How big are you? And no, that’s not an innuendo.
Seriously, though, how big are you? What is your significance? Why are you here? What r We have seen two World Wars, we have nuked two entire cities and we are now ready to conquer space.
We keep multiplying and eating up our resources, effectively destroying this planet we call home. We invent new things, we make movies, we love, we hate, we feel, we eat, we drink, among a gazillion other things…which begs the question: WHY?
I mean what is the point? What purpose does any of that serve? While our existence is important to us as a species for obvious reasons, why should it be important to the rest of the universe? Common sense dictates that it is foolish to think about the “grand scheme of things” (if there is such a thing), and thus, the question of our ‘purpose’ inevitably arises, as it should.
In short, why are we here?
Think about it. We are but a tiny speck of dust in this vast and infinite universe full of countless stars, galaxies, nebulas and black holes, small, insignificant and can be wiped out by a single meteor or solar flare. This is, of course, common knowledge, but on a side note, isn’t it amazing that it doesn’t scare us senseless or at the very least make us feel a tad vulnerable?
Imagine you’re in the Sahara Dessert holding a single grain of sand between your fingers. The relative size of that sand grain compared to the entire Sahara Dessert is bigger than that of Earth compared to our universe. THAT is how small we are.
And yet, amazingly, we are ever ready to launch Weapons of Mass Destruction half way across the world just to, essentially, grab some land. Seems kinda pointless, doesn’t it?
Or does it?
Perhaps we do have a bigger role to play. All the acts described above are perhaps part of the human experience, an experience essential to our growth. Maybe we’re meant for bigger and better things? Maybe there is a grand scheme of things after all?
The universe, as vast and mighty as it may be, is not invulnerable and everlasting. The general consensus among scientists today is that one day the universe will fall apart in what is known as a Big Crunch.
As a developing intelligent species, maybe we’re meant to save it? Is it so arrogant to imagine ourselves as the saviors of the universe?
Perhaps…but then isn’t that what makes us human? |
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