One Life With Millions Of Purposes

Viktor Frankl says that the meaning of life differs from man to man, from day to day and from hour to hour. And is was those lines that made me think about the purpose in life. Is there a single purpose in life? Why most of us struggle for a single one in life?

Transcript

Hi,

My name is Spiros and today I had this random thought.

Is there a single purpose in life?

I will start with a quote from an inspiring book,

I will pass to my thought on purpose and how I have perceived it through my own life.

Then I will talk about how culture affects us on the subject and I will introduce another way to look at it.

And then I will finish off with some questions for you guys.

Lately I am quite preoccupied with the meaning of life.

What is it exactly?

And recently I read the book Man Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl which by the way is a must read.

So regarding the meaning of life he says,

The meaning of life differs from man to man,

From day to day and from hour to hour.

What matters therefore is not the meaning of life in general but rather the specific meaning of a person's life at a given moment.

Then he compares the question what is the meaning of life with the question to a chess player.

What is the best move in chess?

Obviously there isn't one.

It depends on the situation,

It depends on the opponent.

So a similar answer can be given for every game we play,

Like Monopoly or football or even the game of life.

And that answer is,

There is not a consistent meaning through time.

And those lines about meaning provoked in me a rather related question.

What is the purpose in one's life?

And can we have multiple purposes in the same way that our life can have multiple meanings?

Why do we strive for only one big goal,

One big achievement in our life,

The one that will light up our single purpose?

Well we have a single life so it makes sense to have a single purpose right?

But is it actually true?

When I was young I wanted to be a scientist,

An engineer.

I loved to build things,

To read how machines work,

How the world works.

And I did it.

I had a purpose and at the end I managed to study physics and artificial intelligence.

But a point came to my life that a need for something different arose.

There was a call for something else.

I had learned a lot around logic,

However I felt that I didn't want to spend my life in front of a computer screen.

And while I started meditating and practicing yoga,

My purpose changed.

Only my close ones were constantly saying how much I have changed and not always as a good thing.

So after working on my spiritual journey for years I now realize that almost unconsciously I ended up working on my personal development and on passing on my message.

And here I am right now recording one of my thoughts,

One of my ideas and I feel excited about that.

Well,

I could have never dreamt about this when I was younger as my purpose was different.

I was different,

My mentality was different.

And I don't discount the knowledge and the experience that I have accumulated.

These play an integral role on the individual that I am right now,

On the path that my current purpose has taken.

Anyway,

To go back to my point,

Why do we strive to find a single purpose in our life?

We humans build our values,

Our beliefs,

Our lenses,

How we see the world,

How we respond to it,

Through our experiences.

And that is our whole background,

Our upbringing,

Parents,

The school,

Our culture.

And the common teaching that we get from all these areas is that we have one life,

Therefore we have one purpose.

And this mindset is definitely something that I adopted growing up in Greece.

Perhaps we are taught this belief from our ancestors who believe that we are made to worship the Creator.

And as there is only one Creator,

There is only one purpose.

But I say,

We may have one life and one death,

However we have many days,

We live through millions of hours.

And during these days and hours we get various ideas,

We build connections with different people.

Every day we learn something new that affects us,

So tomorrow we wake up a different person,

Although we cannot see it in the mirror.

So why shouldn't we have many purposes in life then?

I am actually asking you,

What is your current purpose in life?

What do you value the most?

What about 5 years ago,

Or 10,

Or when you were a teenager?

What do you think your purpose in life will be in 10 years?

Do all this much?

I would like you to take some time and really think about this.

And I would like to close by reminding you of Viktor Frankl,

The meaning of life differs from man to man,

From day to day and from hour to hour.

What matters therefore is not the meaning of life in general but rather the specific meaning of a person's life at a given moment.

I wonder,

Does the message of this statement is reflected also on our purpose in life?

I would love to hear your opinion and I hope you found this audio inspiring but mostly thought provocative.

Thank you for listening.

Reviews

This brief message was packed with many layers to go back and do some extra reflection. I want to thank you for acknowledging that we don’t have to have just one purpose, is that have put a lot of pressure and worry trying to find that one thing. I am left with so much greater clarity today.

Thank you. We create all meaning through our perception of experience. The choice is ours.

You are so right! I think I have a major purpose in life to introduce people to yoga. However, after that I’ve had & still have a million purposes 🙏🏼

I found this very interesting and thought provoking. I do think that we do always have choices as we move forward in our lives. Thank you.

Thought provoking. Thank you.
I have also been assessing my way forward.

Hi Spiros,
Thank you for your thoughts on Purpose. I battled for years seeking and searching for this ‘one’ purpose I was supposed to find and follow. I missed out on so much joyful living but I also gained wisdom. My nose was so close to the ground sniffing out this elusive ’purpose’ that I often forgot to look up and appreciate, enjoy the beauty all around me as I passed by. I’ve figured out that it isn’t one thing. I agree with you, I have a multitude of purposes, and as my yoga teacher taught me, my Dharma or purpose will encompass wider and over arching purposes, but also the Dharma of this moment I have right now. This may be to write you this comment and sip my coffee. It’s simple. 🙃

Thank you for this. So often we feel we need to have only one purpose and we feel lost if we haven't yet found that one thing! However, what Victor Frankl says so resonates with me - ones purpose changes constantly. For me, my purpose has changed over the seasons of my life, depending on what's happening at that time.

Loved hearing a new way of thinking about purpose. It really resonates with me. Thank you!

That was totally amazing and so grateful to you for opening up “another” door to the meaning of this life. Thank you thank you 🙏🏻

Thank you. Enjoyed very much to start my new day w this thought.

Yes, Spiros, one’s purpose in life does change—over the years, when situations change, when you need something new—as a matter of fact, it’s always changing! If we can recognize and honor the changes, we can greet them with awareness and make the most of them!
Thank you for the quote from Frankl, and your inspiring words.
Donna

Thank you Spiros. Good reflection on our purpose, which we tend to overthink sometimes. It is quite empowering to think that we can redesign ourselves and even our life purpose on a regular basis. 🙏🤍🌿

So true, when I was younger I had a lust to see the world. Walk the olive groves of Greece, swim in the sea touching Turkey, view the North pole, trudge through snow in the Alps. I did all these things with gusto. I wanted to birth babies. I did. I suckled and loved them and watched them grow and launch. I am now formulating my next ‘purpose’. Thank you for this.

Thank you, I've struggled with this - I need to get out and try more things, I've felt so stuck for years. I hope Covid disappears soon. Take good care all xx

I very much enjoyed your line of thought here. I agree, why just one purpose? Are we not given multiple talents for a reason? Who we are changes from one moment to the next, as we expand so should our consciousness. Thank you, very thought provoking!

Fabulous
Many thanks!

Thank you Spiros, inspiring and provocative indeed. A fresh new outlook for someone who has been long constrained by the one life one purpose concept.

Thought Provoking, Yes!!! Thank you, for sharing your perspective. 💜💜🙏🙏

I appreciate this very much💜

Loved this talk from your soothing voice to your thought provoking message. Victor Frankl’s book was a required reading when I was in university in the early 80’s. It has remained inspiring over those many years. In reflecting on your words, I feel that I have had a calling in life that has manifested in many ways. There has always been a common sense of purpose in everything I have done. Like a hub at the center of a wheel. My calling or purpose has radiated out in unexpected and powerful ways. Seeking meaning in all that we do and experience is the key. Thank you for inviting me into deeper reflection of my life.