What is my life's purpose?

What are you supposed to do with your life? Simply surviving doesn't seem to be enough. Just being comfortable, "having" things, status, power isn't fulfilling either. There gotta be something beyond all of that.

Ha! You see? Here we have it already: something "beyond"! So, can we look at this question without getting too airy-fairy? Is it possible to deal with this topic without resorting to mystical magic?

I say: Why not!

Take any kind of car you can think of. It's purpose, most likely is some kind of providing transportation. It is most likely not peeling potatoes, or cutting hair, or anything else. No matter what kind of car it is, it's particular purpose is some form of the thing that all cars do.
Maybe that is a good way to find your own purpose, too? First look into the purpose of our species...

The purpose of the species

Here's another analogy: What do cats do? They catch and eat other animals. The impact of their species' action is to keep a lid on the population of these other animals. We say, this is their purpose. What do trees do? They take CO2 out of the atmosphere and convert it into oxygen. The impact of their action is a counter-balance to the CO2 produced by animals, fires and so on.

You can try this with any other type of thing in this world. We usually infer their purpose from what they do.

So how about humans? What do we do as a species?

(yes, here comes my favorite virus story from the chapter "The two tasks humans can accomplish in this world" of the book "YOU are the change"!)

Imagine that some incident wipes out all humans on this earth, but leaves everything else pretty much untouched. So all plants and animals, the rocks, the sea, the air—all of that stays as is, except there are no more humans here.

Imagine how this world would look 200 years after that incident. Most likely all our structures would be inhabited by animals and overgrown by vines, trees, and bushes. Life on this Earth would have found a balance again, where everything lives and grows according to the laws of nature. The rate at which species of plants and animals went extinct would probably drop back to a more natural level. The level of greenhouse gases might have started to drop again. The pollution created by humans would be slowly "worked up" by nature. The seas might have recovered from over-fishing. Forests would have wolves and bears again. Domesticated animals might have reverted to a natural way of life or would have been replaced by life forms that could fend for themselves without our interference. The cycle of eating and being eaten would have brought balance back to this planet.

Now imagine the Earth 10,000 years later and compare how it might look then, versus the view 200 years after the incident.

I think we would find it essentially the same; not much would have changed. Our structures would have deteriorated even more, but the plants would still be there, the animals would still be there, everything would still be in balance. And if something happened that kicked the system out of balance, it would find its balance again after a little while. Each member of this world is contributing to the continuation and balance of the system.

My conclusion from this mental exercise is that everything in this world is fulfilling the purpose of perpetuating the system and of keeping it in balance.

So far there has been no incident that has wiped out humans. And if we look at the world as it must have been 1,000 years ago, and 100 years ago, even just fifty years ago, and compare it with today, we see the tremendous changes that have happened. And almost all of these changes were made, or at least caused, by humans. Also, it seems that the speed of change has accelerated as history approaches our current time.

So to make the same conclusion from what we do, our purpose seems to be to cause change.

Your purpose

Just because Harry Belafonte makes beautiful music, doesn't mean you have to do the same. Nor does it mean you have no purpose, just because you can't sing well. The lion in Africa is catching gazelles. I am sure you don't expect your cat Cleo to do the same - even though your apartment sometimes might look like she did. However, if you have some 4-legged tenants of the rodent species move in, I am sure, you'd appreciate Cleo to weigh in on their residency idea.

So, summarizing all the above observations and conclusions and adding to it, here's my advise to you, to send you off on your quest to find and fulfill your purpose:

You are the change!
You are to cause some sort of change, to make a difference in this world (not just other peoples lives, but in the creation as a whole!)

Your specs
Look at what your talents are, your special skills and experiences. What makes you different from all other persons? A lion was built to catch large animals, a house cat to catch small ones. If you want to be successful, find what the Universe had in mind when it created you the way you are, and shaped you to who and what you are through all the experiences you went through and all the people you met in your life.

Your passion
Observe yourself to find out what you are passionate about. Every person has a topic or two that "gets her/him moving". When it comes to this topic, there's an energy coming from inside, that enables you to keep going when otherwise you'd be too exhausted or too frustrated, that gives you the courage to tackle what otherwise you'd be too afraid to do.

I once had an old cat, who could hardly move anymore from all the arthritis. Well, one day we both noticed a mouse. That old cat was flying through the room after that mouse, as if she never had arthritis in her life!

Your passion can do that to you, too. Find it, and you find your purpose plus the energy to really enjoy your life!

Your situations
Try to remember in what kind of situations you find yourself a lot.

Well, if you find yourself in first grade of primary school again for the fifth year, maybe you ain't getting the reading and writing thing. There are things we need to learn, and as long as we are not getting it, we get to repeat the same lesson over and over again.

However, if you know how to read and write, but find yourself in the first grade a lot, maybe you are the teacher. Maybe it is your task, your purpose to cause change in that classroom.

Ok, so now you gotta figure out whether your being married to the fifth jerk is a lesson or your purpose. Well, thankfully, there is always something you can learn, even when you're the teacher. And somebody else is learning something through you, even though you are being taught.

I find, though, being alert about what the lesson might be in any given situation, it helps me learn it faster and with fewer painful repetitions. In the same vein, by being more mindful about what kind of difference I could make in any given situation, I am a more effective change-agent.


I find, keeping these four simple points in mind, I am able to find and finetune my life's purpose quite well. Also, it helps me live my life to the fullest, making the most of every day, every hour. It helps me to be in a perpatuate state of happiness and content. And when a crisis hit, it is easier for me to deal with it.


There's one thing, though, I want to be very clear about: I believe

Your life's purpose is NOT to learn! You learn so you can better fulfill your life's purpose.


Happy pondering, searching, and practicing your individual, special, important purpose - remember, your efforts are royally rewarded with a sense of fulfillment and happiness from the inside...


Further readings around this topic:
How to achieve happiness - Two easy steps to leaving a legacy - What happens TO me vs THROUGH me - Ready for something different?

Jasmine

"Jazzmyn" says the nametag of the cashier at the Bagel place. Jazzmyn - a variation of Jasmine, I guess...

Several years ago I lived in a fire red house with a lush, green hedge around the yard. At some time every spring, I'd notice a vine grow among the hedge. And for years I would cut that vine off, try to uproot it, get rid of it. And every year it came back, tried to grow.

One year I went on a longer consulting gig. When I came back a few weeks later, the vine had started to bloom. Fine, delicate, white blossoms dotted the green hedge, like stars in the night sky! As I exited the car, I was engulfed in sweet, gentle fragrance...

Years later, I learned that this vine most likely was Jasmine.


Oh, if I could be more like my Jasmine: to continue to be nice, even when somebody cuts me back again and again; to be ready to bloom, even when I am misunderstood and not appreciated!

What else am I realizing through this memory? That I am ignorant - no matter how much I seem to know! That if I would focus less on what I think is right, less on what "I" want, but instead allow the magic to happen that is unfolding with, through and around me, my life would be much more enjoyable and amazing...


I hear you say: "Yes, but..." That's ok. These are the realizations and lessons I take away from this story. You can choose to learn from it what makes sense to you... Gone are the days of doctrine. Here is the time of sharing information, individual enlightenment and free will...


Well, there is the aire of kindness about Jazzmyn - kindness, which radiates out and touches the lives of all around - just like the fragrance of my Jasmine. The gentle and caring vibe of Jazzmyn might put a smile on people's faces around her - just like the flowers of my Jasmine might have touched the hearts of people passing by. I hope, that she will not loose her positive ways, even when she's subjected to ignorance and misunderstanding. Just like my Jasmine did not give up and eventually was able to bless the world with its fragrance and beauty...

Ready for something different?

Are we the chisel or are we the sculpture? Was all created so we as individual soul can develop, or were we created to help the creation to develop?
For 9000 years humans have believed that the goal was for the individual to reach Nirvana, to qualify for heaven. If you don't reach this goal in this life-time, you either reincarnate, or are going to be dead forever, or - in the worst of the suggested scenarios - are going to roast in hell for ever.
The Tool-of-the-Universe teaching breaks with this old tradition. We choose to believe, that we humans are extremely sophisticated, highly specialized, custom tailored tools, through which this creation continues to develop.

This change in perspective raises a whole lot of questions: so what's going to happen to me when I die? Wouldn't the world go crazy if there was no punishment for bad behavior during a person's lifetime? Is there something similar to the traditional notion of NIrvana or Heaven? And many more...
When you read the articles on this site, and ponder such questions yourself, you'll find answers. And the answers to all your questions can be congruous - that means not contradicting each other, or leaving holes.
And here's what to me is the best about this new perspective: It provides easy answers to otherwise hard to answer questions. For example: "Why was I born to alcoholic parents?" "How is it fair, that some are born into wealth and others into poverty, some are born into a loving nurturing environment, and others are being abused and have to fend for themselves at an early age?" "What is the purpose of my life?" "Why am I in this crisis?" And many more...

A change always means letting go of something that we're familiar with, and replacing it with something we don't know yet. From our believes we draw strength, so we can live our lives, remain hopeful, and feel secure. To change the very cornerstone that our whole belief-system is built upon is quite a challenge. Not all of us are able to make this step, and some might immediately discard this idea.
If you are strong - or desperate - enough to contemplate this idea, though, you're in for the ride of your life! The change won't happen over night. It can take months, even years, to completely make the switch. However, from the very beginning, you'll be rewarded with inner strength, happiness, fulfillment, hope or any other kind of positive feeling - as long as you allow yourself to recognize it. Most likely, you'll be going through 5 phases to complete the change.

What took decades of searching, asking and listening, and trial and error, you can read about in a few days. So. Are you ready for a new life? Are you ready for purpose and fulfillment? Well, keep on reading and pondering, and you're on your way!

What's going to happen to you?

"When the student is ready, the teacher appears." Your being on this site is an indication that you've been searching, that you are open minded, and that you're looking for fulfillment and purpose for your life.
The perspective you're going to find on these pages has changed my life completely. So there's a good chance it will change yours, too. In the following are the five phases of change you most likely will go through, which will put you on the path to live the life you were meant to live:


Imagine yourself walking a path similar to the graphic above. The first circle of the spiral will take you the longest to complete. The closer you get to the center, the shorter the distance to complete the round. Once you reach the center, you're on the path towards being the YOU you were meant to be.
The five circles that make up the spiral symbolize the five phases you'll go through before you're able to head straight towards your life's real goal.

1st Round: Learning and understanding
Theoretically, this first phase would require only 1/2 hour. Unfortunately, however, most won't be able to take that shortcut, because what we have been told all our lives is preventing us from understanding the idea. We fight it intellectually, think there should be more to it. It can't be so simple, there has to be a catch.
But, it is that simple. There is no catch. It is logical and obvious.
The first phase is about you understanding what's explained about the system. You don't believe it yet, you just "get" what is meant.
2nd Round: Accepting the possibility
Due to our life long conditioning it is difficult to accept that what is suggested is possible. You're still not believing it, you're getting to the point where you're not discarding the idea as impossible. Depending on how strongly vested you are in the traditional believe, this phase can take quite a while. Some might be able to take the shortcut and get through this phase in also just 1/2 an hour.
3rd Round: Investigation and verification
You know you're in the third phase, when you catch yourself looking for proofs for this idea in your every day life's experiences and observations. During this phase, you look at what's going on with and around you, and when contemplate what it means, how it all fits together, what its purpose is, you try the Universe's perspective .
4th Round: Active trial
After a while, you'll start trying it out yourself. Every now and then, you'll apply the new perspective while contemplating what to do. You'll act differently than you would have before. You'll actively apply what you learned and check whether the results are supporting what is explained here about how the system works.
5th Round: Subscribing
The more you try, the more positive re-affirmations you'll experience. Soon, you'll be convinced that this idea is really how it works. Even though you're not yet able, willing and in the position to always implement it, you do "know" it makes sense, and you subscribe to it.

This is when your life is really going to change! Your changed believe has helped you to completely adjust your values in a very positive way. Your values sort your priorities, which are now totally rearranged from how they were when you started the process. And, of course, your actions and goals are very different, too - as they are motivated and determined by the new set of priorities.

Whoa! That sounds like brainwashing by a cult!
Well, in a way it is a cleansing process. You wash away old, un-helpful believes, values and priorities. And you make room for something that works better.
However, it is not a brainwashing, as it is not performed by anybody else, but by yourself. You are in control! You choose whether you want to start, and how long you want to remain in each phase. Plus, you can choose to stop at any point. I am sure you won't stop, though - as it just makes a lot of sense, and you'll see proofs everywhere you look... But, you could, if you wanted to...

Enjoy being a pioneer, exploring uncharted spiritual territory, leading towards a new humanity!

Jehovah's Witnesses - or - The Truth

I found a letter in my mailbox, addressed to a person I don't know, but at my address - "or current resident" it said. It was an invitation to a bible study at the local Jehovah's Witnesses Kingdom Hall...


I often get asked why I started searching myself, why I don't belong to any of the christian churches, nor follow any other religion. The short answer is, that none of the teachings I learned about offer satisfactory answers.


The flyer enclosed with the letter is entitled "Would you like to know the truth?"

Among the questions listed are: Does God really care about us? Will war and suffering ever end? How can I find happiness in life?

Hm. All very important questions.


When trying to understand, to find out what to believe, I came to conclude, that nobody can "know" anything about what is beyond this physical world that we live in, that we can observe, measure and experience. No theory can be proven correct or incorrect. Some may appear a little more likely, others a little less. With all the searching and reasoning and pondering, all we can do is to choose to believe one idea or another.


The flyer goes on to declare that the bible is god's word and true. Unfortunately, all the citations intended to provide the "true" answer to each of the questions, are interpreted and explained from a particular world-view's perspective. The only "proof" for the statements are more bible verses, interpreted in the same way.


I was searching for a spirituality that helps me make better decisions on all the topics that come up in my daily life. But I never liked the notion of blind faith. Of course, what I don't know, I have to augment with a believe. And faith is nothing but a believe. So, I tried to apply all I do know and used logic to rule out unlikely scenarios. The result is the realization that we humans are not here for our own sake, but that we are here to support the development of this creation. This purpose of the world and everybody else around you is not so that you can grow, but you are motivated, guided, and allowed to grow so you can better support the development of this world. And following this completely changed basis there's a belief-system, which is described on this site.

I can not prove that this is true, and that I do not claim it is. I do state, though, that it makes sense to me and that it provides answers for otherwise difficult to answer questions.

And, interestingly, I found that much of what is described in the bible, when seen from this "we are the tools of the Universe" perspective, actually does make sense. However, it is interpreted very differently.


The bible quotations in the flyer mean something totally different than explained there, once the underlying framework is different. And the conclusions and resulting actions are very different, then, too.


With that in mind, I encourage you again, not to simply believe anything I (or somebody else) says about these topics (or any other topic, for that matter), but instead to listen carefully and try to understand what is meant and what it would mean to you, then reflect and ponder with an open mind and curiosity, and find your own answer.

This site is intended to help you with this task.