Finding Meaning

>>18426648
do not be overly concerned with finding meaning. even if you understood what sort of definitive meaning you had in life, it would most likely not make you feel better because and could very easily cause you to feel worse than if you had no knowledge of your meaning. not having a set meaning actually frees you from having your path set and predetermined. I'm not sure if you're familiar with Rick and Morty, but there's a scene where Rick creates a robot to pass him butter at the kitchen table. The robot asks Rick, "what is my purpose," to which Rick responds, "you pass butter". The robot, distressed with its terribly mundane and stupid existence, cries out "oh my god". This is a basic yet great example of how knowing your purpose at any given moment might not be a good thing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7HmltUWXgs

>>18426654
You're right, I guess I need to derive meaning from simply being. I'd turned to existentialism to counter my nihilistic thoughts, but I need to find another way.

>>18426648
>I've long suspected that I'd find meaning by building an emotional bond and family with a partner, anyone able to testify?
can confirm

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You have to find your own purpose in life. Doesn't matter what it is so long as you believe in it and strive towards it. These are not the kinds of things you realize when its too late and they are gone because it is a lifelong goal and its only too late when you are dead.

Some people dedicate their lives to a cause or charity. Some will try to eradicate disease or poverty. Some keep it closer to home and simply dedicate their lives to their children. Maybe you want one of these or maybe you want to dedicate your life to making the perfect burrito. Only you can find your own meaning to life.

>>18426685
Did your life feel empty until you achieved this, and did you notice a vast change in your outlook? It can't be an easy thing to maintain, but if it does give you meaning then it's more than worth it.

>>18426721
mm can't say I've ever felt my life was empty. pointless a number of times sure but never empty. in that capacity though, definite change. as for the outlook thing...short answer is yes. long answer is kinda similar to above. let me put it this way: i really really friggin hate being miserable. it might be the one familiarity i don't find *any* measure of comfort in. and i'm rather prone to it. so when my outlook turns to shit, i mind over matter the little bastard back into submission asap. what's noticeably changed is how often the need to do so arises.

just like there are certain personal issues which will not (because they cannot) be fixed by adding another person's presence into your life, there are issues which only get fixed by the presence of another. what varies are situations and priorities.

>>18426648
Youre all chemicals and instincts. You need to game that.

Same old day in day out and hobbies and time wasters wont sustain happiness. You need achievements and goal setting and achieving. You need to feel like youre moving forward and progressing.

A child will definitely take the load off yourself because you can live for someone else but id think it highly irresponsible to non consensually create a human life because *you* dont feel satisfied with your own life.


Pro-tip: ive heard in good authority theres an extremely strong correlation between life satisfaction and acts of charity. Doing some meaningful volunteer work that matters to you might actually do a lot.

Clean garbage, serve soup to homeless people, run a non profit job training and placement organization, raise money for a cause you care about... Whatever, doesnt matter. Charity makes people feel good.

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Thanks for the input guys. What I've taken away from this is that finding meaning is not a goal in of itself, rather it's a by product of making progress in life. So I should aim to make progress.
I've signed myself up for some charity work as well, nature conservation stuff.

>>18426648

Since human nature, or rather nature itself, requires mating and offspring for evolutionary succes, it makes sense to feel unfulfilled without a family.

A good friend of mine, ten years older than me, didn't find happiness before he found a good woman, settled dowm, and now they have a house and an infant son

>>18426648
If your hobbies are vidya and anime you should kys

>>18427083
They're not. Wonder what you get out of posting that though.

I'm struggling with this lately too, anon.

I've come to the conclusion that life is really, really weird. Like, our entire reality is the result of an explosion a couple years ago, we are monkeys without tails, and we can experience things by lightning shooting through our nerves in certain ways.

You wanna find meaning in that? Good luck. You wanna find happiness? That's easy as shit.

Happiness is a choice, man. Find awesome things to do. Experiment, try everything. Learn, help others, work hard. Meaning is hard to come by, but I'll be damned if I can't have fun because of it.

It's the little things that make life awesome: that dumb joke you shared, the old lady you helped out. Look for the little things, not a grand unified theory. Make your own happiness.

Enjoy your week, anon. Make it a good one.

>>18426648
Treat life like a game man. Treat a hobby like leveling up. How you can level up the best way? Learn some interesting shit. You're never gonna wake up one day and be like "oh, enlightenment" life is just one step at a time, meaning is what you decide.

>>18426694
Thank you for posting that comic, I feel much better now.