a Purpose and Meaning in What We Do

From Where Are Meaning and Purpose Derived?

Patterns to Finding Meaning in What We Do

Have Belief and Faith and Be Resolute

PART II: THE INDISPENSABLE ACTS AND PURSUITS OF LIFE

Wealth

What Is Wealth?

The (Higher) Road to Riches

The Temporary and the Long-Lasting; the Skin-Deep and the Genuine

The Full Definition of Wealth

Learning

Life Itself Is a Learning Experience

Ways We Learn and the Limitations of Our Learning Capabilities

Learn How to Learn

To Learn Is Also Learning to Unlearn

An Education and a Career Is Only the Beginning of Our Lifelong Education

Live to Learn and Recognize What Is Needed to Learn

The Roots of Conflict and Wrongdoing

Through the Perspective of Society

Understanding through the Intrinsic Perspective

The Relationship between the Two

The Emotions

Reason

Gauge Your Own Actions and Seek Better Alternatives

Resolve Conflicts Starting from Within

Our Life’s Purpose

Preface

Since the dawn of humanity, we have always questioned the meaning of life, and we always will. It signifies our intelligence and our need to understand. Many of us eventually form a conclusion, consciously or subconsciously. Some believe that there is no definite purpose, that our existence is a coincidence, and consequently, life cannot have any intended significant meaning. While we may never truly understand how we got here or why we exist, we will always use our intelligence, however limited, to attempt to come to a reasonable conclusion and use it as guidance in what we can aim for and achieve in our individual lives.

There have been numerous theories and answers to the same question throughout history. Philosophers, both in the Western and Eastern worlds, have provided theories and ideals concerning the meaning of life. The various religions that still exist today have also given reasons and purpose through spiritual perspectives. The scientific community has provided some context through its research. And of course, the majority of us living today have pondered the question at one time or another and have to come to terms with it through each of our own perspectives. Throughout different fields and viewpoints, the answers are obviously varied; some are quite complex and hard to comprehend, while some may sound too simple and plain. Some answers are given through religious beliefs, while others attempt to provide explanations through scientific or social contexts.

In the modern world, if one asks about the notion of a purpose in life, some of the most popular answers would probably be seeking happiness, being successful, being knowledgeable, or loving and caring for the people close to us. The conclusion each individual comes to could be any of the above, all of the above, or something entirely different.

From various perspectives, it is indeed very difficult to provide a precise answer suitable for everyone, considering that we all grew up differently, were raised in various cultures and religions, and see the world through our own lenses. But despite all our differences, we do have certain things in common: we are all human beings, a species made up of the same DNA; and we all have intellectual capacity and possess human traits such as empathy, compassion, love, hate, anger, prejudice, etc. If we disregard the influences of differing factors on how humans perceive life, we can most certainly attempt to identify the similarities of purpose and meaning for which all humanity strives.

As the human race grows and expands rapidly, we use our intellect to create solutions for our ever-growing society; we advance in technologies, create infrastructures, form social and economic systems, and much more. With all the advancements that help us improve our way of life, we have also created a more multifaceted and much more complicated world.

Very often we are so caught up in the complexity of the external world and seeking to comprehend it that our purpose and meaning become defined by its context; we fail to see or make efforts to understand the most basic things in life, things such as humans’ intrinsic needs and our own purpose as individuals.

While we may each have varied answers and viewpoints regarding the same question, and while we can come to various possible viewpoints through different contexts, the fundamental answers that are intrinsic to human beings are essentially timeless, unchanging, and unwavering. The same set of answers can be applied to the young or the old, to a person residing in the Americas or someone living in Africa, to a man born in the fifteenth century or the present. There is a universal purpose and meaning that we all inherently strive for and is applicable to any one of us, past, present, and beyond.

Everything in life has its patterns. When we hear success stories, they often share certain similar traits; when we see news of misfortunes in people’s lives, we can usually notice some similarities there as well.

Life itself has its own patterns, and human beings have certain patterns too. We may be different in many aspects (nationality, race, education, culture, religion), but what we all seek in life is not that much different. Some of us will eventually sort out the pieces of the pattern and pursue it in our lifetime, but for many of us, that pattern is never quite realized, and we solely follow along with (or rebel against) the extrinsic world as the framework and reason to our purpose.

I am, like most of us, searching for and trying to understand the meaning and purpose of my life — if there even is any. While the journeys I’ve taken to this date have aided me in developing a clearer understanding and better knowledge, there is no doubt the process is continuous, and there is always so much more to gain. One thing is certain: to be able to comprehend and reach your purpose of life, the process of seeking and pursuing is never-ending; it has to be done constantly and consistently, expanding upon the principles.

This book is about discovering that essential path, putting the appropriate pieces into the puzzle, and finding your unwavering purpose in life. While it is not meant to be a definitive or complete explanation, it is based on fundamental principles of existence, which transcend, affect, and are applicable to all aspects of life.

If these same questions have crept into your thoughts, whether the answers have already been given or you are still searching, I wish to share this simple yet indispensable knowledge with you. It might be something fresh and enlightening, it might broaden your existing paths, or it might reaffirm something you already understand. Whatever you can gain from this book, it should provide the missing links to some of the questions — questions about yourself and about life in general.

If you have ever pondered these questions, read on so that I can share my findings with you.

Why We Are Here

Let’s try to understand the concept from a basic viewpoint. We are beings created from this planet, from this universe, just like any other animals roaming the Earth. To the question of how and why we are alive, have consciousness, and are living on this planet, the answer is we may never know the precise answer. We have our best guesses and theories, we have our personal beliefs, but it’s not something we will ever truly know.

But while it may be almost impossible to come to a definitive explanation of the chief reason and purpose for human existence, trying to identify the meanings and purposes of our lives is certainly something we can attempt.

The questions we should ask ourselves are not What is the purpose and significance of our existence? or Why have we been born into this world? but instead "What are we supposed to do after having been born into this world? and What are we supposed to do with our existence?"

What we do in our lifetime, and which actions, choices, and paths we take is our primary purpose in life. Other than the necessities, such as a means of survival and procreating to carry on our genes, the essence required to obtain life’s purpose mostly consists of two tasks: what we can choose to do with the time given to us (play, learn, work, etc.) and how we can choose to interact and interrelate with other people. These two indispensable acts are what we, as human beings, spend most of our time engaged in: things that we spend time on and people that we spend time with.

The Need to Connect and the Need to Perform Tasks

Humanity is a social species that thrives on connection. When we are born, we will all most likely have grown-ups taking care of us, even if for some reason they aren’t our birth parents. We will meet relatives and siblings, make friends (even foes), have coworkers, be in relationships, and maybe start a family. Being with people is an integral part of what we do, from the very first day that we open our eyes to the day that we die. If solitude is our state for a prolonged period, we will simply wither and deteriorate, emotionally and spiritually.

Once born, we are bound to do something with our lives. We need to find the means to live and utilize whatever skills we have gained. Because of our intelligence, we also need to keep ourselves busy, to satisfy the mind and to obtain a sense of fulfillment. No matter what we choose or desire, we will always be doing something.

A child born into poverty will try to find ways to survive the best way he knows; a mother of three will provide for her children by doing anything and everything possible; a family man will find the means to support the household the best he can. We are all meant to perform some form of task, no matter how significant or trivial it may seem.

If we can come to a genuine understanding and find passion and positivity within ourselves regarding these two aspects of life, it will be the fundamental building block of a purposeful and meaningful life. One way to look at these two integral parts of life is by summing it up with one word: serve. Simply put, once we are born, a part of our purpose and meaning is to serve: serving passionately, unconditionally, and wholeheartedly the things we do, and serving people in the same way, not only the people around us, but also in general. We need to do this because it serves no one other than ourselves; it fulfills a part of our intrinsic needs and desires.

If you don’t understand this principle, if you don’t understand what you want to serve or how you should serve others, you are more than likely harming yourself inwardly, and it is nearly impossible to grasp the essence of life.

The Need to Satisfy Oneself

Other than the two essential aspects mentioned, there is one last crucial component that ties everything together: understanding and learning to serve oneself. In order to begin understanding our own purposes in life, we must first be able to understand ourselves, our minds, and our attributes — the personal traits we possess and what we lack, the thoughts that dominate our minds and whether or not they are sound, which thoughts are missing or neglected but are essential for growth, what existing knowledge we can further expand upon, and which unfamiliar areas of knowledge we should develop.

Learning to serve oneself is the most important aspect of the three, because only when we learn to better serve ourselves positively can we see the other two aspects in the same light. It is also the hardest process of the three, because it challenges us on an intrinsic level: emotionally, spiritually, and intellectually. Serving ourselves genuinely and wholeheartedly challenges us to regularly expand our minds — our incomplete ways of thinking, our actions (and inactions), our accustomed personal traits and emotions (and what’s lacking there), and our limited experiences (what we’ve seen, what we’ve neglected to see).

Consciously and subconsciously, we all act upon these three aspects, because they are essential parts of us. We seek to excel and advance in these three aspects because it fulfills our mind and heart. To find the meaning and purpose in life is to better understand ways to achieve and to excel in these three aspects.

At first glance, the three aspects leading us to understand our life’s meaning and purpose may seem easy and straightforward, but in reality, the process requires much effort and will and is a lifelong, continuous journey.

Our Need to Serve

Before we discuss each of the three aspects in greater detail, let’s take a quick glance at each in terms of the relationships between