Goal or Sinn: Let's ask Homer
Getting back to Blaubär's (okok I am switching back to the original version, but I request a full-background-history-why-it-is explanation) comment.. I would not necessarily differentiate goal and the german "sinn" to that extend. Those lucky ones of us who could find the ultimate goal in our lives (no matter if it's becoming incredibly rich, influentual, a famous writer, artist, or a parent, a social activist, a bridge-builder, austrian-coffee-shop owner *yam*, gas-efficient-car-driver,...) mostly describe their lives as "sinnvoll" (which basically means that it makes sense to them to be alive). However, leading a sinnvoll life is probably exactly the opposite of Herwig's "sinnbefreit" living, since it doesn't necessarily result in leading a happy life (all the successful goal achievers will tell you long stories of how they became happy when they have actually been the furthest away from reaching their goal ;), which again leads to the question: can we be happy without giving our lives a deeper "sinn"?BBC today asked Homer Simpson about his life philosophy and thinking by myself that Homer might actually be wiser than we all together who think too much about all this life's "sinn" crap: how is TV influencing our daily lives, routines, behaviors but also how are diligent couch potatos answering questions such as a "sinn" in life.
We who are trying to add some "sinn" into our lives always ask: "where are we coming from, where are we going, how can we influence where we will go to, is there something more, something deeper and wiser that we with our limited human mind can't grasp (e.g. is there a God, or what is God or are we more animals than humans "a bunch of naked apes trying to get on as best we can, usually messing things up, but somehow finding life can be sweet all the same. All delusions of a significance that we do not really have need to be stripped away, and nothing can do this better that the great deflater: comedy..."
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/4995624.stm)
Probably beyond mine and Homer's understanding... however, Homer got it and definitely lives "sinnbefreit" - even if it's just an excuse for spending time in front of the TV:
"What's the big deal about going to some building every Sunday, I mean, isn't God everywhere?"
"Don't you think the almighty has better things to worry about than where one little guy spends one measly hour of his week?"
posted by lia at 11:35 AM
2 Comments:
Defintely an interesting article on Homer and Simpsons philosophy. I myself have never seen any episode of Simpsons (probably i'm the only of a kind) but somehow it never appealed to me. But somewhere in the article it says: "It's not that the Simpsons is atheist propaganda; its main target is not belief in God or the supernatural, but the arrogance of particular organised religions that they, amazingly, know the will of the creator".
I am not an expert of religion but putting "arrogance" "organized religion" & "will of a creator": which religion says that (ok i can't say for all religion or for that matter not even for my own religion) but i have been brought up in a religious environment where people first pray to god and then do others things. Noone never told me "will of a creator" or that i have be follow an oragnized religion; its people who have made their versions out of it and protrayed religion with such words. I have been raised as to believe in something which is above us and to follow my heart of what i think is right and wrong, what is good for me, for my family, my friends, the people around me, for all others. I am not a perfect follower of my religion as some people might say becoz i don't do things or practise in an organized way. But that doesn't make me atheist, I believe in God or something more "name it what you want" but i feel it gives you a life in which you need to do things in an order which are helpful to you and others.
Actually your artcile raises lot of questions in different directions.
Another one as per homer philosophy. "
"What's the big deal about going to some building every Sunday, I mean, isn't God everywhere?"
"Don't you think the almighty has better things to worry about than where one little guy spends one measly hour of his week?"
"
First of all to answer such questions, many philosophers have said many things, my bad that i haven't read any good books on such eternal questions. But i gonna start one as soon as i am done with my current book. As we understood life right now is living n achiveing some goals and then again setting some more goals and goals n goals n then what, we die in following and setting our goals. The first question, i think is the first question what an atheist might say, what the hell, why go to church on sunday, whats special in there, n why sunday, why this, why that. As i said its your belief. And if think going to school gives you education, going to office gives you money n security, going to bar gives you drinks, then probably going to church on sunday might bring closer to ....., Then they say what god, god is everywhere, offcourse god is everywhere, god is omnipresent. But the going to a place of worship, whatever it is, noone made it yesterday or so, its been there and probably at those times, some great mind thought it could be best for people to relieve from there day to day life, and give rest to their mind. Probably noone has answer to such questions, in a simple way as to appeal everyone. Its anyway a massed up life n it always will be. Probably thats why there is something more to human life. Probably we lack in the knowledge to understand it. S. Levitt says look into the data; history; you might get answers which you might never thought of. Try to think out differently based on it.
What knowledge do i have of human life, NOTHING, i know java, c++, modeling, some tech geek stuff.. probably i will never get out of it
and get more out of this life. My limited knowledge is probably stopping me, but we been entagled in this life so much that we don't think ourself, we just do things n achieve goals.
And also your question which as I understood seems to be "what kind of goals we need in life & wat are we trying to achieve and whether we should live our life as sinnbefreit"
Also you mentioned "Those lucky ones of us who could find the ultimate goal in our lives"; who are these peoples, I couldn't think of anyone who achieved what he/she wants.. its human nature to go for more and keep on going. Its the never ending quest of human nature. What most influential people or what i can think of is: People who live their life for a "single goal" and go for it like mother teresa, mandela who gave their lifes for one cause. People who say I have achieved this or that, and now what next. And i don't think being sinnvoll or sinnbefriet, can lead to a happy life, what is happy life here, its just momentary happniess, offcourse as herwig said "Sinn" as "an
abstract feeling of satisfaction, achieved by working towards a goal." Special emphasis is to be placed on "working towards"".. I agree of "working towards" - this is what will lead us to what we believe or what we r trying to achieve or
what we want from this life. Be it related to religion, achiveing one cause, being bad, or being good, helping others or not, but if we work towards it and we feel its it right thing, thats the best feeling one can achieve.
I am no expert and probably my way of thinkin is for me only, and also i no expert of human life, or what kind of goal one should look for, these are eternal questions which have haunted humans for centuries. Many great philosophers have
said things about it. But in end its what you believe.
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i don't know why wrote such a big reply but somehow that homer article or the questions of religion and faith, got me. I don't knw myself what i want from my life, or where its going.. right now its just a geek life. But i def. know this is not all,and i need to "work towards" .............. its the actions which speak!!
still at work I am making a break, which was thanks to Mohan's comment much more refreshing than I expected :).
hmm I think you are quite right about that: "what is happy life here, its just momentary happniess..." - and that's what I meant with the questions why do we need to search for something bigger or even think about giving it up and live "sinnbefreit": happiness come to us in small live moments, it's this jumping feeling in our stomache area and most of the time it's also gone very quickly: whatever goal one might have or not have, experiencing and sharing this moments of happiness might help us all in being more happy with what we are doing and finally seeing more clearly what we really want from life.
thanks for ur great comment Mo!
I really enjoyed reading it.
Hope you already have a good night :)
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