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Existentialism

What is the meaning of our existence? Really? Are we born to be slaves to societal bonds that are enforced into our beings or are we meant for more? I mean, we spend our lives toiling away at school or work or our personal lives, but is this what humanity is meant to be? The truth is, I don’t know. Neither do you nor anyone for that matter. Whether it’s Oscar Wilde or Albert Einstein or Van Gogh, nobody knows what we are truly meant to do on this little speck of the dust in the entirety of the universe, and maybe, that is what unites us.

I often wonder about the question, “Are we are living in a simulation?” and honestly, we are. We most definitely are. It might not be like The Matrix, but isn’t this system of rituals we have created a simulation in itself? Who is to say that humans weren’t meant to just spend their lives sitting by a campfire and live in harmony till the end of time? This whole system of existence, the necessity of education, the establishment of law and order, the institution of marriage, isn’t it all just a reality that we have created for ourselves to distract us from the fact that we have no idea what we are doing? Why us? Why were we, these little bodies of carbon, chosen to inhabit and create a world? A culture? A religion?

There are always two ways to look at existentialism, the optimist and the pessimist approach. Although, I generally favour the pessimistic approach, the idea that we are some kind of chosen species that have been gifted with the prize of being alive and that we matter in the great cosmic universe doesn’t sound so bad. But then again, there is but a remote chance that we are alone in this universe, so why do we matter? Why does our existence hold any weight in the endless cycle of time? Why do we believe in the things we do? Like Stephen Hawking said while referring to Astrology, why do we assume that the stars and planets in the universe have any relation to our meek existence in a small planet in the solar system? And the answer lies in the fact that we need a purpose. A divine purpose. Maybe this purpose is the very reason humans have created the idea of religion and divided itself in different ways. To feel better about themselves? Presumably. Or maybe all of this is a charade, a game that we have taught ourselves to distract us from the fact that we are perpetually alone. That we do not matter.

No matter how you look at the idea of existence, one true thing is that all we have is each other. We are all we got. We could go to space or we could even dive deep into the depths of the sea, but at the end of the day, when the ‘Final Judgement’ takes place, all we will have is a swarm of humanity, anyone and everyone who has affected our lives will stand right among us. The rich, the poor, the dreamers, and the cynics, we would all stand undivided by our differences and united by our journey as a group of organisms that had a chance to be alive.

But, at the end of the day, none of this matters. What I think doesn’t hold any weight to your thinking and it in a way, doesn’t matter. What does matter is how you approach this idea and how you choose to live your life.

About Shreya Siddharth

Hey there! I am Shreya. I am 19 and I have created this site with the aim to reach out to people and allow youngsters to voice their opinion to the world!
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