ANOTHER BLOODY NIHILISM THREAD

We still don’t know what we can and cannot do. Can we harness antimatter? I don’t know. A better question would be whether it would increase or decrease of our chance of survival in the long run.

I am not satisfied with your definitions. So I will offer you mine.

Meaning: a set of interests (= desires = goals = instructions = commands) that determine the manner in which organisms attempt to live their lives

Realistic/objective meaning: a set of commands that are executed when issued

Unrealistic/subjective meaning: a set of commands that are not executed when issued

Universal meaning: belief that every organism in existence shares, or should share, the same set of interests according to which they attempt to live

Shared meaning: an observation that a set of interests is shared among a group of organisms

What does it mean when people say that “life is meaningless”?
It means that they have failed to accomplish their goals.
That their expectations are unmet.
That their commands are not being executed.
But instead of taking responsibility for their actions, by adjusting their expectations, they blame the world for failing to meet their expectations.

Objective meaning as in the grand scheme of things such as universe or existence not commands that have to be executed. Subjective
meaning as alternative to lack of objective meaning not commands that cannot be executed. You are thinking small scale but that has
nothing at all to do with nihilism and so your definitions are invalid


Not really sure what anti matter has to do with nihilism

What does that mean?
Grand scheme of things?


An absolute meaning to the universe or to existence known as God

How can universe have a purpose?
It makes no sense.

Once you understand that purpose means goal, or more precisely plan, it becomes apparent that only conscious beings can have a purpose.

After all, the term “universe” refers to nothing specific.
At best, it means everything, as in, every single object within the universe.

Does every single object within the universe have a purpose?
No, only objects that can plan do.

Do rocks have a purpose?
No, they don’t. They cannot, do not, plan.

You see, the universe has no purpose means nothing other than the universe does not work according to my plans.

That’s it.

In other words, I am not aware of any plan, set of expectations or model of reality with which I can predict the universe flawlessly.

The meaning or purpose is not the same as God.

If one believes in god(s), one tends to also believe that god(s) created the universe with some specific intentions.

But even without a belief in god(s), one can believe that the universe is moving in a particular ‘direction’ and towards a particular ‘destination’. That would be an objective meaning or purpose.

So meaning means pattern?

Life feels 1 dimensional, like objects have no connection to anything besides themselves, no function other than their own existence. Thus life feels meaningless and without purpose. A Cause gives life purpose and meaning, until there are no more villians to vanquish, then it’s back to the aimless peace of the Shire, almost intolerably dull, so we make videogames to distract us from the void.

Cool.

No it would not because that would be function which is a purely physical process. Whereas purpose
pertains to the nature of existence and is ontological. So they are entirely separate from each other

I don’t understand how universe, and not merely things within the universe, can move in particular direction towards particular destination.

The purpose is in the form and function of the physical object. The shape of a car and what the car does , manifest its purpose. If the designer of the car is not there to tell you about its purpose, then you have to deduce it by examining the object.

The universe is just a large complex object.

“Direction” in development or in time, not direction in space.

And the “destination” is the continuation. It cannot be stopped.

I understand direction to mean pattern and pattern to mean a sequence of changes that repeat.

Change being a difference between two successive states, it becomes clear that direction is a property of state.

So for universe to have a direction, it must be a state.
But is it?
Is universe a state?
Or is it totality of everything, sum of all states?
And if we decide to define universe, not as everything, but only as a moment in time, one has to ask, what does this moment include?


The universe is all that has ever existed past present and future

If it is outside time, if it contains time, how can it have direction?

It must have a point in time, it must be a state, in order to have a direction.

And then, it must refer to something specific, and that means, something within, some aspect of, the universe and not the entire universe.

Time is not uniform in the universe Magnus because of special relativity. The closer to the speed of light that an
object gets the less time it experiences. Photons which travel at the speed of light do not experience time at all