h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I saw a film yesterday wich had the lines "it maide me feel good to know that I had f**ked up his life enough to make him do somthing meaningfull." its got me thinking what is meaningfull. I mean a guy who pushes some kid out of the way of a car and gets hit himself that is called a meaning full act by some and by others (although quietly because it dosent do to put that sort of persion down) it is said that he had a sdeath wish any way and just found a nobal way to make it happen.

so what is meaningfull and more important why is it meaningfull?
are things more meaning full than other things and why?

It really depends on the person observing. What I find meaningful - whether a "deep meaningful" or just something important - many people may find as everyday, and vice versa. For me, something is meaningful if it makes an impact on my thinking, my actions, or whatever. If it's not, it goes by without my noticing.

I'm afraid that explaination is very obvious and redundant.

To the individual--The meaning of life IS what ever gives your own life meaning.

It is based on the individuals world view/beliefs. What is respected enough to think about AND act on.

I think 'meaningful' can only be defined by the person it applies to. If whacking myself in front of a car for the sake of a child was the height of the meaning of my existence, I fear I'd be terribly disappointed with myself, though that doesan't necessarily mean I wouldn't DO it if the moment presented itself. I dunno.

To me, a meaningful exisitence would entail changing the world in some way to make it more like the world I'd establish if I truly were Mother of God, Empress of the Universe (and creator of all things). Sometimes, in some small ways, I do that. And that matters to me, a lot.

Ego is a wonderful thing, eh?

Well..I think it's subjective and that you make your own meaning; I mean as opposed to to it being objective, and there being some sort of higher power or law that defines these sorts of things. Well, that's not entirely what I think either - I think that if there *is* an objective power, that he/she/it hasn't been revealed to me sufficiently, so in any case I still have to figure things out for myself. If the universe *does* reveal anything I have to assume that it would be revealed to each individual as is appropriate - so it is still better to rely on my own intuition rather than the whims of my culture. That was entirely unhelpful, wasn't it?

having meaning, function or purpose.

That is what the dictionary says anyways, but see if that guy who saved the child didnt have a death wish, would he still have done it? Or would it not serve his purpose?

Nope, that was entirely real.
Every man is/is not an island. You just have to figure out where the shore-line lies. Isn't that the 'mission' of human beings?

Thanks for that post I like your saying!
It is a good visual for developing healthy boundaries too!

Well, to draw a slip-shod analogy further, if you suck all the water off the earth you're gonna see that every bit of land that pokes up (and those which rise but don't shine, and the bottom of the sea which has never had the opportunity to poke) are all interconnected.

So determining a shore-line is purely personal, and a matter of choice: how far can someone can extend him/herself without losing all sense of individuality?