The Big Question

“The” big question? Is there only one “big question” in life? No, of course there are a number of them. However, the one I’m going to pick is “Did you do what you came here to do?” I think it has interesting wording and is quite big enough. This newsletter will explore four possible answers. If you’re okay with that then read on.

Suppose your life were going to end tomorrow but you were alive and well today, how would you answer this question? I think the only answers are: “yes,” “no,” “partially or not yet,” and some variation of “I don’t understand the question. Did I come here to do something?” For what it’s worth, here are my thoughts on each of these four possible answers.

1) "Yes"

What a great answer to be able to give! I hope I’m able to give this answer one day. I cannot give it today for the simple reason that I’m not done yet. So my answer to The Big Question is the next one.

2) “Partially or not yet”

This is my answer today. I think this answer is given by someone who believes they did “come here to do something” but they realize that, whatever it is, while they may have made a start on it, they’re certainly not done yet.

3) “No”

I think this answer is given by two types of people. First, someone who does not believe they came here to do anything. This is fine. It’s just not my answer. Why? Because I don’t want to look back on my life and wonder: What was that all about? Second, this answer could be given by someone who believes they did “come here to do something” but they realize that, whatever it is, they haven’t done it. I think this prompts the question: What are they going to do about it?

If they’re planning to do anything at all, then their answer is in fact the previous one, i.e., “not yet,” as this implies intent. On the other hand, it’s also possible they’re not planning to do anything. In this case, for them, tomorrow will be a repeat of today until they run out of time and die. I guess that’s fine too. As before, it’s just not my answer.

4) “I don’t understand the question. Did I come here to do something?”

I think this answer is given by someone who may not have thought much about what they might be doing here. Am I on solid ground when I say this? No, not really. After all, who am I to say that we are all here to “do something”? Good point. I agree. Who am I indeed? What if I am wrong? What if we are not, in fact, here to do anything at all? These are all good points.

But suppose, just suppose, we are here to “do something” with our lives, then the only thing that matters is the extent to which we succeed in doing it before we die. This means time is of the essence for the simple reason that we’re going to run out of it. The only options we have in which to do anything are today, tomorrow, sometime, and never. And with each passing day, the options drop off the front end of the list. This much we know for sure.

What we don’t know for sure is why we are here. And the act of asking The Big Question suggests there might be an answer. This means that whatever answer we come up with will not be a matter of fact; it will be a matter of belief.

For me, I find it useful to believe that life is a process of waking up, discovering what you came here to do, and doing it. I think this is what’s meant by fulfilling your potential as a human being. (Needless to say, there are other ways of looking at the “meaning of life” as it were, including the belief that life has no meaning at all. But this one seems to bring out the best in me, so I’ll go with it.)

I also believe that this process involves two transformations. First, you transform the world through what you do—or at least the part of the world you can influence. Second, you become transformed as you do so. What’s more, the two transformations happen at the same time.

Let me say again, this is just what I choose to believe. It’s obviously not a matter of fact. Nor does it imply judgment. In other words, there’s nothing right or wrong or good or bad about being awake or asleep, or about fulfilling more or less of your potential. It’s just interesting, at least to me, to ponder what would be implied if these thoughts were true.

So, let’s ponder. If the above thoughts are true, then there are three underlying assumptions worth digging out and looking at.

1) That we are here to do something. I will stick my neck out further and say I believe our mission in life is to discover and develop the talents we have been given and use them to make as much of a positive difference as possible in the lives of others. That works for me.

2) That we are born asleep, as it were, and our human life is a process of waking up, discovering what we are here to do, and doing it. There’s a quote attributed to Mark Twain “The two most important days in your life are the day you were born and the day you find out why.” That pretty much nails it except that I don’t think we find out why on a particular day. I think it takes a lifetime.

3) That as we do this, we transform the world (or at least our part of it) at the same time as becoming transformed as we progressively fulfill our potential as a human being. (By the way, the phrase “fulfill our potential” goes by a number of names including “follow your calling/passion/bliss,” “fulfill your destiny,” “be all you can be,” etc. The names don’t matter much but the concept does.)

Are these assumptions true or are they just a matter of belief? You know, I’m not sure that it matters. A more pragmatic question to ask is: What happens if we behave as if they were true? In other words: Do they work in the sense of producing positive, practical results in our everyday world? If the answer is yes, then I suggest that makes them true enough for the purpose of living our everyday lives until our days come to an end. Hmm, that’s interesting.

So, with that, I will end this brief exploration of The Big Question. Is it worth further pondering? Yes, I think so.

In the meantime, however, I think it’s useful to recognize that there are only four possible answers, And that we’re living one of them every day of our life whether we’re aware of it or not. I also think it helps to be aware of that for the simple reason that it would be a pity to wake up on our deathbed and ask ourselves the question “Did I do what I came here to do?” on precisely the day when we have run out of time in which to do it. In fact, it’s probably not a bad idea to ask ourselves The Big Question every day. But that’s just what I think.

What do you think? In other words, what would be your answer to The Big Question?

(By the way, you may have noticed this newsletter doesn’t have a single reference to Lao Tzu’s Tao Te Ching. I think he’d likely either be rolling his eyes or chuckling. Next month’s newsletter will be different.)

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Thanks for reading. Please feel free to share this newsletter.

Francis

IN OTHER NEWS...

Past newsletters are here: www.francispringmill.com/newsletter-archive

In Harmony with the Tao: A Guided Journey into the Tao Te Ching is available here. There Is No Somewhere Else: Insights from the Tao Te Ching is available here.

Synopses and reviews for both books are on www.francispringmill.com/books

If you have enjoyed my books and have a spare couple of minutes, I'd love it if you could leave an Amazon review so more people can discover them. (The customer review link for In Harmony with the Tao is here, and for There Is No Somewhere Else is here.)