It has been really the pursuit of man through all the ages to identify himself as a “being” in this world. However, there is a still a big “WHY” as to the reason behind our existence in this world. This reason might be far removed from the “HOW” of our existence which is of course fundamentally explained by evolution theories.
We keep identifying ourselves as human beings and annotating our identity in this world as the most intelligent species that ever breathed life on this planet. We love to identify ourselves as a being in this world. We like to think of ourselves as separate entities – each with their own separate and independent functionalities
However, we are not alone in this world. I would hesitate to identify myself, or anyone else for that matter, as an independent entity in this world. The issue here is really what we call symbiosis (co-existence for the layman). Putting it simply, we might seem to be co-existing individuals. On a more cellular level, or even diving down to the atomic level, we are composed of the very atoms that make up other entities in this universe. As such, considering the human being to be a distinct entity would be a gross misappropriation of the reality at hand. The reality is that we are essentially part of a large and in-comprehensible distributed system.
Note: Grossly speaking, a distributed system is a collection of atomic and simple elements that perform complicated tasks through individual contribution and interactions. A classic example in this regard would be any of the animal colonies that we observe everyday. Whether it is a flock of birds performing an intricate pattern in the skies, or a colony of ants marching to and fro from their nests to food sources; distributed systems are commonplace. Each entity is quite simple as far as their individual functions are concerned. However, the interactions result in a more complex behavior that what can ever be expected out of one such solitary entity. The individual entities have little realization about the complexity that the task involves and even little about the nature of the complex phenomenon that they are a part of; thus giving rise to collective intelligence.
What I want to drive home from this allegory is that we are not individual entities in any respect. What we are is part of one large complex and distributed system, which I might refer to as the universe. What lies beyond the universe is also part of the same unified complex system that we are all a part of. However, I would limit my definition of the complex system to be the universe as we know it. As I have already mentioned, an individual entity has little or no idea about the complex system that they are contributing to, it is highly improbable that even with all our knowledge, we would ever be able to grasp the complexities that lie in the system that we all contribute our part to.
As another example, I can safely assume that an individual atom inside our body is, with all probability, not even aware of the fact that it is contributing to all the delicate and coordinating functions that make a living being stay alive. So it becomes increasingly difficult for entities at lower levels to grasp the true complex nature of the more top level functionalities in a distributed system.
We can never justify our existence in this world by simply identifying the elements and their functions that drive our body. For it is essentially an ever-debatable question as to what comprises our body. If we consider that whatever helps us in our life functions, such as the cells in our body as a part of our being, we are missing out on the essence of it all. On a broader perspective, if we consider whatever helps us exist to be a part of us, we must consider everything around us, our society, our environment, and so on, till we finally realize that it is the universe that comprises what we physically are. Logically this comes down to saying that “my existence is the universe”. Now, if our physical existence spans the universe, can our minds be far behind?
What would keep on driving us is therefore the need to explore the universe to keep on learning more about the way it works. That is the way we must tread to uncover the true objective of the universe, which would essentially be the answer to the WHY of our existence.
The why of anything defines purpose – purpose of existence. So, it is imperative that we understand the purpose of our existence and to know why we exist – awareness, consciousness, and whatever else comes along the way!
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