The purpose of man in his life
I would love to hear your opinion on the purpose of man in this world, what should man want to do in this world, did we come into this world to eat and drink and die tomorrow [if there is no Awva], and only that in the background there is a system of commandments that we are morally obligated to uphold in order to satisfy the will [-?] of our Creator, but after we have fulfilled our duty we are free to use the world for our needs, and so what are our needs, what can be positive and desirable here in this world that would be worth working for and living for?
For example, a person decides to study physics and philosophy, what spurs him on to do so? Is there value in knowing all this information and insights? At least the philosophers of the past thought that in this way they become the working intellect, etc., and reach any goal, but is investing effort only for the sake of money or honor or areas of interest the purpose that a person should set before his eyes in life?
Is a person who eats, drinks, and sleeps worth more than a cow? The mind does allow him to perform more complex actions and understand more subtle systems, but – is that all it comes down to?
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So a person who does not have the feeling in question about anything that can be done here in the world [beyond the spiritual, that if there is a will then it is eternal, and worth working for], and on the other hand has a clear feeling that it is forbidden to commit suicide, is doomed to drag out his one hundred and twenty years without knowing why to get up and why to sleep. It is a shame.
Doesn't it seem strange to you that people work their whole lives vigorously to achieve something, only out of a feeling that there is something positive in it without being able to justify it? Especially when the goal they have set for themselves is nothing more than a small and fleeting moment, the effort to achieve which exceeds a thousand times the pleasure of achieving it.
I don't know what I want from you [really, you are not a psychologist] but it is strange to me that such a fundamental and important issue is abandoned for lack of need for justification.
Maybe one of the readers can enlighten me with his insights on the subject???
The one who asks what the purpose of man is is a person who has no sense of purpose and destiny, he feels purposeless and is only forced to do things in order to survive, but he does not have the ”why” to survive.
And those who do not ask what the purpose of man is (most people) have goals and objectives and the ”why” to survive.
This is a simplistic explanation.
The question that needs to be asked is what is different in those who feel a lack of purpose. And this is where psychology comes in.
It is worth reading Erikson's stage theory as a start:
https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/טעוריית_השלבים_של_עריקסון
Eliezer, I have been troubled for 15 years or more by this fundamental question. And I am very troubled by why, if so, it is not addressed. Apart from the Torah and the mitzvot, assuming that they must be kept, what else needs to be done here? Have you found an answer to this? I see that the Rabbi has not answered it for the time being.
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