A Lesson From Pliny the Elder
We all spend our whole lives trying to figure out what life really is. Everyone holds a slightly different opinion of life from everyone else, and yet, even as I have studied religions and philosophies and science and ideologies for my entire life and continue to do so, I still have no clear answer. I have come to the conclusion that life is meaningless, in a broad sense, but that is merely my conclusion. Everyone else in this world believes something at least slightly different than me. So, there is one way to live life both safe and with no regrets.
Pliny the Elder stated that “the only certainty is that nothing is certain,” and that can be applied to life as well. The way I see it, we all have our differing perspectives on what life is, but ultimately, we can only guess, theorize, or observe the scientific universe. In my eyes, there is no indication of anything spirtual about life, nor is there anything indicating that there is no spirtual aspect to life. So the way to live life is to live it in two ways.
First, one must do what they want to do in life, and simply enjoy themselves as much as they can. This way, if they get to the end and it all really was for nothing, they made their life worth while. Second, to live freely, one must live without regrets as much as they can. They must be kind to others, because through being kind, one feels good themselves. One may hold no allegiance, but they may take sides as much as they please. One should hurt others as little as they possibly can, and work together with their counterparts as often as possible. This way, when life ends, we have done all we can for ourselves, and for each other.
Science dictates that we are, at our smallest form, composed of electrons that react in various ways, all of them determined to achieve collections of eight, and that is why everything happens, really. But despite this, despite the repetition and movements of the universe, like coding on a computer - so exact and bound by laws that we are starting to understand - there is still the human conscience. We are able to determine for ourselves the paths we take, which completely disobeys the laws of chemistry, or does it? The human mind is unpredictable, yes, but it still strives for the basic element of survival.
To me, life holds no value, meaning, or significance, but that, in my opinion, is a reason to believe that life is all the more grand. For, if we acknowledge our tiny lives and our meaningless existence (by chance and evolution, we evolved), we can truly marvel at what an achievement humanity has become. The universe does not say that life forms must create complex societies and cultures, yet humans have done that.
We have been on Earth for a tiny sliver of time compared to nearly all other specimen. We, as humans, nevertheless, have done one million times more than all other specimen combined. Even in our short, insignificant lives, we have built cities of steel, built giant birds of metal, ventured beyond our own planet, created digital communication. Pliny the Elder said that all things are uncertain, and that is certain. Humans, are so unpredictable, and that is why we are so great. Marvel in your greatness! Marvel in your glory!!!