As for as I can recall, the question, “What is the meaning of life?” has never been a philosophical pastime but has, rather, been an essential issue for survival and mental health. Even as a teenager, I intuitively struggled to find a reason for living that would sustain […]
Human life is precious, our time is precious but time is flying. We need to use our time wisely. The future is like throwing a net in a dry lake, we can’t catch anything. The past is like last night’s dream, it already happened, we had woken up; […]
Excellence Reporter: James, what is the meaning of life? James Van Praagh: To answer this question, you must first ask yourself – what is life? Your soul will experience many lives on many different planes, and this earthly life that seems so important right now is just one step […]
“I’m not sure it’s true. I believe that maybe here in this room we are all looking for new things. We are curious. And actually we find our balance into the unknown. But so many people in life don’t trust life at all. So many people are afraid […]
Excellence Reporter: Angela, what is the meaning of life? Angela Farmer: At the age of three or four years, I knew without a doubt that I came from the sun and that all I had to do was shine! Each night at bed-time my brother and I knelt […]
Excellence Reporter: Pastor Mark, what is the meaning of life? Pastor Mark Johnston: For many years I asked myself that question, relentlessly and in myriad ways; certain there must be some logical answer that, once discovered, could become my focus and end my fretting. Gradually I’ve discovered that […]
Excellence Reporter: Allan, what is the meaning of life? Allan Lokos: After the waiter had allowed me a few minutes to peruse the menu, he came back and asked, “Do you have any questions, sir?” With that invitation I really wanted to reply, “Yes, do you happen to […]
Excellence Reporter: Mr. van Kooten, what is the meaning of life? Victor van Kooten: This is a dangerous question to ask! If you were siting on your nice carpet, it has now been pulled away from under you! This question is often used to stop anyone in their tracks and when […]
Excellence Reporter: Stuart, what is the meaning of life? Stuart Fuchs: Is there a meaning to life? This question is certainly a profound one with as many answers as there are sentient beings on Earth! In my experience, the “meaning of life” is to wake up from the dream […]
Formed by the “Perennial Tradition” and my own Catholic Christianity, I believe that the meaning of life is found in a growing capacity for union with widening circles of life and suffering, which first and final circle is often called God. ~Fr.Richard Rohr, O.F.M. is a globally recognized ecumenical teacher bearing […]
When I was a newborn baby my mother took me out into the May sunshine and sang to me while she nuzzled the soft lush petals of a pale pink peony into my nose and cheeks. With that single gesture of nurturing motherhood she opened my world. In […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Neimeyer, what is the meaning of life? Robert A. Neimeyer: I’m a practicing psychologist who works alongside people who are struggling with deeply unwelcome changes in their lives–the breakdown of intimate relationships, the loss of career or meaningful work, the onset of life-threatening illness, and […]
Excellence Reporter: Prof. Sternberg, what is the meaning of life? Robert J. Sternberg: When I was 29, my wife at the time and I started our family. We eventually had two children. I was very involved in my work at that point—determined to change the world with research […]
Excellence Reporter: Rabbi Wolpe, what is the meaning of life? Rabbi David Wolpe: Life has no meaning, but meanings. The meaning of one life is to raise a child and for another, to go to sea. One will carve monuments and the next write laws. All are growing […]
Excellence Reporter: Raha, what is the meaning of life? Raha Moharrak: The very existence of life continues to be one of the most intriguing aspects to question. By relying on logic and reasoning, man has always found the need to comprehend the meaning and the purpose of life. […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Weiss, what is the meaning of life? Steven Weiss: Hmmm… the meaning of life? As my thoughts unwind along the Path that these words take me… I must ask myself first, “what do I mean by Meaning?” I am stuck here. As one who strives to […]
Excellence Reporter: Helene, what is the meaning of life? Helene Bjerg: The meaning of life is about unfolding YOU … then the rest will follow. Clearing the way for this to happen is our foremost task in life. We can fully trust that all the good things we […]
“To the end of their days, most people are incapable of realizing the truth. You’d think it was a simple question: What is the meaning of life? Yet it remains unanswered. But the meaning of life lies in truth, joy, and love.” Excerpt from The “Ringing Cedars of […]
Excellence Reporter: Alexi, what is the meaning of life? Alexi Panos: The meaning of life is the meaning YOU give it. We are creators, and we are, in all moments, creating the reality we see and live in with our thoughts, words and actions. Unfortunately, a lot of […]
Excellence Reporter: Andrew, what is the meaning of life? Andrew Harvey: “The meaning of Life is to put Divine Love into Action.” *** ~Andrew Harvey is an internationally acclaimed poet, novelist, translator, mystical scholar, and spiritual teacher. He has written and edited more than 30 books—including the best-selling titles […]
Excellence Reporter: Josh, what is the meaning of life? Josh Allan Dykstra: Almost 3 years ago, one of my best friends in the world died after a horrific battle with cancer. He was 34, quite possibly the most talented musician I’ve ever met (and I know a lot of these folks), […]
Excellence Reporter: Pastor Ron, what is the meaning of life? Ron Vietti: I believe that God’s plan for mankind has always been to live their lives in divine connection with Him through accepting His Spirit’s invitation to live in their mortal bodies. The world has always needed God in […]
Excellence Reporter: Roxana, what is the meaning of life? Roxana Jones: Life is meaningless until you give meaning to it. We are born on this planet with very specific lessons we must learn as our Self continues to expand and evolve. Depending on those lessons that are very unique to […]
Excellence Reporter: Dan, what is the meaning of life? Dan Pallotta: Life is empty and meaningless. We give it all of its meaning. Sometimes that’s a good thing, sometimes it’s not. Someone looks at me in a certain way. They didn’t mean anything by it. But I have a […]
As the clouds move gradually across the sky, my eyes are fixated on the sunset and, I sit and ponder the meaning of life. In this moment I am at peace. My mind is calm and my body is still. I need nothing and feel complete — whole. […]
The meaning of life is living well. That is the goal. Meaning is imparted by living and living fully. ~James J. Heckman is the Henry Schultz Distinguished Service Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago, a Nobel Memorial Prize winner in economics and an expert in the […]
Excellence Reporter: Lars, what is the meaning of life? Lars Muhl: Each and every human being is an ambassador of the first cause, the creative principle, also called God. As Yeshua says in The New Testament: “You are all children of God” and “The Kingdom of Heaven is […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Moss, what is the meaning of life? Richard Moss: More than 40 years ago I had a life changing experience. I was standing on my porch and looking out across the Oakland California hills. Suddenly I saw a cone of darkness coming down from the sky shadowing […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Eirich, what is the meaning of life? Susan B. Eirich: To help nurture life in all its forms until it blooms in its full glory, be that life a human, animal or plant. It is Life we celebrate, honor, enhance and support, through deep loving […]
Excellence Reporter: Nicolas, what is the meaning of life? Nicolas David Ngan: We are an experiment in consciousness. Human life is created by a blueprint within us called the Soul Contract. This spiritual map of life creates each moment of our experience on Earth which is optimal for […]
Excellence Reporter: Karen, what is the meaning of life? Karen McPhee: I feel we are here to fully express all that we are, to keep discovering more of ourselves so we have more to share and give to others. Our true essence is love, so this means that […]
Excellence Reporter: Robert, what is the meaning of life? Robert Moss: For me, the meaning of life is forever under construction. The building materials are stories. No one else can do the construction work for us. We are required to find our own essential stories, and become authors […]
When all your desires are distilled; You will cast just two votes: to love more, and be happy. ~Hafiz Here we all are on this lush rock of a planet spiraling through space! What are the odds? Why have we come so far and endured so much to […]
The meaning of life to me can be answered with 4 questions. What do you believe in? What is love to you? What are your hopes? What is sacred to you? What do you believe in? I believe that we are here in this world to learn how to […]
I’ve always had the feeling that life loves the liver of it. You must live and life will be good to you, give you experiences. They may not all be that pleasant, but nobody promised you a rose garden. But more than likely if you do dare, what […]
Excellence Reporter: Dallas, what is the meaning of life? Dallas Travers: Life is all about learning, practicing and perfecting unconditional self acceptance. As we grow, learn lessons, experience success and also failures, we’re handed opportunities to maintain a positive self regard. My daughter taught me this lesson. At […]
Make shamanic journeys to the Upper or Lower World to get the answer to this question. ~Michael Harner, internationally renowned anthropologist who pioneered the return of shamanism to the West and is the originator of core shamanism, a methodology founded on practices and principles shared by shamans across […]
One of the most popular questions I’m asked during private sessions, workshops or while on the radio is “what is my life purpose?” I often feel that this question and the one I’m answering here are divinely linked; braiding a web of immeasurable possibilities. Typically the energy behind […]
Excellence Reporter: davidji, what is the meaning of life? davidji: Life is about living with purpose. The oldest teachings on the planet emphasize that each of us is here for some divine purpose. When we use our unique abilities and our distinctive talents in the service of others, we […]
Excellence Reporter: Sharon, what is the meaning of life? Sharon Salzberg: I think the meaning of life is connection. If we don’t feel profoundly connected—to something—whether that be someone else, ourselves, or even an experience—we don’t feel alive. When people look for meaning in contexts like work, I […]
Who verily knows and who can here declare it, whence it was born and whence comes this creation? – Rg Veda The Rg Veda uses a vernacular that still survives today when an unanswerable question is asked. We shrug our shoulders and say, “Who knows?” Really we mean […]
This is season of memorials for me. Part of having lived this long is noting that there has seemed to be clear-stretches where people in my life stayed put here, and then times when there were multiple exits to the Other Side. Such is how it is […]
Excellence Reporter: Nawang, what is the meaning of life? Nawang Khechog: In brief, we must try to live a life with these two principles. First, we try our best not to hurt or harm anyone and then try our best to help and serve anyone within our reach. […]
Excellence Reporter: Barbara, what is the meaning of life? Barbara Biziou: The meaning of life is simply to allow Life to live through us. To totally experience the gift of being a spiritual soul in a physical body on this amazing planet Earth. Each moment we have the opportunity […]
Excellence Reporter: Elba, what is the meaning of life? Elba Mueller: From where I find myself in consciousness, the meaning of life, to me, has two main paths. On one path, it is simple “perception.” I see it, as the capacity (intelligence) of giving meaning to its own […]
Excellence Reporter: Susanna, what is the meaning of life? Susanna Barkataki: When I was young, about six, I remember looking around me at all the things we humans in the 1st world have and wondering what it was all about. Ten different kinds of bread and shampoo, snow globes, knick knacks, utensils, […]
Excellence Reporter: Jon, what is the meaning of life? Jon Turk: It’s all about ecstasy. No. No, I don’t mean the party drug — dancing all night and joining sweaty bodies in the wee hours of the morning. The word ecstasy is derived, in part, from the Latin […]
Excellence Reporter: Sharon, what it the meaning of life? Sharon Gannon: The meaning of life is to drop all the meanness. To choose kindness over meanness is to live a meaningful life. There is nothing that we actually own—all we really have in life is our affect upon others. To […]
The meaning of life is learning to do the best we can with what we have, one day at a time. ~Rolf Gates, author of the acclaimed book on yogic philosophy, Meditations from the Mat: Daily Reflections on the Path of Yoga, and the newly released: Meditations on […]
Consciousness is a way of living. Can we be observant of our actions while we take them; perceive their effects prior to creating them; and ‘see’ what is initiating our actions starting early in our thinking. It is not culturally expected or taught in the Western world and […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Kamen, what is the meaning of life? Randy Kamen: This question pondered by scholars, theologians, scientists and each of us in our own unique way embodies the simple and the profound. Having just returned from Israel, I learned on my journey that this small country, […]
My answer to the meaning of life is simple, “Love!!!.” It is the answer and it is the key to life. In Hawaii we grow up to understand the true meaning of “Love” through “Aloha!!!” “Aloha” all things everyday!!! ~Henry Kapono Ka’aihue is a musician, author, actor, composer […]
Excellence Reporter: Anabel, what is the meaning of life? Anabel Veloso: I honestly believe that the real secret to the meaning of life is SERENITY itself. In order to specifically find serenity I always try to enrich my life by being just happy. Most of people try to […]
Excellence Reporter: C.C. White, what is the meaning of life? C.C. White: The meaning of life is to understand what a gift it is to live it. We all have something to contribute. Everyone counts and everyone matters. There’s a story to be told for each soul, and […]
The meaning of life is to fulfill your soul’s intentions for incarnating and make a lasting positive impact on our world while living in a state of reverence for all of life. To do this, you’ll need to awaken to your divinity through spiritual practice and align your […]
Excellence Reporter: Kay, what is the meaning of life? Kay Cafasso: Meaning-full-ness in this life is truly felt at the times when we are of benefit to others, and when we participate in this beautifully and wonderfully woven web of support. This world is made of layers overlapping […]
I don’t like theory and philosophy. Something worthy of contribution to a person’s life seldom comes in the form of theory and philosophy. It comes in the form of true experience—in good health, loving relationships, peace, clarity and quality living. Truth and meaning in life brings health, wealth […]
At the exact moment of your birth, a horoscope or blueprint is created that describes YOU. We all come in with pluses and minuses in our character and don’t always like the living situations we are assigned. The meaning of life is to unveil this heavenly plan and […]
I remember being seven or eight, when this and other questions starting arising in my mind. Who am I? Why am I here? What is it that I am supposed to figure out so I can become a grown up? What IS the meaning of life? As I […]
The meaning of life is to learn and grow internally as we experience and contribute to the outer world. Learn to Remember: In remembering daily that life is a fleeting impermanent gift, we give ourselves an opportunity to cultivate a sense of inspiration to do something incredible with […]
Whatever our particular designation may be in this world — black, white, American, Russian, Palestinian, Israeli, young, old, rich or poor — the fundamental need of every living being is to love and to be loved. Without that nothing can really satisfy the heart. Objects can satisfy the senses of the […]
Excellence Reporter: Anita, what is the meaning of life? Anita Moorjani: The meaning of life? In other words, “Why are we here”? To eat chocolate, of course! Why else? 😀 I know you think I’m kidding, but I’m actually not. Well…..ok, we’re also here to watch glorious sunsets, […]
Elucidating the “Meaning of Life” can best be approached through application of the ancient directive: “Know yourself.” To fathom the depths of this suggestion, it helps to view the boundaries of self as false and misleading. The physical universe is a small subset of the much grander aspects […]
Each of us is a unique reflection of a whole and it is our purpose to discover that singular essence within, to remember who we truly are in a grander sense. From there, we are then able to become our full potential, likely more than we can currently […]
Activate your sacred power. If you don’t know what that is, search for it until you find it. Use that power for the betterment of the world. Love all living things including yourself. Soak in the richness. Explore. Have fun. Stay in-love. *** ~Johanna Baldwin is a writer […]
Excellence Reporter: Master Bobrow, what is the meaning of life? Joseph Bobrow: Whew, just to ask is to begin to open. To inquire. We exhaust cognitive reasoning and just inquire, cultivating our innate curiosity. We become intimate with the question itself, allowing it to unfold, rather than grasping for an answer. […]
Excellence Reporter: Belinda, what is the meaning of life? Belinda Womack: After working with Angels for the past 25 years, I see the meaning of life as discovering every day how we create our lives and bring them into manifestation. We do this with our beliefs and emotions, […]
Excellence Reporter: Tony, what is the meaning of life? Tony Vacca: Seems that the rarest occurrence in all the cosmos over an unknowable eternity is the miracle of living entities. While just being alive in the exquisite chaos of all things is more than enough, the experience is […]
Excellence Reporter: Rev. Donna, what is the meaning of life? Rev. Donna Schaper: The meaning of life is golden, as in the golden rule, which is really a recommendation as opposed to a rule. It is the rule of one, that what happens to you also happens to […]
The meaning in life is found in that spine tingling experience, some times accompanied by goosebumps and sublime tears, where you are truly making a difference in the world, and most typically be lifting other people up. ~Dacher Keltner, Professor of Psychology. Author of Born To Be Good: […]
Excellence Reporter: Mr. Quinn, what is the meaning of life? Daniel Quinn: What is the meaning of life to me? To begin, recognize that humans aren’t something special, aren’t privileged beings, exceptions to the laws that bind all other species to the community of life. If you could […]
Excellence Reporter: Josh, what is the meaning of life? Josh Gitalis: I believe that the meaning of life is to find the meaning of life. The phrase “meaning of life” suggests that there is one. And this is partly true. But there is not one meaning of life […]
Excellence Reporter: Sri Shyamji, what is the meaning of life? Shyamji Bhatnagar: Humans search for meanings in life. When we see rocks we associate them with faces of humans, animals birds etc. Our senses are evolved to protect ourselves from external dangers. Socrates said Know thy self. Yogis for millennia have been […]
Excellence Reporter: Marilyn, what is the meaning of life? Marilyn Whall: The meaning of life, which is different for each individual… Seeking and searching for many years has brought me to a place of a greater understanding and awareness of what the meaning of life is. For me […]
Excellence Reporter: Robert, what is the meaning of life? Robert Sturman: When I was a young boy, a man came to our home to sell something. I answered the front door and I do not remember what he was selling, but I do remember he was a fellow […]
The meaning of life is to become who we were born to be. To remember that we all experience adversity and pain. To be loving and compassionate with ourselves and others. ~Lauren Mackler is an internationally renowned coach, speaker, educator, and consultant. She is the author of the […]
Excellence Reporter: Mr. Almaas, what is the meaning of life? A. H. Almaas: The meaning of life does not come from what happens in it. We do not experience genuine heart satisfying meaning of life by being happy or satisfied by something happening in our life. Or by […]
Excellence Reporter: Lauren, what is the meaning of life? Lauren Walker: When I asked my best friend what he thought the meaning of life is, he answered without even missing a beat: “Make an impact on the world that is progress. Leave it better than when you came. […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Naranjo, what it the meaning of life? Claudio Naranjo: Questions about of meaning of life are prompted by its loss, which derives from the loss of oneself; or, as it is sometime said, by the loss of our “soul”. Finding the meaning of life has little […]
Questions about Questions What is the meaning of life? This question would seem to be the most basic and fundamental question to be asked concerning existence itself and has been asked by theologians, philosophers and much of humanity from time immemorial. Before we can approach this question, however, […]
Excellence Reporter: Andrew, what is the meaning of life? Andrew Mellen: I can tell you what it’s not—the accumulation and worship of physical stuff. So much of life seems to be a struggle between poles: fear and love, man-made and naturally occurring, stuff and people. I marvel at […]
The first thing that you have to figure out is your purpose in life. Once you discover your purpose, then the journey begins. As a little child, growing up on the tiny island of Molokai, I was always interested in Old Hawaiʻi. That included my culture, language, history, […]
When you are young you can be kind of full of yourself. Later, if you are lucky, you get to be full of others. ~John Gorka is a contemporary American folk musician. In 1991, Rolling Stone magazine called him “the preeminent male singer-songwriter of what has been dubbed the […]
Excellence Reporter: Hari-kirtana das, what is the meaning of life? Hari-kirtana das: The meaning of life is to try to understand the highest truth. The highest truth is reality distinguished from illusion for the benefit of all. While illusion invites us to participate in a futile search for […]
Excellence Reporter: Melissa, what is the meaning of life? Melissa Coleman: The meaning of life is found in death. This is not a morbid statement. When we accept the fact that none of us are getting out of here alive, there is nothing to do but live and […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Yapko, what is the meaning of life? Michael Yapko: Most people know of the Rorschach Ink Blot test, the psychological test in which someone looks at a series of ink blots and describes what they “see” in them. It’s called a “projective test” because it features […]
Imagine yourself as a rough spiked metal ball rolling through fibreglass or wool, who feels the icky stickiness. We live our lives like this, our living driven by inhibitions and bias imposed upon us by external forces, we become slaves of our conditioning. Proudly claiming to have got out […]
The purpose for human existence is the ongoing manifestation of ‘heaven on earth’. We are here to embody the purity of our galactic, cosmic, divine heritage in full relationship with earth and our lives as human beings together. ~Patricia Albere is at ground zero of an evolutionary stream […]
Only the men and women of a single culture write here of the meaning of life. It’s a culture seven billion strong, unified by access to a global system of interconnected computer networks. Many of these billions are unaware that we share the planet with hundreds of other […]
It’s never been true, not anywhere at any time, that the value of a soul, of a human spirit, is dependent on a number on a scale. We are unrepeatable beings of light and space and water who need these physical vehicles to get around. When we start […]
Mark Whitwell has done us a favor by summarizing in 108 pages the essence of his teaching. It is an easy and powerful read with good photographic instruction to be used in conjunction with the iPromise app. It is a tidy summary of his two previous works Yoga […]
I refuse to suppose that I am here on this Earth by happen chance. When I look at the miracle of my hands, when my ears capture the sound of rushing wind in its hollow, when I taste the salt of sea spray on my lips and smell […]
Everybody’s heard, because every tradition has them, the stories of the one who’s hungry for truth, usually a boy, who goes to ask the famous sage, usually a solitary old man, to tell him the meaning of life. The answer is never just around the corner. It’s always […]
Does anyone really know the answer to the question, “What is the meaning of life?” I am going to imagine you are asking. You, yes you, the one reading these words. The purpose of life is to become utterly aware of the source of your life, of all […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Schaub, what is the meaning of life? Friedemann Schaub: When it comes to defining the meaning of life, most of us are either befuddled or try to avoid this topic altogether. There are some, who tell us, we should search for meaning by striving for success, making […]
You made a promise to yourself. You said you would feel it, find it, be it in this lifetime. Each of us seeks something – a seed inside waiting to blossom. It becomes your magnificence. It’s a recurring theme that comes up again and again. You call it […]
Excellence Reporter, what is the meaning of life? Tejpal: Meaning is an experience that comes from your heart not from your head. Your head does not experience anything but carries a lot of labels about everything. Your heart stays present in the moment and open. When you experience […]
Excellence Reporter: Ronda, what is the meaning of life? Ronda LaRue: I love this website project given to THE ONE ESSENTIAL QUESTION: “What is the meaning of life?” Fabulous. Thank you. Please yes! Ask this question. Ask it throughout your life. Better still, live inside the question; seed the question within […]
What is the meaning of an amusement park? ~Ted Riskin, transpersonal therapist. http://www.TedRiskin.com Copyright © 2016 Excellence Reporter
The meaning of life is to find meaning in life. We do that through the stories we tell. ~Gail Larsen is the founder of Real Speaking® and the award-winning author of Transformational Speaking: If You Want to Change the World, Tell a Better Story. Her work has been described […]
