Perhaps one of the most significant philosophical questions in the history of all mankind, which was asked absolutely by all of us - "what is the meaning of life." No one can give an exact answer to it, and this is not taught at school. But sometimes you want to know exactly what we live for and what we must do.
Usually, people start asking him from their teens. Children are absolutely not interested in such a plan. For them, the main thing is to know where Mom and Dad, home, favorite toy are. Parents can answer all such questions, and there are no problems.
But as you grow older, more and more often in your head there are various topics that often a person thinks alone. To the question of what life is, everyone will answer in his own way. And each person must decide independently with similar questions, because this will depend in the future on his own position, and the goals set, and ways to achieve them, that is, the life path.
Life is...
Agree that it is quite difficult to answer unambiguously. It can be said differently, from different perspectives. Someone will understand this question literally and answer that this is the physiological existence of a person or animal. Physicists mean by the term "life" the physical movement of matter from one form of existence to another.
These are all correct opinions, but often, asking about what is life, the interlocutor wants to know the life position of the respondent. That is, it is necessary to give not a scientific definition, but a philosophical understanding of the issue. And here the essence of human thinking is already revealed.
And throughout life, the answer to the question “what is life” may differ for the same person. This is due to the fact that every year each of us develops, learns something, becomes wiser.
You can trace the main trends in understanding the meaning of human life in the context of various age groups. Consider them without indicating numerical characteristics, because everyone grows up in their own way:
Childhood, youth.
Transitional age, the formation of an adult.
The accumulation of life experience.
Physical aging, gaining wisdom.
The first period: childhood, youth
As mentioned above, the answer to the question of what is life at this age is very difficult to give. During this period, it comes down to the fact that the child is a sponge that absorbs all the information around. It can be different and, accordingly, will have a different impact on its formation in the future.
Any philosophical questions about the meaning of being do not even arise at such a young age. The main thing is that mom and dad be healthy, protect, "peace to the world." The fewer years a child is, the more frank he is, emotions are more true.
Second phase
The next period is when just yesterday a little man, and already today the enigmatic teenager begins to ask many questions, overestimate good and evil.
From childhood, from cartoons, fairy tales, from parents or teachers, everyone heard about what things can be done and what is forbidden, what is truth and falsehood. But for about 14-17 years, all these things are involuntarily rethought by every emerging personality.
And the question “what is human life” does not seem so far away. Yes, every teenager thinks about it constantly. At this stage, the right support from elders - parents, relatives and friends - is very important.
Cognition of the world through denial
First of all, there are signs that a person thinks not only about himself, but also about the society in which he lives. Mostly teenagers find the meaning of life in learning well, getting a well-paid job, which will bring not only money, but also pleasure, start a family, take care of their relatives and friends.
A person learns not to accept absolutely all facts as truth, but tries to put everything in doubt in order to find their evidence.
What is wrong with such an understanding of what the essence of life is? Absolutely nothing. Of course, there is a certain amount of naivety and faith in world goods, but where at such an age without it?
In adolescents who have been infringed in any way on care, guardianship, or something else, they may begin to show notes of selfishness. Someone begins to believe that the main thing in life is to achieve success by any means, the main thing is not to be hungry yourself, etc. Of course, such people are mistaken, but the blame for such thoughts can be placed in good faith on parents who could not bring up the child the necessary qualities of a kind and helpful person.
Experience Stage
It can be attributed to the period of life when a person became an adult and bears full responsibility for all his actions.
By this age, everyone can already say for themselves what the essence of human life is. The answer to this question lies in the life path that a person has traveled. Basically, by this time, people begin to strive to start a family, achieve material success.
Men often believe that the meaning of their life comes down to the saying "build a house, raise a son, plant a tree." That is, to create your own family, become financially secure and give continuation to your family. Women at this age are ready to devote their lives to a home and children.
In addition, in adulthood, people already have a certain amount of knowledge and experience behind their shoulders, share it with their loved ones. But the desire to learn something new, to strive for new heights does not disappear. Many are beginning to push for serious shifts forward in the career ladder.
Fourth stage
The final stage, when a person rethinks his life, the tasks set, the goals achieved, is the period of the completion of a working career, retirement. For different people, this happens at different ages, but you can focus on the age older than 50-55 years.
By this period, children are already growing up, wealth has been accumulated. What to do next? Given that it is difficult to achieve the same results with physical labor at this age as in youth, people prefer to pay more attention to mental work.
Analyzing his life, various situations, a person for himself can accurately determine what life is and what death is. Having achieved everything or having tried to do everything possible, a person of advanced age mainly thinks about transferring his wisdom to children and grandchildren. He thinks less of himself and more often worries about his family.
Death is already perceived not as something terrible and distant, but as an ordinary stage, completing life, pacification. Someone wants up to this point to catch everything that has not yet been done, but really wanted to.
Need to learn to live right
It is very important to learn from such people, to adopt their life experience. After all, they can accurately say what there is a place in life and what is not worth doing. And the smaller the age of their interlocutor, the more difficult it is for him to understand them, but he should always listen, since after years, each with his own personal experience will be able to confirm everything that was said by senior mentors.
Humanity lives in cycles, and the saying that everything new is well forgotten old is true. Older people did not hear about everything on the radio, but felt through personal experience, touched everything with their hand and tasted it. It is this fact that makes their knowledge invaluable. The main purpose of life, as people of this age mainly consider, is to educate a new generation, exchange information, transfer experience.
Final words
What is the essence and meaning of life, each person decides for himself. Opinion on this subject can change many times at different stages of life. This is due to the gradual accumulation of life experience.
Often, all opinions are focused on creating, protecting your family, doing good deeds, helping people. Someone wants to help all of humanity, others want to become famous. Everyone has their own purpose in life.
What is your meaning of life? Take your time with the answer, think about it, write it down on a piece of paper, and put the paper in the box. After 10 years, find this leaflet and compare your opinions.