The Purpose of Purpose
Most of us seek purpose, but do we even know what we're looking for?
Osiris meets ikigai
What makes you want to wake up in the morning? Careful, don’t answer too quickly. A lot hangs in the balance. Perhaps even in the balance of Osiris.
As the story goes, the Egyptian god of fertility, death, life, etc. presided over a tribunal of 42 (no way, meaning of life?) divine judges that adjudicated the souls of the recently deceased. To do so, they weighed each person’s heart (the seat of the Ib for the Egyptians, which was a vital part of the soul) against the feather of Ma’at.
Feather and heart in balance? On to eternal life for the just.
Heart too heavy? On to Ammit the Destroyer who’ll eat your soul.
To keep your heart light in ancient Egypt, you had to steer clear of Ma’at’s 42 sins.
A more current way of keeping your heart light is perhaps most beautifully encapsulated in the Japanese concept of ikigai, which roughly translates into ‘reason to live’ or ‘meaning of life’.
Having ikigai is, according to some, one of the keys to a long, happy life and there is some data that seemingly backs this up. (I write seemingly because it’s hard to measure, and people who claim to have ikigai are probably happier overall, which is - annoyingly - good for longevity.)
It’s not only about longevity, though. It’s also about the top of the pyramid, to return to the ancient Egypt theme. In this case, the pyramid is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. This is basically a set of stages through which human motivation can move. Once you meet your basic needs, you can address your psychological needs, and so on. On the top, we find self-fulfillment. Sounds a lot like ikigai to me.
(Random thought while writing this: for some (most?) people psychological needs and self-fulfillment run, at least partially, in and through each other.)
(Random thought two: my innate allergy for anything that resembles a hierarchy crops up. None of these stages comes with value attached. One is not ‘better’ than another.)
A plethora of purpose(s)
Here I run into a problem. I’m in need of an ikigai. My pyramid is topless, which, admittedly, is less problematic than bottomless. So, as a chronic overthinker, I overthink this too.
How do we deal with that ache for a purpose that - I think? - many of us feel? How do we build the top of our pyramid? Obviously, I don’t know, otherwise I would have done it for myself already. A lot of people throughout history have tried to catch the ineffability of ‘life purpose’, and a few themes come up over and over again.
Time for some overthinking. Also, yay bullet points.
Purpose-free. Stop wanting purpose, the eternally failing quest for it will inevitably leave you unhappy and unfulfilled. Probably the most objectively sound proposal. However, unless you’re a worry-free Zen deity, good luck with this.
Predefined purpose. You set a clear benchmark, a distinct milestone against which you measure your life. “When I have achieved X, I will have fulfilled my purpose.” I have my doubts. The tricky thing about setting goals like that is that when you reach them, you’ll want more.
Purpose of needs. This is probably a good one, though I’m not sure I want to admit it to myself yet. This is not about putting your needs first, but about being needed. You live for the bonds you forge with others, for your inclusion in the middle part of their pyramid. A beautiful thing. It can backfire, though. You have a life to live too, after all. It’s about finding both balance and purpose in the relationships you build. Let me know if you’ve figured out how to do it.
Purpose of wants. Where the previous point was about others, this one is all about you. You go full hedonist and do whatever you crave in the moment. Short-term satisfaction trumps everything else. Unsustainable, to say the least. And, in most cases, this doesn’t seem to work. Think of all the wealthy and/or famous people who can basically really do this. Many of them struggle with feeling empty, wanting something more. (Not all of them, of course, but enough to make me think that immediate want-fulfillment isn’t sufficient purpose for most people.)
The horizontal purpose(s) of change. Your purpose - or purposes - change(s) all the time. One day it’s this, another day it’s that. Think of this one as a combination of the previous three. Or better yet, think of it as Heraclitus meeting Epicurus. Everything, everyone, changes all the time. The best we can do to live a good fulfilling life is to be true to our inner nature. We practice introspection to identify the things we truly value and then live accordingly without losing ourselves in the desire of the day. We pay attention to what makes us feel contented, to how we can make others happy, and remain flexible enough to deal with the ever-changing circumstances. No grand design, simply being true to oneself (and one’s self). Easier said than done…
Or the purpose of all our lives is indeed 42.
Q: What’s your ikigai? Do you think we need one to feel happy and fulfilled? What did I miss? Comment below to let me know.