What if there's no such thing as 'life purpose'

[Carl-Richard]

2 hours ago, Wilhelm44 said:

I would go one step further, and say that it's possible to have a beautiful life, without having some banner around one's neck saying: this is my life purpose. 

What is your idea of self-actualization?

[Carl-Richard]

2 hours ago, Twinstar said:

Mental illness and death are illusions.

Try to say that to a depressed suicidal person.

 

2 hours ago, Twinstar said:

It might take a while, but hopefully you’ll surpass the limits they seem to have imposed on your mind.

What the hell is this condescension?

[Wilhelm44]

45 minutes ago, Carl-Richard said:

What is your idea of self-actualization?

Being Infinity. And outwardly this could be expressed as being a school teacher, business owner, artist, lover etc it makes no difference.

[Twinstar]

 

2 hours ago, Yarco said:

You just have to combine what you enjoy doing, what you're naturally good at, and what the world wants/needs to create a life purpose.

@Yarco  This reminds me of Ikigai. Your purpose should be something you're good at, something you love, something you can get paid for, and something that the world needs.

[Twinstar]

@Carl-Richard I can say that to a depressed and suicidal person because I tried to kill myself nearly 5 years ago. What you see as condescension I see as experience. I can speak about it because I have gone through it. I hope that others don't have to hit rock bottom like I did to see how it's all an illusion, but some people need to make their own mistakes instead of learning from others. I wish you the best.

[Carl-Richard]

1 hour ago, Twinstar said:

@Carl-Richard I can say that to a depressed and suicidal person because I tried to kill myself nearly 5 years ago. What you see as condescension I see as experience. I can speak about it because I have gone through it. I hope that others don't have to hit rock bottom like I did to see how it's all an illusion, but some people need to make their own mistakes instead of learning from others. I wish you the best.

When did things change?

[Carl-Richard]

2 hours ago, Wilhelm44 said:

Being Infinity. And outwardly this could be expressed as being a school teacher, business owner, artist, lover etc it makes no difference.

Having a life purpose is essentially like having a work schedule or setting an alarm clock in the morning. It creates some structure in your life. If you care about mental hygiene and not being plagued by existential despair, figuring out a life purpose can be very helpful. Especially if you have aspirations and strive for excellence, the life purpose is basically a mission statement. If all you care about is keeping your head above water, sure, you don't have to do much of anything really.

Edited October 24, 2022 by Carl-Richard

[Twinstar]

@Carl-Richard back in December when I decided to take my mental health into my own hands. After nearly a decade of being on medications, after getting about 4 different diagnosis, after going to therapist/psychiatrists and still feeling like nothing was changing, I decided I had enough. Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result, and I was truly losing my mind waiting for things to get better. As a matter of fact, I was feeling worse after each therapy session.

So I stopped the medications, which I realize could have ended badly. I didn't know who I would be without them since I had been on them for so long. I was very emotionally unstable. I had been numb for so long, I forgot how to handle emotions. I turned to meditation to deal with them. Eventually, I realized all my suffering was self induced. My mental illnesses were really all in my head, something that I know people hate hearing.

You don't get to choose what happens in the world, but you choose how you react to it. You choose whether a situation is good or bad, and I am choosing to see the good in everything and everyone. I'm still working on it every day, but this change in mindset has helped me much more than the antidepressants and mood stabilizers ever did.

[Carl-Richard]

@Twinstar

That's great, and I think you'll agree that this was a natural development that unfolded within you. It wasn't somebody from the outside who told you "mental illness and death are illusions", and suddenly amidst the deepest depths of despair, you understood everything you needed to do. The process of coming to spirituality is complex, and it's not generally not the case that you can simply tell someone about it and they're ready to listen. And not all people are circling rock bottom and in need of a complete psychological overhaul either. For most people, all they need is some tangible structure that pulls them out of the downwards spiral, be it constructive daily habits, physical exercise or a life purpose.

Edited October 24, 2022 by Carl-Richard

[Twinstar]

@Carl-Richard I do agree. Had someone told me it was all in my head a couple of years ago, I would have thought they were just being dismissive. That was before I even knew what Spirituality was. I just assumed based on the forum that we are on that it would be adequate to make that blanket statement, which I now see was perhaps too blunt without context.

Everyone is on their own journey, they all have their paths and needs. I'll try to be more mindful of that going forward.

Edited October 24, 2022 by Twinstar

[Carl-Richard]

3 minutes ago, Twinstar said:

@Carl-Richard I do agree. Had someone told me it was all in my head a couple of years ago, I would have thought they were just being dismissive. That was before I even knew what Spirituality even was. I just assumed based on the forum that we are on that it would be adequate to make that blanket statement, which I now see was perhaps too blunt without context.

Everyone is on their own journey, they all have their paths and needs. I'll try to be more mindful of that going forward.

Great 

[Wilhelm44]

18 hours ago, Carl-Richard said:

Having a life purpose is essentially like having a work schedule or setting an alarm clock in the morning. It creates some structure in your life. If you care about mental hygiene and not being plagued by existential despair, figuring out a life purpose can be very helpful. Especially if you have aspirations and strive for excellence, the life purpose is basically a mission statement. If all you care about is keeping your head above water, sure, you don't have to do much of anything really.

The only mission statement a human being needs is to know his or her true self. From there the divine takes over more and more, and less and less energy is wasted trying to figure out what to do. And no doubt such a body and mind will be used by the divine in some form of service. 

[Breakingthewall]

my life purpose is to free myself from all human bondage, including life purpose