There is something unique about the human species in that, we have always been seekers and explorers and it is something that truly separates us from the rest of the millions of species on our planet. 

Our numerous inventions and discoveries stand testament to the fact that we are in a constant pursuit of knowledge and answers to an infinite number of questions. In a way, it is a quest that will never end because there will always be the next question. 

But it hasn’t only been the physical nature of things that have intrigued us but even the rather philosophical ones related to the abstract nature of things and we have found time and again that these are the more difficult ones to answer. 

Many great thinkers throughout history have pondered upon these and have provided their own thoughts on several of them but there are some questions that just don’t want to be answered! One of them, relates to our purpose here on Earth as a species.

What Is Our Purpose?

It is in our human nature to try and understand the purpose and meaning behind everything we come in contact with. When we discover something odd or foreign, the questions that we first ask relate to what it is and what it does. 

That’s how we make sense of our surroundings and it is a trait that might have been hardwired into us through the process of evolution over hundreds of thousands of years. 

So you can imagine why we would wonder about our own purpose. We know more or less how we got here. Darwin’s theory of evolution provides a lot of answers in that regards but we have absolutely no clue as to why we are here. 

Why are we here? Do our lives have a purpose, an end goal? Are we here to fulfil a destiny? Is there even a purpose? These are the questions that boggle the human mind and there might be no way to come to a solid answer…..ever! That would be really frustrating!

A Scientist’s View 

Recently I was watching a video on YouTube where the popular evolutionary biologist, Richard Dawkins was discussing about the purpose of life and he gave his own views on what he thought about it.

He said that the very question of the purpose of life is invalid. It is like asking what the color of jealousy is. There is no answer to it because the very question is invalid. He justifies his answer by saying that we, just like every other species on Earth, are a result of billions of years of evolution during which life evolved from a mix of organic molecules to a single celled organism which then evolved into millions of species. 

From his views, one could infer that our existence is due to a chain of events that unfolded one after the other and led us to where we are today. And as such we have no purpose but to exist. From an evolutionary point of view, our purpose seems to be what has been engrained in us by nature: survival. 

What Do I Think?

My beliefs on this topic keep on evolving (no pun intended) the more people’s views I am able to understand. Sometimes when I see how intricately the universe and everything in it, right down to the structure of a flower, seems to ‘designed’, I can’t help but wonder if there is a grand designer and if that is true, might we have a purpose of being here? I mean, why design something without any purpose, right?

Then there are times when I think that the existence of life on Earth might have been instigated by an advanced alien civilisation who might have a purpose in mind for us. This might sound too ‘out there’ but my mind dwells on it sometimes. 

At other times I feel like that there is no grand purpose and life can be whatever we want it to be, to choose your own purpose in life. That way, our free will is respected and we have something to work towards.