{"id":3372,"date":"2019-09-20T09:31:03","date_gmt":"2019-09-20T07:31:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/?p=3372"},"modified":"2019-09-20T18:17:05","modified_gmt":"2019-09-20T16:17:05","slug":"meaning-of-life-in-21st-century","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/","title":{"rendered":"Meaning of life in the 21st century"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Meaning
Copyrights by Quintin Gellar for Pexels<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Meaning of life is often searched for today. Why is feeling meaningless a common problem of the 21st<\/sup> century and how to find a meaning of life in this context? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In\nmodern society, the question of what is the meaning of life is often asked. This\nseems a bit ironic when one considers that today people have an incomparable\namount of choices about how they will live compared to previous historical\nperiods. In previous historical periods before the Englightenment, the ways of\nliving were fixed. One had to believe in God, one had to marry and have\nchildren. The guidelines for a good life were pretty clear. In today’s society,\nthis is no longer so. Whether you want to be a believer today, whether you want\nto eat meat or be a vegetarian, whether one wants to be educated or married \u2013\nthe choice is ours. In a sea of limitless possibilities, one needs to find the\none that will work for him or her. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Naturally,\na certain amount of uncertainty came along with this. Which way of life is the\nright one for us? How do we choose? How do we know if we have made the right\nchoice? This kind of reflexive thinking is typical for today\u2019s age, it was not\nusual in previous time periods. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

New guidelines for meaning of life in the 21st century<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The absence of the guidelines is the hallmark of today\u2019s society. This is why so many of us are scared, loss, don\u2019t know with certainty what to do with one\u2019s life. This is why people are longing for some kind of guidelines and why authors such as Jordan Peterson thrive on this sentiment, by detecting it as a pervasive feeling of a contemporary globalized society and empty area on the market where the fixed guidelines can be offered \u2013 the ones that restore our sense of security. Because with the erosion of guidelines, our sense of security was also partly flushed down the toilet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further, among new guidelines, the one which offers an instant recipe for success is also often heard; How many followers do you have on Instagram? How successful are you in terms of assets? While in no way it should be implied that money is irrelevant, or that happiness might lie or not lie in traveling or Instagram followers, the link between them and the meaning of life is the question. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGood\u201d\nmeaning of life<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Existential philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre and Austrian psychiatrist Viktor Frankl both dealt with the meaning of life as the central topic of their work. Both have found that the meaning of life has to have a certain quality \u2013 has to be directed outside of us, towards a certain value or other people, towards enjoyment in something else such as the beauty of art. In any case, towards something other than ourselves. However, we are constantly bombed today by consumeristic guidelines for happiness \u2013 do this, do that, look like this, look like that, to be loved, to be happy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nquestion is if these consumeristic guidelines are indeed in line with\nself-transcendence? Are money or certain looks really a self-transcendent\nvalue? Do they transcend individual existence? Both Frankl and Sartre would be\ninterpreted through zen philosophy in terms of our values\u2019 need to connect us\nto the world, to give us feelings that we are part of that same world. This is\npart of the interconnectedness of zen \u2013 the realization that we as human beings\nare never isolated, though in today\u2019s paradigm of isolated mind it might seem\nso. Yet we live in a world and we are part of it, though we might sometimes\nlose our ability to feel it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And even if this might seem as banal zen quote at first, once it is emotionally really felt it is something entirely different \u2013 it has implications both on a moral and political level. Once a human being is able to feel like part of this world and society, it will feel one\u2019s meaning. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So start looking for your own meaning, which can get you closer\nto this feeling\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Meaning of life is often searched for today. What is the meaning of life in 21st century and how to find it?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[416],"tags":[841,3],"class_list":["post-3372","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-existentialism","tag-meaning-of-life","tag-viktor-frankl"],"yoast_head":"\nMeaning of life in the 21st century - Existentia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What is the meaning of life in the 21st century? Meaning of life is often sought today, so find the answers and reflections.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Meaning of life in the 21st century - Existentia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"What is the meaning of life in the 21st century? Meaning of life is often sought today, so find the answers and reflections.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Existentia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/existentia.com.hr\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-09-20T07:31:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2019-09-20T16:17:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/pexels-photo-313782-920x598.jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/\",\"name\":\"Meaning of life in the 21st century - Existentia\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2019-09-20T07:31:03+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-09-20T16:17:05+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/#\/schema\/person\/7c7a560ce6c84f00035829b53174f27c\"},\"description\":\"What is the meaning of life in the 21st century? Meaning of life is often sought today, so find the answers and reflections.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Meaning of life in the 21st century\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/\",\"name\":\"Existentia\",\"description\":\"Making life meaningful\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/#\/schema\/person\/7c7a560ce6c84f00035829b53174f27c\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/81a4eeca1e411d93fb360ffa0ab7d0d2fc9fd450cf0d4f68aaede2768ed337eb?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/81a4eeca1e411d93fb360ffa0ab7d0d2fc9fd450cf0d4f68aaede2768ed337eb?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/author\/admin\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Meaning of life in the 21st century - Existentia","description":"What is the meaning of life in the 21st century? Meaning of life is often sought today, so find the answers and reflections.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Meaning of life in the 21st century - Existentia","og_description":"What is the meaning of life in the 21st century? Meaning of life is often sought today, so find the answers and reflections.","og_url":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/","og_site_name":"Existentia","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/existentia.com.hr\/","article_published_time":"2019-09-20T07:31:03+00:00","article_modified_time":"2019-09-20T16:17:05+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/pexels-photo-313782-920x598.jpeg"}],"author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/","url":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/","name":"Meaning of life in the 21st century - Existentia","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/#website"},"datePublished":"2019-09-20T07:31:03+00:00","dateModified":"2019-09-20T16:17:05+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/#\/schema\/person\/7c7a560ce6c84f00035829b53174f27c"},"description":"What is the meaning of life in the 21st century? Meaning of life is often sought today, so find the answers and reflections.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/meaning-of-life-in-21st-century\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Meaning of life in the 21st century"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/#website","url":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/","name":"Existentia","description":"Making life meaningful","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/#\/schema\/person\/7c7a560ce6c84f00035829b53174f27c","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/hr\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/81a4eeca1e411d93fb360ffa0ab7d0d2fc9fd450cf0d4f68aaede2768ed337eb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/81a4eeca1e411d93fb360ffa0ab7d0d2fc9fd450cf0d4f68aaede2768ed337eb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"url":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/author\/admin\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3372","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3372"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3372\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3375,"href":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3372\/revisions\/3375"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3372"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3372"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/existentia.com.hr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3372"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}