I’m going to resist the urge to make a Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy reference here (it has an answer to this, you should check it out!).
I feel that meaning is something given to things, and so is somewhat arbitrary. At the risk of sounding like a cheesy motivational poster, I think the meaning of life is what you make of it!
I don’t think life has a meaning of its own. We have a pretty good chance to decide for ourselves what it could mean, though. For me it might be happiness: not just for me, but hopefully others, especially those less fortunate than me. I’ve seen sayings like “society shouldn’t be judged by how it treats the well off – instead it should be judged by how it treats the least fortunate” and I think that’s a good ideal to live by. Be nice and always try to picture how you’d act in the other person’s shoes.
Like the others, the answer ’42’ sprang to mind, but my serious answer would probably have to reflect the fact that I’m a Christian. There’s a bit in the Bible (the Old Testament book of Micah, chapter 3 verse 8) that says ‘He [God] has shown you, oh mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.’ I can’t think of a better answer than that for me, but even if you don’t believe in God, I think there’s a lot to be said for going through life humbly, trying to be kind and loving, and doing the right thing for others.
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