The Meaning of Life

In this Wednesday Night Dharma Talk, Buddhist philosopher David Loy traces humanity’s evolving quest for meaning through historical religious frameworks. Loy examines how humanity’s search for purpose has evolved through the ages – from ancient civilizations that found meaning in appeasing a cosmic order to the rise of salvation religions promising escape from worldly suffering. When western science began dismantling these metaphysical promises, “A different kind of salvation developed, called progress.” Our collective pursuit of comfort and ease has fallen into the same cosmological dualism of the past and feeds today’s ecological crisis, democratic decline, and nuclear threats. Despite the dangerous times we are in, Loy sees this unprecedented moment as a unique opportunity, “we’re being handed meaning, as it were, on a plate.” Rejecting the notion that the meaning of life is simply to be alive, Loy guides us toward finding purpose through three contemplative questions: “What do I have to offer?”, “What are the good possibilities?”, and “What calls to me?” He emphasizes that there are no ready-made answers from the past for what Noam Chomsky calls “the most dangerous time in human history.” Instead, meaning must emerge from our own personal situation and aspire to heal our fragile world.