So What?

Mirrors did always excite me as a child. It was quite perplexing for me to think and realize that there is someone inside a mirror, mirroring my every move. I remember spending several hours in front of a big mirror in my parents bedroom, trying to discover a movement pattern which the boy inside the mirror could not reproduce. As I grew a little older, and after having failed to trick the boy inside the mirror, I had to accept the common idea that the boy inside the mirror was actually me. Yet, this idea was even more perplexing and had me ask two very important questions. The first question was: how can I be both in front of and inside the mirror at the same time? This question was not difficult to address for the scientifically inclined boy that I was. It was just what mirrors do, they reflect stuff. In fact, I was able to produce a mirror from a see-through glass and see that same boy, who by now was no more mysterious than I was. So, whenever I stood before the mirror, I stare at the boy, who by now has become me, and asked him 'But who am I?' That was the second question I never answered. But I have always savored the feeling that I felt looking into the boy's eyes and asking him 'But who am I?'. It gave me a euphoric kick, a realization of some sort, in a way an answer to the very question I was asking at the very moment.  

Since the dawn of mankind on this planet, I bet countless other humans have stared upon their reflections and asked a similar question. Yet, I doubt whether any of these countless souls got their questions answered unequivocally. Which might be one of the reasons for the multitude of explanations that humans have since proposed for the existence of themselves and everything else. The question 'But who am I?' must have evolved to 'But what's all this?', 'What is life?', 'What is the purpose of life... of existence?'. 

For most of mankind's history, the majority of humans must have been content with the answers they received from their spiritual leaders, even before they ever asked the questions. The purpose of life, the identity of self, ones purpose in life, were, perhaps are, more or less clear to many people... Or so feel they. Some would even equate asking the question as meaningless or unnecessary as they see the answer so clear or the question so unanswerable. While it is very clear for someone who thinks a step ahead that everything is very far from clear. Regardless, everybody has at least one opinion in common - that life is precious! Why? Again, several explanations, but no definitive answer.... Alright then, let's get into it, shall we?

What is the purpose of life? 

Spiritual thinkers stress that life is a gift from God. A gift to whom? To the living, probably to the non-living as well, probably to everything, to the Universe... Perhaps there is really no difference between the living and the non-living at the basic level and life is just a beautiful, miraculous manifestation of everything. So far so good... Then we might ask, 'But why?'. The answer would be 'because God wishes so'. God is everywhere and everything, so if He wishes to manifest life, in a way manifest Himself, it is only logical to the human mind. So, after a lengthy and deep analysis, or not, one would, one way or another, arrive at a conclusion which more or less resembles this: There is the Universe, and perhaps something beyond the universe which is even grander. This Universe is beyond just the star particles and the waves and the time and the anti-matter. It is all that plus everything else beyond infinity. This Universe is God. Life is God manifest in....life! Its meaning, its goal, its purpose, is all about the wish of God. Which is everything. So, in a way, the purpose of life is the purpose of Life itself. The purpose of a bacteria on my keyboard is just that very purpose it has at this instance, plus all the consequences ad infinitum. 

Alright, how satisfactory was the explanation in the last paragraph? Theoretical? Perhaps some creationist non-sense? Perhaps true to the last detail? Now let's take a look at the major alternative explanation. That revealed to us by the measurements of our scientific instruments and our subsequent analysis. 

Scientific thinkers may not wish to be bothered by the 'philosophical' questions we raised above. Scientists are smart by nature. So, if one asks 'But why are we here?', they would ask that person to rephrase the question. Rephrase to 'How did we come here?'... So, the scientific tale goes: "... in the beginning, there was Nothing. Then there was BANG!... the rest is history... " Indeed, scientific observations, measurements, and analyses have created a nice picture on the history, present state, and future fate of our Universe. Evolution is central to everything. Evolution of the Universe, evolution of galaxies, evolution of star systems, evolution of planets, evolution of Life, evolution of mankind, evolution of thought, evolution of reason, evolution of self... Change is everywhere. In this thought system, what is tangible, measurable, changing is more important than that which is not. The question 'Why are we here?' is not as relevant as 'How are we here?'. But why? Oh, again another why question. It might be proper to ask, 'But How?'. Probably because 'Why' questions and answers are not tangible and experimentally tractable. From an extremist point of view, probably because they can not be translated into a box in a shelf and the thing called 'Money'. Perhaps this way of thinking has its valid point. We are a species driven by purpose, goal, reason of some sort. We have always been so, and just don't seem to shake off this old way of thinking about life and everything else. Perhaps we don't need a purpose to be here, and what matters is that we are here and can enjoy it and do what we wish, create a purpose we choose, or rather our genetic predisposition chooses. 

hmmm...

Ok. But why does anything matter, for that matter? Why does it matter that I have a job? Why does it matter that I have something to eat and wear? Why does it matter that I am alive? The usual way we answer such questions is by relating them to other humans or systems created by humans. It matters that I have a job otherwise I can not pay my bills. So what? If I don't pay my bills I can not sustain my living. So what? If I can not sustain my living, I could die. So what? Well, if I die it is bad because all the things that I could do remain undone and other people could be affected by my loss. So what? So the same cascade of unfortunate events could strike other people as well. So what? Well, if everything follows the cascade, life as we know it on the planet may cease to exist. So what? (Actually it is pretty cool to think that I could be so important! There goes my purpose in life! :) ) That would be bad for our planet. So what? So... we might end up in the complete destruction of the Universe and beyond as we know and do not know it.... So what??

Clearly, no scientific way of thinking would ever be able to answer me the question I raised up earlier without rephrasing the question. But I do not wish to rephrase my question. I want to ask my question as it is and have a satisfactory answer. I do not wish to be told that my question is wrong. Scientific way of thinking would get me deeper and deeper, which is more exciting by the depth, but can not satisfactorily answer my question. To be honest, the spiritual alternative I discussed earlier does not address the questions with the detail and logical appeal of science either. But, I think it provides a worthwhile answer. 

So what? 

The answer would of course be:'So What?'.

...(to be continued)

F E A R

FEAR! One of those four letter words that terrorize the human animal from cradle to tomb! From artists to scientists, from politicians to spiritualists, from little children to brave soldiers, many have discussed, glorified, condemned it. Many have spent a lifetime attempting to conquer it. Others have lost their entire life conquered by it. 

The strength of fear lies in its ability to control a wide range of human emotions and behavior, some of which being the very feelings upon which we build our entire lives. Behind an intense and selfless love of someone we adore, there is a fear of loosing them. At the root of a perpetual struggle for success, a 'better' life, career advancement, there lies a fear of 'failure' or demotion to a 'looser' status, at least as defined by society. Behind every action, there is a fear of grave consequences of inaction. Likewise, fear of an inappropriate action justifies a great deal of inactions. 

Alright, perhaps that sounds like a pessimistic view of the world. Yet, the strong connection between fear and most of our affairs remains visibly present. Here, one can argue about a chicken and egg phenomenon, whether fear drives our lives or is a significant byproduct of the struggle between aspirations of life and the supremely powerfull free-will of the universe. Either way, that fear produces a significant impact on the values, purpose, goals of our lives is undeniable.

Now, what is most interesting for me is what life would be like if one can completely remove the element of fear out of the equation. What would love be like if one has no fear whatsoever of loosing the person they love (death included)? What would the workplace be like if there was no fear of loosing one's job? And related to that, what would career choices be like? What would world economics be like if there was no fear of becoming poor? What would world politics and warfare be like if there was no fear of one group of people destroying others? What would the world really be like if there was no fear whatsoever? Would there still be wars? Unhappy families? Or families, for that matter? Poverty? Racism? Probably yes, probably not. But what one can speak for certain is that all these facts of life would, if they exist in the complete absence of fear, take a form quite different from what we have known.

From a very basic evolutionary biology point of view, fear is a mere survival strategy. An organism exhibits fear when encountered with a situation that threatens its existence. A creature in a state of fear displays the typical 'fight or flight' response. All that matters for a fearful organism is its continued survival, no matter why or how. In a way, fear hijacks the body and mind of the organism to do all in its power to avoid or conquer that which causes the fear. We humans are no different in this aspect. Interestingly, most of what we fear does not directly relate to our basic survival. As a matter of fact, most agents of our fear are only remotly related to our basic survival, as we know it. Yet, the way we respond to fear draws a great deal of similarity, if not identity, to the basic fear response - namely, dedicating a great deal of resources to avoid or conqure the agent of fear. Despite our possession of a highly evolved faculty delivering abstract thinking, advanced logic, complex problem solving skills, morality, spirituality, and rationality, we choose to act in some of the most primitive, ineffective, inefficient, near-sighted, and generally stupid ways when faced with fear. 

So, what would life be like if we were to completely remove this powerful variable called 'Fear' out of life? Would we be able to finally utilize our amazing mental faculty to the fullest, as individuals and a species? Would we finally be able to bring an end to greed, war, scarcity, and all the greater evils this species has lived with since its inception? Would we be able to turn the planet to a Utopia? Or would we succumb to extinction due to a mere lack of motivation, purpose, goal, or some other fear-powered motor of life? Or perhaps out of simple laziness? Either way, that would be an interesting outcome.

Coming back to how fear recklessly drives our everyday affairs, one can not help but ponder as to what blinds a highly evolved, rather smart creature, such as the human being, from unraveling the absence of meaningful connection between an illusive agent of fear, it's extrapolated consequence to one's existence, and the magnitude of response that the fear triggers. I do not wish to end my essay with the simplest explanation. So I pass the thinking on to you.