deepstash
Beta
Deepstash brings you key ideas from the most inspiring articles like this one:
Read more efficiently
Save what inspires you
Remember anything
On the Meaning of Meaning: What Are We Really Looking For?
8
Key Ideas
Save all ideas
The Meaning Of Meaning
The meaning of life generally means the relevance, significance or value of the same.
The quest for meaning is not a simple one, but a rabbit’s hole of further queries, making the concept of ‘meaning’ confusing even for positive psychologists.
103 SAVES
636 READS
Terrestrial Vs Cosmic Meaning
The question of meaning can be applied both to the individual (Terrestrial) and the world (Cosmic).
- Terrestrial meaning tries to offer an answer to the question of the meaning of one’s own life.
- Cosmic meaning delves into life in general, with religious and spiritual dimensions, looking at the macro-view.
100 SAVES
412 READS
"A Meaning" Vs "The Meaning"
- ‘A’ Meaning is the fluid, ever-present and ongoing mechanisms of cognition, behaviour and life-cycles.
- ‘The’ Meaning, on the other hand, is concerned with the integrated reference point inside the individual, helping him or her navigate life.
101 SAVES
403 READS
Meaning: Big And Small
The big picture, or the larger reality consists of ‘big’ meaning but in a subjective way, inside the mind of the individual.
Small meaning is the everyday details that make us experience a moment, like seeing one’s daughter smile.
If the moment is filled with something complete within itself, like a sunset or a flower, then it becomes suchness meaning.
95 SAVES
312 READS
Meaning: Global And Situational
- Global (or ultimate) meaning talks about the intrinsic meaning of life as it is, and is a functional way of understanding the world around us. It works on the notion that ‘ignorance is bliss’.
- Situational meaning is more dynamic and can be applied to every moment in our lives, looking at it as a separate, meaningful event.
92 SAVES
256 READS
Living Meaning
Living Meaning is the objective view of reality, and is based on our relationship and interpretation towards the object, person or information. It is focused on the thoughts, feelings and actions that are evoked once we see an object or face a situation.
Example: The car in your garage has a living meaning because it influences your life in a certain way by existing.
89 SAVES
225 READS
Personal Meaning
An interpretation of living meaning is related topersonal meaning, which looks at the personal significance and the unique interpretation of life situations, objects and events that an individual experiences.
Example: Praying at a church or temple has a different, personal meaning for each one of us due to our unique life experiences and circumstances that shape our lives.
90 SAVES
218 READS
Life Activity
Life Activity is the combination of living and personal meaning, which eventually forms belief patterns in an individual, according to the specific set of circumstances, events and situations that are experienced.
The resulting meaning is a combination of objective and subjective meaning, forming a relationship between a phenomenon and subject, while being highly contextual in nature due to the many variables involved.
94 SAVES
269 READS
SIMILAR ARTICLES & IDEAS:
5
Key Ideas
Our own reality
Everyone has their own reality. The concept of a “personal brand” is to let others know who you are because if you don't, others will.
But, the reality is that although you can guide peop...
We see what we look for
We tend to assume that our perceptions of sights, sounds, textures, and tastes are an accurate portrayal of the real world. But when we find ourselves fooled by a perceptual illusion, we realize that what we perceive, is our brain's best guess at what that world is like.
Different perceptions
No-one will ever view us as we view ourselves.
We should consider if we are entitled to be seen by others the way we see ourselves.
6
Key Ideas
Meaning is the associations that our minds draw
Types of Meaning in Life
2. Better/Worse Meaning has to do with the nature of our values and relies mostly on the emotional parts of our brains: Eating is better than starving.
Meaning is nature’s tool for motivation
3
Key Ideas
Questions about the meaning of life contain assumptions:
- “What’s the meaning of life?” Assumes that there’s a single meaning.
- “Does my life have meaning?” Assumes (or at least hints) at a “...
Problems of meaning=problems of insufficient value
To find meaning in life, we can either:
- Add more value: identify activities that are valuable to us or we can remove activities that reduce value.
- Change our thinking: Perhaps our life already has sources of value, but we just aren’t looking at things in the right way.