The question most people ask is “What is the meaning of life?” The meaning of life is simply that it is. I think a more provocative and useful question is, “What am I doing here?” My take on this is that we came to experience humanity, in all […]
Excellence Reporter: Rev. Debra, what is the meaning of life? Rev. Debra Jarvis: The meaning of life is for everyone to find the meaning of their particular life. When reflecting on this question, the words that float through my brain are, “love,” “service,” “purpose,” “passion,” “connection to the Source,” […]
My first thought when asked this question was “42,” a nonsensical answer that Douglas Adams popularized in his novel Life, The Universe, and Everything. While it may seem flippant, I agree that we really can’t know the ultimate meaning of life. It’s unknowable. A mystery, one that’s better […]
Excellence Reporter: Sally, what is the meaning of life? Sally Kempton: When I was young, I believed that the meaning of life was in our relationships with others and with our own work. As I got older, it seemed to me that the meaning of life is self-knowledge […]
Excellence Reporter: Sri Maharaj, what is the meaning of life? Sri Ramakant Maharaj: There is no meaning of life because you are basically unborn and hence formless. What identity was there prior to beingness, and after leaving the food-body? Your spontaneous, invisible Presence does not have any specific […]
Life is the Breath of God breathing. As co-creators with the Creator, we experience and extend the self-givingness of that eternal pulse now, always and forever. *** ~P.M.H. Atwater, L.H.D. is one of the original researchers in the field of near-death studies, having begun her work in 1978. […]
The meaning of life is to learn to love. And this journey begins with learning to love ourselves. And yet, for most of us, self-love is a radically foreign concept. Most of us live our lives feeling the opposite of self-love — self-loathing and self-judgment. Often, we hold ourselves to unrealistic standards of perfection, and then judge ourselves when we […]
Excellence Reporter: Rev. Maria, what is the meaning of life? Rev. Maria Felipe: HAPPINESS! Happiness is our function. But it’s hard to keep our happy going while being attached to this world of separation, fear, lack and limitation. The good news is that you can see it another […]
As I watch my father dying, the meaning of life is very clear to me. Sadly, he will never enjoy his favorite meal again, drink fresh clean water, make love, create to his full capacity, walk freely, breathe fully, or experience many of the other gifts that come […]
Excellence Reporter: Jovinna, what is the meaning of life? Jovinna Chan: This question has been my guiding light in navigating the many dark times my Soul has journeyed. In Chinese characters, there are at least three ways to write Life: 生活 (shēnghuó)，生命 (shēngmìng)，人生 (rénshēng). They are similar and […]
Excellence Reporter: Drs. Hurtak, what is the meaning of life? J.J. Hurtak & Desiree Hurtak: The meaning of life is our quest for Unity within the pluralistic richness of humanity and the discovery of ‘Infinite Being’. We are on schoolhouse Earth to discover our inner resources that connect us with the universe […]
Excellence Reporter: Abbot Sona, what is the meaning of life? Ajahn Sona: What is the meaning of life? I’m glad you asked. That question assumes there is a meaning. It is the beginning of a meaningful life. The question is asked sometimes from sheer desperation, and is frequently […]
Excellence Reporter: Leah, what is the meaning of life? Leah Pearlman: In this moment, the meaning of my life is the feeling of the keyboard under my fingertips. It’s the smell of the coffee beside me and the taste of it in my mouth. It’s the murmurs of […]
Excellence Reporter: Paul, what is the meaning of life? Paul Levy: What is the meaning of life? Is this a trick question? As the great physicist Niels Bohr said, “The meaning of life is this, that it has no meaning to say that life has no meaning.” This […]
In a word, “Love.” When you look at the science of the mind and body, at social science, economics, chaos mathematics and quantum physics, you begin to realize why the prophets of all the major religions focused on two things: 1) The state of our consciousness, and 2) […]
Excellence Reporter: Brother Bernard, what is the meaning of life? Bernard Seif: Meaning is something we all search for, be that journey a conscious or subconscious one. Even those of us well trained in the scientific method experience meaning in a subjective or existential manner. My mother was […]
Excellence Reporter: Eiman, what is the meaning of life? Eiman Al Zaabi: The answer to this question comes from life itself. As I contemplate a tree that is casting its shade on the street, I watch its pale leaves falling to the ground and I wonder: Are we […]
I have a running to-do list, which has anywhere from 3 to 30 items on it. I do not have a fancy app or calendar, just a notebook or piece of paper. Full disclosure, I don’t even have an efficient system for getting these things done, I just […]
Excellence Reporter: Diana, what is the meaning of life? Diana Winston: I have two intertwined responses to the meaning of life question: To awaken To help others awaken Let’s start with Part 1. The human capacity to awaken is vast. But what actually does awakening mean? For me it’s […]
This is Thoth and the Council of Light that are being Divinely Transmitted (channeled) by Danielle Rama Hoffman in response to this most delicious question, “What is the meaning of life?” We would begin by saying that there is no one response, for the meaning of life is […]
Excellence Reporter: Khenpo Rinpoche, what is the meaning of life? Khenpo Sodargye Rinpoche: For each of us, no matter where we are from or what kind of background we are raised in, we all need to have an unbiased attitude, an open mind, and a logical way of thinking. In this […]
Excellence Reporter: Sandra, what is the meaning of life? Sandra Joseph: Maybe we can never understand the meaning of life, but we can feel into the experience of being alive and, in this way, inhabit meaning. We have all experienced those rare moments of pure being, when time […]
Excellence Reporter: Father Thomas, what is the meaning of life? Fr. Thomas Keating: The meaning of life is sacrifice. This is really a biblical revelation. In the Christian perspective the three relationships within the Holy Trinity are continually giving away all that they are to each other within […]
Excellence Reporter: Irini, what is the meaning of life? Irini Rockwell: The profundity of life’s meaning comes about when we bring out our best to serve others. This happens through wisdom and love: only when we can truly love ourselves, can we be available to others offering them […]
Meaning and life – two rather potent and I believe rather ineffable words in the English language. The feelings, thoughts and sentiments involved in the experience behind and involved in both of these words is dependent upon who you ask, and even then the responses can evolve over […]
Excellence Reporter: Cate, what is the meaning of life? Cate Montana: There are two distinctly different answers to the question, “What is the meaning of life?” And perhaps the best way to illustrate both is by using the following analogy. Each piece of furniture, every painting, all the […]
The answer to this question can be discovered through any portal, in any moment. Embracing the Medicine presenting itself in service of your Becoming, is the ever present pathway into the Truth that underlies every problem and every solution. It is tempting to allow ourselves to be sidelined […]
Excellence Reporter: Ms. Broom, what is the meaning of life? Maria Broom: Compiling and sifting through all of the readings, teachings, intuitive thoughts, feelings and even off-planet transmissions… I make this attempt to express what resonates in my heart as the meaning of life. I believe that we […]
Excellence Reporter: Gwen, what is the meaning of life? Gwen Olsen: For me the meaning of life is to establish spiritual sovereignty over one’s physical being and experience, while recognizing our infinite connection to God through love. When we are born into a human body in this 3D reality, […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Mehl-Madrona, what is the meaning of life? Lewis Mehl-Madrona: I suspect that life has no intrinsic meaning and that we are free to make meaning as we wish. This seems to me to be the project of humanity – to take that which may be random […]
Each of us, in our search for happiness or fulfillment, seems to be, either consciously or unconsciously, involved in an ever-evolving odyssey of meaning. Life itself and the human experience are “of a piece,” like water and wetness, or fire and heat. It appears as well that, also […]
Excellence Reporter: Tehya, what is the meaning of life? Tehya Sky: I don’t know that it could ever be said better than the way Alan Watts put it, but I will try. The meaning of life is simply to be alive. We get so subjective about the whole […]
Excellence Reporter: Teri, what is the meaning of life? Teri Degler: Many years ago I saw a brilliantly colored poster emblazoned with a quote by Tolstoy: “The sole meaning of life is to serve humanity.” This saying moved me profoundly, but even in those days – heady, idealistic, […]
Excellence Reporter: Sadhviji, what’s the meaning of life? Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswatiji: This is such a beautiful question and a question that resonates deeply with us all. Growing up in Los Angeles and being a psychology major, I was always cognizant of this question, but for me, it was […]
Excellence Reporter: Itzhak, what is the meaning of life? Itzhak Beery: On my 19th birthday I woke up frozen by existential fear. “What if my life will be boring and meaningless?” I was petrified. A dark memory from the age of five crept in: “Why was I even born, […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Satyanarayana Dasa, what is the meaning of life? Sri Satyanarayana Dasa: Every living being has an inherent nature to avoid pain and to attain happiness. This nature is most developed in human beings. Whatever we do in our life, knowingly or unknowingly, we do so […]
Excellence Reporter: Paulina, what is the meaning of life? Paulina Alanis: It’s a creative flow towards beauty, from the most simple to complex structures, life forms. It’s about light and darkness playfully meeting each other, colliding, shaping multiple light streams. We as humans are fortunate to have many […]
Excellence Reporter: Ms. Chiruvolu, what is the meaning of life? Sarada Chiruvolu: To me, the Meaning of Life is to live fully and totally, enhancing our awareness and perception, so we can taste a larger slice of life with much higher capacity. Life per se has no meaning to it and […]
Excellence Reporter: Terry, what is the meaning of life? Terry Patten: In a very real sense, life itself is its own meaning. The very vibrance of every next new “now-moment” expresses life’s meaning, if we awaken enough to participate consciously in it. The deepest part of our being […]
Excellence Reporter: Master Sha, what is the meaning of life? Master Zhi Gang Sha: Millions or billions of people have asked this question. They have wondered why we are here and have searched for answers and ways to give their life meaning. I am honored to share my […]
Excellence Reporter: Master Cohen, what is the meaning of life? Ken Cohen: Life has no meaning, and it is full of meaning. Let me explain. From the viewpoint of Taoism, China’s ancient spiritual tradition, “Heaven and Earth are unkind; they treat all phenomena like sacrificial objects.” As in the […]
So “What is the meaning of life?” is sort of the ultimate question right? No one can give you a definitive answer. I mean, if you were to ask a hundred different people this, you’d probably get a hundred different answers, but that’s a part of the beauty […]
There are seven major initiations (tests) that all human beings experience on their journey towards wholeness—each being related to one of our seven primary chakras. These tests are placed in our path by us, not God, for our soul’s growth. These tests do not occur only once, but […]
Excellence Reporter: Gerald, what is the meaning of life? Gerald Hausman: It was my father who told me that people do things because they like them. That covered all, he said. “They do it because they like it.” “What do they do?” I asked at age seven. My […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Ravindra, what is the meaning of life? Ravi Ravindra: For me a question about the meaning of life is intimately connected with the perennial inquiry ‘Who am I?’ or even more accurately, ‘What am I?’ And I am quite convinced that this question can never […]
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 […]
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 […]
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: 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 […]
“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: 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 ‘The […]
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 […]
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. […]
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: 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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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: 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: 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 […]
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 […]
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: 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 […]
Excellence Reporter: Steve, what is the meaning of life? Steve Taylor: To me, the meaning of life isn’t something which can be put into words – at least, not directly. The meaning of life is something that can be sensed, or not sensed. There are certain states of […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Rossner, what is the meaning of life? Marilyn Rossner: The purpose of life is to realize the Self. We have come to Earth to fulfill a divine mission and purpose. This can really occur as we understand the Divine Self. We are here on the […]
Excellence Reporter: Jalaja, what is the meaning of life? Jalaja Bonheim: People often say that the meaning of life is to love or to be of service. While this is true, it’s a rather sloppy and somewhat misleading way of speaking. Life has no intrinsic meaning. An experience […]
Excellence Reporter: Andrew, what is the meaning of life? Andrew Holecek: The meaning of life can be addressed from two perspectives: relative and absolute. From an absolute perspective, there is no meaning. Life is just the radiance, the shine, the divine play of heart-mind, or spirit. There is […]
Excellence Reporter: Isaac, what is the meaning of life? Isaac Shapiro: In truth there is no meaning. Meaning is a mental filter. From a human perspective, to be embodied and express in a way that is beautiful to you and those around you, is the closest to a […]
Excellence Reporter: Dr. Levin, what is the meaning of life? Jeff Levin: What is the meaning of life? That is the sort of question that brings to mind the stereotypical spiritual seeker trekking up a mountain in Tibet to enter a great temple and sit at the […]
Excellence Reporter: Father Jim, what is the meaning of life? Jim Conlon: To understand the meaning of life, I believe it is important to develop a deeply sensitive interior life—a life that reaches simultaneously into the vast universe and into the recesses of the soul. Awakened in this way, […]
“When everything loses it’s meaning, every thing becomes meaningful.” This insight arises when the mind after intense spiritual seeking unhinges itself and opens into its natural infinite expanse. Now stripped of all interpretations and opinions that previously masked the raw experience of life, the truth lies bare and […]
Excellence Reporter: Suzanne, what is the meaning of life? Suzanne Giesemann: The answer is simple: You as a soul have temporarily taken on human form to develop your divinity. God … Spirit … the Divine is Love, therefore you are here to be the presence of Love. Love is the […]
Excellence Reporter: Jonathan, what is the meaning of life? Jonathan Goldman: What a brilliant question. I’ve chosen 7 different answers, reflecting different aspects of consciousness—from the deeply spiritual to the more mundane—in order to attempt reply to it. Here are my answers. I trust you’ll enjoy them. 1) […]
Excellence Reporter: Fr. David, what is the meaning of life? David Spangler: To me, there is no one single meaning but rather each person generates unique meaning born of his or her relationship to the world. For some, it may be learning a particular lesson, for some it may […]
Excellence Reporter: Mirabai, what is the meaning of life? Mirabai Starr: All I can do is share what gives my own life meaning, rather than proclaim the true meaning of life for all beings, as if it were some secret I agree to reveal. I bow to the […]
Excellence Reporter: Mada, what is the meaning of life? Mada Dalian: Life is multi-dimensional. So no answer will say it all or be fully satisfactory. We discover the meaning and mystery of life by living it. If we look at the very basic function of life we might […]
Excellence Reporter: Mark, what is the meaning of life? Mark Nepo: As important as this question is, it’s impossible to answer—as it’s impossible to see your hands while digging or to see your eyes while looking. Instead, let me share a story about meaning. A troubled widower made […]
Excellence Reporter: Master Brett, what is the meaning of life? Brett Bevell: The meaning of life is to understand your connection to the greater whole by being in service to life itself, not just your own life but the lives of others, even other beings that are sentient […]
