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THE MEANING OF LIFE
SPEAKING TREE ECONOMIC TIMES
NAJIB SHAH

    Hope, wrote Alexander Pope, lies eternal in the human breast. To never despair, even in the bleakest of winters. And, nothing exemplifies this more than the soul-stirring story of Viktor Frankel, who survived the horrors of Auschwitz through his search for the meaning of life.
    In his ‘Man’s Search for Meaning’ written after his liberation from the concentration camp, he talks about the source of his will to live. To paraphrase: we are bound to face adversities. How you handle these vicissitudes is determined by your attitude. And, attitude is something that each of us controls. This determines what becomes of you mentally and physically. This is true also of suffering that is a part of life–without suffering and death, human life would not be complete. The test is how we react to the suffering.
    We need to have a higher purpose– a goal that will help us overcome the challenges. Frankel quotes. Nietzsche, ‘He who has a why to live can bear almost any how’, to explain this.
    The meaning of life is found in our choice to do the right thing. Frankel helped his fellow prisoners by emphasising that striving for meaning, not power nor pleasure, is what keeps us alive.
    These lessons are even more relevant today. A positive attitude, willingness to take responsibility and a purpose in life will help each of us find meaning in our lives. Life is, after all, far too precious to fritter away aimlessly.

Posted by Kamlesh Tripathi

Author, Poet, & Columnist

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https://kamleshsujata.wordpress.com

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