[Kirism is a contemporary philosophy of life that I’ve developed over the last several decades. It is psychological, philosophical, and existential and takes into account human nature, the human predicament, our contemporary understanding of the world, and our pressing individual and species-wide challenges. I hope that you’ll enjoy learning more about it. In the first four posts of the series, we looked at the idea of absurd rebellion. In these four posts, we look at the issue of individuality, an idea that matters to Kirists. This is the first of those four posts. To learn more about Kirism, please take a look at Lighting the Way, in which Kirism is introduced. To be in touch with me about Kirism, please drop me an email to [email protected].]
We have been pestered by two culture-driven ideas: “the meaning of life” and “the purpose of life.” Kirists understand that these two phrases are powerful traps that have confused and tormented humans for the longest time.
These two phrases have come to be for a variety of reasons, some having to do with how language works, some having to with our desire not to feel unimportant, some having to with the needs of authoritarian institutions to sustain and promote themselves.
The very shape of these phrases makes it seem as if there is or must be some singular meaning to life and some singular purpose to life. By creating these phrases, we create the idea, and with the idea all sorts of unnecessary longings.
Without language creating those ideas and culture supporting them, you might just peel a potato, fight for justice, hold your child’s hand, and get on with life. You would find life itself real and already important.
Our religious, spiritual, political and other authoritarian leaders promote these phrases, because these phrases set you up to believe that there is exactly “one true thing” in life, for instance the demand to serve God.
People have long been seduced, transfixed and pestered by these phrases and that has led to a very large, negative outcome. Since they can’t envision or discern “the purpose of life” or “the meaning of life,” there being none, they feel bereft and lost.
Life got much darker because people have been hunting for something that doesn’t exist. If you suppose that there is “a purpose to life” and “a meaning to life” and you can’t figure out what they are, how are you going to feel? Miserable.
You’re going to feel confused, upset at yourself for what looks to be your failure at discernment, and maybe angry at the universe for playing what looks to be a sadistic game. You are not going to feel at all well, emotionally or existentially.
Part of the power of this trap is that it feels frightening to think the reverse, that “there is no meaning to life” or “there is no purpose to life.” These rejections of millennia of dogma sound too terrible to countenance.
However, Kirists reject those false phrases and also the false negative constructions of those phrases. Both “there is a meaning to life” and “there is no meaning to life” are wrong-headed responses to reality. Exactly the same with “purpose.”
These twin phrases, “the meaning of life” and “the purpose of life,” have never pointed to anything real or true. Rather, they are constructed concoctions. They function to confuse and to disempower and Kirists deconstruct and reject them.
Kirists say a different thing instead. They say, “There is no singular purpose to life. Rather there are our individual life purpose choices. I decide what is important enough for me to organize my life around and then I live exactly that life.”
How will you make your life purpose choices? How will you decide which are the activities and the states of being you deem most important to you? Well, first of all, they must be important to you. You arbitrate your life purposes.
Your culture may say, “Turn over your life to taking care of your aging parents.” You get to decide if you agree. Your government may say, “Fight in this all-important war.” You get to decide if you agree. You may; or you may not.
Similarly, you may be told that this is not something you ought to concern yourself with or that this is something that you really must not do. Do not be gay. Do not be altruistic. Do not be a whistleblower. You get to decide if you agree.
Whatever is maximized or minimized by others, validated or stigmatized by others, all of that is for you to step aside from, taking that vital Kirist step to the side, that crucial sidestep to awareness, and to ponder, consider, and decide about.
You are necessarily deciding only for now, making provisional, full-throated, whole-hearted commitments. It must only be for now, as you do not know how life will play itself out. At the same time, these must be full-throated commitments.
And what if nothing seems important enough to elevate to the “high place” of life purpose choice? Well, that probably means that you’re in crisis and maybe have been in crisis for a long time. It’s hard to live when nothing feels very important.
If you find yourself in that unfortunate position, you must start doing some anointing. This sounds like, “My novel, the world, love, nothing feels very important. But I am going to make the decision to consider them important. I’d better!”
We shift from pestering ourselves about “the purpose of life” and we make our idiosyncratic life purpose choices. Maybe we encapsulate those purposes in a single phrase, like “I do the next right thing,” or maybe we create a list or a menu.
You may have never done this sort of work before. You may have insights into your nature, an excellent sense of your strengths and weaknesses, possess strong feelings about how the world operates, but have never previously done this precise work.
Kirists do this work. They ask themselves, “What should my life purposes be?” or “What do I consider really important?” They know that any answer they arrive at must be provisional but that doesn’t stop them from making those vital decisions.
To learn more about Kirism, please take a look at Lighting the Way, in which Kirism is introduced.
—
This Post is republished on Medium.
—
Photo credit: iStock
