Finding Meaning – The Fullfilment Project

Finding Meaning Through Spirituality

What we often lack is meaning and purpose in life. With so many choices that we can make and so many interests and the interests of others pulling us in different directions we can make bad choices with big consequences. The benefit of spirituality is that it gives us structure, boundaries and of course both purpose and meaning, without formalised rules to follow. Without a guide that comes from a spiritual tradition we look for structure, purpose and meaning wherever we can find it.

This is why people join groups, whether it be a gang, supporting a football team or a religion. In any group that we join in order to feel like we belong, the rules and ethics are subscribed, they are the things we adopt in order to be accepted into the group. By and large there is no problem with this, as this is the way social beings live. We accept the laws in the country we live in because we want to live there. Others will accept the teachings of a religion in order to worship in a particular religious building. I advocate for joining a church or mosque, synagogue or temple because the usual end result is that good morals and ethics become central to life.

However, formalised religion is not for everyone. Some wish to choose the rules and practices that they live by, which is a good way to live, as long as you have the ability to decipher what is wisdom and what is propaganda. There are many self proclaimed teachers of truth out there in the wonderful world of the internet.

Anyone can start a YouTube channel and start sharing their thoughts. Some reach a level of popularity and fame that suggests that they may know what they are talking about, people like Russel Brand and Jordan Peterson, who incidentally divide opinion due to their strong views. The rule of thumb when it comes to taking on the teachings of others is to ask yourself if following their advice is making you happier and more fulfilled. If it works then keep listening. if it doesn’t move on.

Give Your Life Purpose

Happiness, Success, The Pathway To Fulfilment

I’ve been thinking a lot about Purpose recently and I’m sure I’ve discussed it on this blog before. I may have already covered the points mentioned here, but, as it is with human beings, we forget profound truths because we return to our default behaviours and mental patterns and the wisdom does not stick.

What occurred to me this morning is that life does not give you purpose, you have to figure out what your purpose for living is and apply it to your life. Last night I was feeling a little lost, so I picked up my copy of Man’s Search For Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl, an astounding book that I recommend you read. I dipped into it and found this quote from the section ‘The Meaning Of Life’ that really struck me, “Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of life is, but rather he must recognize that it is he who is asked.”

Then the obvious truth became clear, that there can never be one meaning of life, because we are all different people. What you find meaning in cannot be the same as what I find meaning in, though there will be some overlap. The thing to do is to figure out what gives your life meaning and to live that and do that, whatever it may be.

The Meaning Matters

Happiness, Success, The Pathway To Fulfilment

What meaning do you put on the experiences you have? I heard a story recently of two American brothers who were wrongfully imprisoned for 25 years. When they were released they went to get their driving licences back at the American DMV they waited in line for over two hours, but to them it was a wonderful experience. The meaning they placed on the situation was that they were free. The next person in the line might have felt trapped.

A lot of the meaning we put onto the experiences we have come from our upbringing and our beliefs, but, to a degree, we can choose what situations mean to us. For example we can be grateful for a challenging situation because we learn what we are capable of or we can feel like a victim, which removes our ability to take ownership of what we then do moving forward. Choose the meaning carefully, as it can uplift you or bring you down.

Meaning In Life

Happiness, Success, The Pathway To Fulfilment

We are all here connected to the interconnected web of all existence. We are connected to the tree that have become the wooden chair on which you sit, if you are, and the life that this tree fed and sheltered. We are connected to all that has come before us and all that will come after us, when we are again returned to the universal elements from which we are now composed.

These elements will be as useful in the grand fabric of the universe as they are now, in this very moment. All of this underpins whatever our beliefs may be. If we believe in God or we don’t, if we believe in an existence after we die, either in heaven or through reincarnation, or we don’t, we are all still part of the same ocean of existence.

According to the website ‘www.actionforhappiness.org “Meaning in life can feel like a mysterious or esoteric topic, one that philosophers through the ages, and later psychologists, have tried hard to pin down. At its core, it’s a sense of being connected to, part of, and/or contributing to something bigger, beyond ourselves. This might sound huge but it isn’t, we are all connected to the world around us in a myriad of ways which means there are many ways we can make a difference.”