I've been thinking about this for a while now. Many today describe living life as a means to just exist. They carry on in the natural order of things trying to survive and provide for their families. Some try to make as much money to live the most lavished and pleasing life they can. Some just fight day to day just to survive. Some war to take what belongs to others.

There is so much vanity in this. Reason being is because they, like myself, will one day die. This inevitability makes living pointless. We build up for ourselves great homes, fancy cars, inspiring songs that last generations. Yet once we die, we no longer have a recollection of these things. Whatever our motives were before we died die with us and leave the results for others to experience. This may make sense on a natural level of thinking, but we as humans go far beyond our intended nature. No other creature coordinates with others to make music, build building to worship in, and have capabilities of sending telescopes out into space.

On top of that; death claims us from the very conception. This means that we are not living, but dieing; some faster than others. So, one cannot say, "Live as if you were dieing." You are dieing. Every day, we get older and our bodies break down.

We are dieing. What then is the point in 'living?' IMO, without God; without the very source of eternal life, there is no point in living. But then again, this is just my philosophy.

It is love that makes life worth while God or no God. If you live with love of self, your fellow beings and the Earth you will find peace. Love and compassion is something you must find within yourself and no God can do it for you. Life is what you make it to be.

From my Blog......

Life is a gift of God you have chosen to accept the finite version of it or you would not still be with us. Live it to the fullest, laugh, play and make friends and leave a lasting legacy of your life toward the pursuit of goodness, not for any eventual rewards but because it is the right thing to do.

I believe If you like the gift of life you have an opportunity to keep it, seek out matters of spirituality, don’t ever stop if you are uncertain of the conclusions you arrive at because that uncertainty is a red flag that you have not found the truth. Seek and you shall find it, knock and the door will be opened.

Remember you are under no obligation to do so if you choose to not pursue a renewal of life. This mortal life may be plenty enough living for some and eternity may not be enough for others.

There is an element of peace in believing in a certainty and I pray that all that read this find that certainty of spirit. Then carry on laughing and loving and living the rest of this life with joy and hope.

Irish

Very Nicely said Irish

You seem to be making some assumptions

- that there is no personal afterlife without an external god-entity to provide continuing existance.

That is unknown, it could as easily be that having an afterlife is as much a normal part of the universe as being alive in the first place. Or, in fire and brimstone sermons like "Sinners in the hands of an angry god", an external god is given as the only reason why people don't instantly cease to exist. If that's the case and a god is keeping all life existing already, regardless of their religous beliefs, then there's no reason to suppose that such universal life would become conditional after the loss of one's body.

- that lives which will end are pointless to the individual

Even if there is no afterlife, you are certainly alive in the here and now. And the things one does to maintain some level of comfort in living aren't necessarily vain. If you feel that you have an unnecessarily fancy home and automobile, then you can choose to live more modestly and in line with your needs. Though I think you'll find that having shelter and transportation of some sort are useful in a way that isn't vain.

- that a life which is pointless to the individual is of no benefit to others

Even if you feel that your life is pointless to you, your presence can benefit the collective, if you aren't taking advantage of others to maintain your life. There are so many ways this is the literal truth I'd need a whole new post to list them.

Life is for the living. Without a body, one could never experience this world. Be well, do "good," and be grateful always. No doubt, death will come to all, but so what?! Therefore, enjoy your life, be with the ones you truly love now, not tomorrow. Be here now! ...Before it's too late. Have you ever been gravely ill? When death is knocking on your door, you will hold on to life with all the available energy you have left -- I GUARANTEE IT.

"To everything, there is a season."

What a bleak look at death. I rather like to think that part of the natural cycle of things, I was born and for a time I lived and then I will die. No need to build up wealth other than a wealth of knowledge about the world I live in and pass it onto future generations before I die. I don't need material things and as they say you can't take it with you when you go. So I gift it to my neices and nephews for their futures (I don't have kids). What is so bleak about that? Thinking that there is an afterlife is nice, maybe it is true maybe not. Either way I had an impact on the people around me, and tried to be a positive influence so they may go on and be the same for the coming generation. No diety needed for that.

BTW, in order for you to be in this world and live life to the fullest, you have to be a responsible human being, you have to pay your bills, no doubt. You simply cannot burden others with your baggage -- that is certainly bad training.

But what about those who don't have the blessings that we have; the ones that every day suffer just for being alive? The poor kids born of a homeless mother? The starving babies in Africa? The recently divorced wife of ten years? The refugee who had her daughter taken away and sold as a sex slave to someone rich and perverted enough? What about them? What do they have to look forward to? How can they possibly enjoy their lives here and now? For some, a season is all they have; and that season may not always be summer or spring. I'm not talking about just a personal conviction of life and how one should live it. I'm talking about an overall mindset of life that robs us of our long-earned rewards. We sow and others reap. Some of us sow in blood and others may reap in money. We build and others inhabit. And not all of us have a happiness that lasts even here on earth. For some its too late. For some, death is just teasing them.

Interesting post, blue. The book of Ecclesiastes covers a similar theme to your post, and I thought I'd share some of it here. "The Teacher" (presumably Solomon, being a King of Jerusalem and offspring of David, though no name is provided) laments that life is meaningless. Only if God exists is there purpose to life, the Teacher concludes (and the Teacher had tried "everything under the sun" and found it to be "meaningless" - a common theme throughout the book). It's a beautiful book of the Bible, I think, and highlights the meaningless of the pleasures of this existence.

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,

a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

Just thought I'd share that piece of writing, from Ecclesiastes 3 it comes. All the best everyone

Regards, PA

What is the point of living without God, without the hope of eternal life after death? I would reverse the question and ask, if there is a God and eternal life after death, then what is the point of life? Our spiritual life after death then depends on our faith in this concept, as well as does the meaning for our lives. If we base our happiness and fulfillment in life on belief only, then I think we are not standing on solid ground, as the depth of a belief within ourselves I think does not hold on a very fundamental level. We may change our belief systems, and when challenged we may discover at the deepest level we have some uncertainty about our faith in them.

In these terms, our reason for living beyond just existing depends on a concept we entertain within our minds. This may give us some positive quality to our lives, some sense of fulfillment and purpose while we live, but it also creates a world-view that is created within us from outside. A construct that is imposed upon us from our parents and from the society in which we are raised. We also may construct some spiritual beliefs by ourselves, some personal faith, but still these are all concepts we create. Living within these concepts may make life more meaningful in their way, but they also have a negative effect on us. They impose limits to the possibilities of our awareness, as well as creating conflict between our beliefs and other's, and conflict within ourselves in the sense that we may have personal motivations that are in conflict with our spiritual self-image.

I think there is another way of realizing some point to life. If we are aware of our existence from moment to moment, aware of what is happening NOW, without imposing our mental concepts on our personal reality, we may discover great meaning to our lives that we have overlooked by living within some conceptual mental construct. Just paying total attention to ourselves within our present environment at this very moment is a marvelous experience.
In this kind of living we may come to an understanding that we no longer need any 'extra', or added meaning to make life fulfilling.

I think we may live too much in our imagination. We put great faith in thought and in our intellectual powers, but all our concepts are self-created models of life, not life itself. We betray our true selves in this way and are fooled by considering our mental ideas as reality. The ground we stand upon is real and is essencial for our standing. Our in-born intelligence is just as real. Intellectual curiousity is a legitimate application of our intellect, but when we mistake our intellectual flights of imagination and our capacity for creating intelectual models for our own comfort and security, we are no longer living on solid ground, and I think we create problems for ourselves and for others. Living within my own capability of awareness of what is, is fulfilling enough for me.

Thanks PA, that was pretty much what I was trying to point out. I read Ecclesiastes and it started me on a brain crunching expedition on how I view the way I live my life. Would I live to simply enjoy my short existence, or would I desire an eternal life in peace, joy, righteousness, and adventure?

I could only go by my belief system and my personal experiences... I, too, went through many hells in this lifetime. Through the grace of my God, I rose above many of them. And boy did I learn!!! Besides, death is not the end. Each one of us has this eternal essence inside us -- some people call it soul. Since we have this eternal essence, some people believe that we reincarnate to this world. Every time that happens, we get better lives and so on. In fact, I was just thinking about this while I was driving my car, and I realized that there are forces out there guiding my life..., but in the end, the choices I make bring about the consequences in my life, good or bad, regardless of my many guides. The thing is: we just don't see the whole picture. I really believe that we are all given a chance to change, at one point in time. Some just see that opportunity, while others just didn't get it, they have too much baggage to even see a particular chance, staring them down. They have their minds made up that what they want to happen is what they should follow..., but alas, this universe sometimes doesn't work that way. You take what's given and go from there. For the most part, one simply can't go from point A to point B. Again, at one point in time, we have been given a chance to change and have better lives, be it in this lifetime or past lives. The thing is: We are always given many chances, but somehow, we are just too dense to see them.

Just like the saying goes: "You live and learn." Since you're so passionate about it, then do something about it, and see where that gets you. On the other hand, some saints did say, "Who are you to give such help???" I believe the best help is to not add to the negativity, and that's quite a task in itself. Also, pray for them, and count your many blessing at the same time. While one is still on Earth, one is not free from one's many dramas, completely. Perhaps when you're "free," you could afford to give away your energy. Or, you could always be like Mother Theresa... Or, you could give away your luxuries and not take any credit for doing so, as in being silent about it. Many people give, but for the most part, they do it for the wrong reasons.

And again, death is never the end, sh** happens, it's meant to be, but one has the choice to rise above it, or be trampled on by life.

You have the luxury of feeling pity for these people (and some may even call your sentiment patronizing), but the thing is, if one is in the middle of a mess, one doesn't have the time to even think about one's predicament because one's energy is so focused on getting over it.

Just a thought, just another belief system. And life is never over, until one is truly "free." Earth is a perfect planet to break us down, polish us up like gemstones. And I believe in a divine, all-powerful, supreme God. I listen to the many signs around me so that I don't fall into any unnecessary traps and heartaches. And yes, I count my blessings, always.

We do have our sincere prayers to hopefully avert the many hells of living.

Why not try them all, and see where they lead you??? Also, boredom is a great catalyst for change, let's not forget. Boredom is a blessing in disguise in one's life, in my experience.

you really can't do both. They both have different requirements that are life long.

I thought you were just daydreaming, just thinking these through to yourself... I didn't mean for you to actually act them out in realtime, separately.