What is the purpose of life?

[Govi]

To eat all the things.

 

[Soen Eber]

I don't know. I just fervantly hope Nietzsche was wrong. Every time I meet one of his adherants and they open their mouth it's like "Hello darkness, my old friend ..."

 

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

Nietzsche

Nietzsche Returns

A philosophy webcomic about the inevitable anguish of living a brief life in an absurd world. Also Jokes

existentialcomics.com

 

[Argent Stonecutter]

By the anthropic principle some universes have life in them and they're the only ones that can be observed. This is not the purpose of life, it's just random chance.

 

[Essence Lumin]

By the anthropic principle some universes have life in them and they're the only ones that can be observed. This is not the purpose of life, it's just random chance.

That is what is depicted in this scene from the current movie, Everything, Everywhere, All at Once. There are many universes and in this one they are rocks in a lifeless world.

 

[Tirellia]

The purpose of life is to drink whisky, eat chocolate, pet goats, smell the flowers, watch the stars and buy shoes. All else is mere existence.

 

[Rose Karuna]

The purpose of life is to drink whisky, eat chocolate, pet goats and cats, smell the flowers, watch the stars and buy shoes. All else is mere existence.

Love this, added cats. Also adds, reading a good book.

 

[Imnotgoing Sideways]

There is no point. That's the point. (^_^)

 

[WolfEyes]

The purpose of life is to be. Or not to be.

 

[Argent Stonecutter]

That clip violates the anthropic principle by having non-living observers for humorous purposes.

Also, reminiscent of the Post Brothers (Changes, a serialized strip in Heavy Metal in the late '70s and early '80s) where Ron Post keeps killing Boche and the old guy who's trying to intervene in the timeline keeps switching them into new universes to try and stop him... at one point they arrive in a universe where they're all just rocks gradually falling into a sun and Ron manages to heat up a gas pocket in his crust so it bursts and he crashes into Boche and kills him again.

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

The purpose of life is what you make out of it. And if you start thinking too much about it, get yourself occupied. Do charity work. Help the poor. Make the world a better place. This should be enough to keep you going.

 

[Jopsy Pendragon]

The purpose of life is to be. Or not to be.

I always thought of that bit as being a little too binary. Like, why not both? To be for now, and then later, not to be. It's more of a question of -when- not -if-.

Life is just an expanding set of imperfectly replicating patterns that struggle with and against each other and their environment.

Patterns within patterns within patterns.

 

[Govi]

We have spent a lot more time not being (13.9 billion years) rather than being (100 years each, for mathematical convenience), so perhaps our being is indistinguishable from not being. But then, our collective being is pretty substantial (8 billion humans X 100 years = 800 billion human years), so...

What?

 

[WolfEyes]

That clip violates the anthropic principle by having non-living observers for humorous purposes.

Also, reminiscent of the Post Brothers (Changes, a serialized strip in Heavy Metal in the late '70s and early '80s) where Ron Post keeps killing Boche and the old guy who's trying to intervene in the timeline keeps switching them into new universes to try and stop him... at one point they arrive in a universe where they're all just rocks gradually falling into a sun and Ron manages to heat up a gas pocket in his crust so it bursts and he crashes into Boche and kills him again.

I haven't thought about Changes in years. Thanks!

 

[WolfEyes]

I always thought of that bit as being a little too binary. Like, why not both? To be for now, and then later, not to be. It's more of a question of -when- not -if-.

Life is just an expanding set of imperfectly replicating patterns that struggle with and against each other and their environment.

Patterns within patterns within patterns.

Fractals.

 

[WolfEyes]

We have spent a lot more time not being (13.9 billion years) rather than being (100 years each, for mathematical convenience), so perhaps our being is indistinguishable from not being. But then, our collective being is pretty substantial (8 billion humans X 100 years = 800 billion human years), so...

What?

Oh look! A cloud!

 

[Argent Stonecutter]

I haven't thought about Changes in years. Thanks!

Check out bugtownmall.com, Howarth's got a bunch of new books (Mostly Kief Llama) free for download for people to read during the pandemic.

 

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

Carrots.

 

[Casey Pelous]

An old acquaintance of mine had a masterpiece of a shaggy dog joke with the theme of this thread.

I considered re-creating it here over the course of many (many!) posts, but decided instead to give you the basic structure in the hopes that someone will pick it up and apply the kind of creativity he used. He could turn the following premise into, no kidding, 20 minutes of spellbinding narrative. Of course, once you had been the victim, it became great fun to participate in duping the next hapless soul.


A man seeks the meaning of life. He studies all the great philosophers, but comes up empty; Aristotle, Marcus Aurelius, St. Augustine, Sartre, Kant, Hegel, Heidegger, Kierkegaard, and so many more, none satisfy his burning question. He becomes a Catholic, a Jew, a Protestant, a Muslim, a Sufi, a Bahai, a Buddhist, a Hindu, a Confucianist, and [any other wildly unlikely but colorful religion you can come up with.] Still, he has no answer.

He takes up Transcendental Meditation. He meets Mike Love, but still -- no enlightenment.

He fasts. He feasts. He does yoga. He cleanses his colon. He attends Tony Robbins seminars.

Nothing.

Finally, he is an old man, still seeking the meaning of life. He realizes his time is short, and he determines to go to visit the highest ranking Lama in Tibet. He treks through Nepal, higher and higher into the mountains, until he comes upon the monastery that is the home of the highest ranking Lama in Tibet. Here, he thinks, here I shall surely find the answer I have sought for so long.

After days of elaborate preparation, the moment finally comes when he may meet the Lama. He enters, bows, and is invited to sit before the Lama. This is it, his last possible chance for enlightenment.

"My son. What is it you seek?"

"Lama, I have sought all my days to know the meaning of life. Can you tell me?"

"You wish to know the meaning of life?"

"More than anything!"

"Very well. Listen carefully. Life, my son ................................................ life ........................is a fountain."

For a few moments, the man is simply dumbstruck by the wisdom of the Lama. Finally, he gathers his wits about him, bows, thanks the Lama, and begins the leave the room. Then suddenly, he turns ....."

"Just a damn minute. That's ridiculous! Life isn't a fountain!"

The Lama looks puzzled for a moment, then, troubled, says, "It isn't?"

 

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

The Lama looks puzzled for a moment, then, troubled, says, "It isn't?"

Which brilliantly addresses the whole nature of seeking out authority figures and the idea that any of us can really know anything at all.

I hope there’s a way this thread can be restored when the OP starts up with the CBD gummy spam, it really turned into something special.