Life. From the very moment that one enters the world, they are put on a quest, whether they know it or not. To many, life itself is a quest, for every person strives for something, whether it be “a good job, a big house, lots of money” or happiness. But through many different experiences in my life, a different meaning to the quest of life has become apparent to me. Life is not just striving towards a single goal; the quest in life is to live life everyday and to gain experiences, whether they’re good or bad. Thus, no two people will have the same quest because every person is unique and will have a different life. There are an infinite amount of paths and choices that one can take, and that is what makes the quest in life worthwhile. Enlightenment in this sense is not knowing all about the world, but is rather finding an inner peace and happiness with oneself and one’s life by gaining new experiences.
My father was the very person who opened up this view of life to my eyes. As a child, my father had so many hopes and desires. But as my father grew up there was a growing presence of Communism. When my father was a teenager, Communism had well taken root in his hometown. Over time, the rage and hatred towards the evil Communists and Ho Chi Minh forced him to leave his home, Vietnam. My father’s life changed drastically the moment he stepped foot on the small boat leaving his country. For five days he was on that the boat, cramped with twenty other people. On the third day, the motor broke down. There was no more food or water on the boat. With the pangs of hunger and thirst coursing through his every vein, my father gave up on every one of his ideals. He wanted nothing other than to live. Luckily, a boat of Taiwanese fisherman c...
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... impact on the future, just as any person in the world, even me, has the potential to make a difference in society. That is part of my quest in life: to experience life and attempt to make a difference for the better in our society today.
Life and experiences are one in the same. They are interchangeable, because life is made up of experiences, no matter the variety they come in. The experiences one collects will shape one’s habits and overall, character. In this sense, enlightenment is just coming to a realization that life is random; disasters, injury, good news, and even death can occur at any time and thus, one needs to live life to the fullest in face of this uncertainty. My quest in life is to experience every aspect of the world possible to me, from adrenaline rushes to falling in love, for these experiences are what make life interesting and worthwhile.
The years 1961 to 1972 saw the American involvement in Vietnam. For a little over ten years, America sent its sons off to fight for an unknown cause in a country they knew little about. When the United States finally pulled out of Southeast Asia, many were left scratching their heads. Over 58,000 young men died without really knowing why. Although it is a work of fiction, Tim O’Brien’s Going After Cacciato expresses the views of those who spent their lives in the jungles of Vietnam.
Enlightenment is defined as, “a final blessed state marked by the absence of suffering and desire,”; although, to be completely without desire would require experience with the indulgences of the physical world. This is relevant in the lives of Siddhartha from Siddhartha, by Hermann Hesse, and Phil from the movie, Groundhog Day. Phil and Siddhartha’s characters are developed through a series of confusion, loneliness and reckless behavior that ultimately results in a state of depression that opens their eyes and allows them to reach enlightenment. The paths of Phil and Siddhartha begin in a confused state, and the poor choices made during this time leads to gluttony, greed and overindulgences. This ravenous state results in depression, and further,
His months in Vietnam were filled with bloodshed and human atrocity, and from this, no man could feasibly return the same person. Yet beneath what John endured throughout the war, he suffered many unkindness’ and tragedies that shaped him into adulthood. It was not only the war that made John Wade, but it was John Wade’s existence; his whole life that made him who he was. John Wade craved love, admiration and affection. All his life, all he wanted was to be loved, and his father’s constant taunting hurt him immensely.
Many live attempting to decipher the riddle of life. What is life? What is the purpose? What makes? Even though we only seek happiness why can’t we ever seem to achieve it? When we do reach happiness why can’t we seem to grasp it and hold it for more than the few short hours that pass like seconds? The question we must answer first is “What makes happiness, true?”
The irony connected with the obstacle in achieving happiness is the pursuit of happiness. Those who pursue happiness with deliberate effort find themselves having to work harder and harder over time to achieve their ends. By trying to pursue happiness, we look for obvious, insubstantial objectives to achieve the happy life. Existentialism, however, may provide both the antidote to this vicious cycle, and give direction on how to find happiness-- by filling our lives with what T.S. Eliot calls real substance. Purpose is not easily found and comes with a costly price tag; we must look into ourselves, find the hollowness that exists in each of us, and dive into the abyss of our inner self. Most people are easily discouraged by the idea of shining a light into the shadowy realm of our mind and heart. We do not want to discover what may lie in the shadows, but if we have the courage to grope in the dark, we may discover our truest self. The darkness is a gift and not a curse.
...at the key to happiness is an equality of self, knowledge and love. Without these key ingredients the path for harmony becomes twisted and unmanageable. With Siddhartha's wise findings and example, it is much easier to reach the destination of balance. From Siddhartha's philosophies, the most consequential lesson I acquired is not to draw boundaries or label. In Siddhartha's progression, he falters twice, and then attains his goal. He overcame all obstacles, with perseverance, and his life can truly be defined as a legacy. Siddhartha's journey broke a cultural barrier for me and taught me a valuable lesson in acceptance. Not only did Siddhartha's determination cause metamorphoses in his own part, but gave me hope for progress and the achievement of my goals, through implementing his fundamental principles and all that I have previously acquired.
When an average person seeks happiness, most often they search in the wrong place: "If only I could have that I would be happy." For ages, man has been seeking happiness from outside, not within. People have the misconception that material things and materialistic goals will bring them ultimate happiness, but in truth those only bring transient happiness. True and lasting happiness can be reached from within when one realizes the ultimate truth. This ultimate truth, the main focus of transcendentalism, can be reached through self-reliance, nature, and oversoul, the main principals of the philosophy. By meditation, by communing with nature, through work and art, man could transcend his senses and attain an understanding of beauty, goodness, and truth.
Buddhism says you are fully enlightened when you achieve nothing. Not that you have no achievements but that you literally become nothing. The teachings go away. The suffering goes away. You even go away. When you fully become nothing you will be eliminated from suffering that comes with life. This is an often misunderstood part of buddhism because of course you can’t literally become nothing. The message here is suppose to be to lose all connections of yourself to life and you will not suffer.
War is cruel. The Vietnam War, which lasted for 21 years from 1954 to 1975, was a horrific and tragic event in human history. The Second World War was as frightening and tragic even though it lasted for only 6 years from 1939 to 1945 comparing with the longer-lasting war in Vietnam. During both wars, thousands of millions of soldiers and civilians had been killed. Especially during the Second World War, numerous innocent people were sent into concentration camps, or some places as internment camps for no specific reasons told. Some of these people came out sound after the war, but others were never heard of again. After both wars, people that were alive experienced not only the physical damages, but also the psychic trauma by seeing the deaths and injuries of family members, friends or even just strangers. In the short story “A Marker on the Side of the Boat” by Bao Ninh about the Vietnam War, and the documentary film Barbed Wire and Mandolins directed by Nicola Zavaglia with a background of the Second World War, they both explore and convey the trauma of war. However, the short story “A Marker on the Side of the Boat” is more effective in conveying the trauma of war than the film Barbed Wire and Mandolins because of its well-developed plot with well-illustrated details, and its ability to raise emotional responses from its readers.
In the book “A Man’s Search for Meaning”, Viktor Frankle said “life is never made unbearable by circumstances, but only by lack of meaning and purpose.” The meaning of life can be discovered in three ways. First, one can accomplish something. Second, one can experience something or encounter someone. Or thirdly, one can demonstrate a certain attitude toward suffering/turning a personal tragedy into a triumph.
One of the most difficult tasks for humans is figuring out how to live the best life possible. A good life is arguably one of our biggest desires, but being able to reach that type of life is extremely difficult because we do not know how to get there. The famous philosopher, Socrates, and Buddhist teachings help us get to our goal by addressing the way a human life should be lived; although each have very different mindsets. Socrates is focused heavily on ethics and discovery of truth within all aspects of knowledge. In Buddhism, the main purpose of life is to end human suffering. To choose one lifestyle over the other would be very difficult, as they have various strengths and weaknesses which just about balance one out from the other.
We might not have the same opinions, paths, and ways of living; but we all, millions of people around the world, share the same purpose of life: Being able to say “I am having a good life!” What we mean by “good life” is living in pure happiness and having a wonderful peace of mind. The difference between us is that each one of us chooses a different way in his pursuit of happiness. Some find it in stability with a big house, a family, and a good paying job. Some find it in adventure and wildness, travel, and taking risks. While others don’t really have specific criteria or an organized plan, they just believe that happiness comes with living each day as if it was the last, with no worries about the rest. Personally, I find it in trying to be the best version of myself, in staying true to my principles, and in the same time in being able to make my own decisions; which reminds me of what George Loewenstein said “Just because we figure out that X makes people happy and they're choosing Y, we don't want to impose X on them.”
As we got further and further into the Vietnam War, few lives were untouched by grief, anger and fear. The Vietnamese suffered the worst hardship; children lay dead in the street, villages remained nothing but charred ashes, and bombs destroyed thousands of innocent civilians. Soldiers were scarred emotionally as well as physically, as
I have always been to asking myself what is meaning of life? or what I supposed to do ? or what I have to achieve? . Meaning of life what 's you have been given? what you have given by different kind of human? Or what I believe or what I do not believe in life .Everybody have Meaning of life it depends between person to person, I found myself when I was young because my parents always talk about experience in their life.Throughout my entire life ,I have wondered about the significance meaning of life that has beneficial for the people, because the life is beginning odds and ending odds .Even though struggle of life, I believe meaning of life are ,regional ,ambition, participate ,achievement ,and happiness .Due to this, I
The journey to achieve the good life on a personal level has defined human life across all cultures and time periods. Although we human beings have this similar goal in life, what we consider to be the “good life” differs from person to person. The Hindu people, for example, believe that one reaches the good life or enlightenment when he/she finds and truly understands Atman, the inner self or soul. In my opinion the good life involves following one’s internal ideals and values. These values should allow him/her to enjoy the good life in spite of time progression and outside influences such as material wealth. However, this concept of the good life comes with costs that prevent those without a strong will to stray from their values. On the journey to find the good life people often come across social and political barriers much like the civil rights supporters of the 20th century. Still more people struggle with making the sacrifices needed to sustain and ensure the longevity their good life, which is illustrated by Aldo Leopold’s land ethic. The costs may seem overwhelming at first but they are only temporary and the long lasting, internal benefits eventually become dominant.