What is the meaning of life? And, if a researcher picked this to
answer this because they have read "The Hitchikers Guide to the
Galaxy," (By Douglas Adams) I am telling you now, I am *NOT* accepting
any answers from
that book, as I have read it too.

Some say that life is an endless circle of joy and pain and joy again.

Some say that meaning is a glittering fish in a murky pond.

I say "Hey nonny nonny, Jenny and Johnny: life is for wanderin',
always ponderin'. Philosophizin' don't stop the sun risin'. When the
cusp is in the House of Pancakes, and Saturn aligns with Ford, then
cometh the whackaloon."

At least, that's what I say on Saturday. Tomorrow will cost ya extra. 

Further study:

http://www.answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=325417
http://www.answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=139239
http://www.answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=95936
http://www.answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=269968
http://www.answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=99493
http://www.answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=75873
http://www.answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=13017

None.

Hurts a bit at first (well a lot actually), but embracing the concept
is liberating if you get beyond suicidal notions. It is considered by
some to be the path to genuine spirituality and compassion for ones
fellows and care for the planet.

Google Humanists if you want info to expand this perspective.

Best

"I doubt whether a doctor can answer this question ("What is the
meaning of my life?") in general terms. For the meaning of life
differs from man to man, from day to day and from hour to hour. What
matters, therefore, is not the meaning of life in general but rather
the specific meaning of a person?s life at a given moment. To put the
question in general terms would be comparable to the question posed to
a chess champion: "Tell me, Master, what is the best move in the
world?"
-- VIKTOR FRANKL, 'Man's Search for Meaning' (1985)
http://www.cyc-net.org/quote2/quote-285.html

tutuzdad-ga

Way back in question 13107, Zoran-ga made the statement that God said
" dont research who I am". Why would a loving God not want us to know
Him personally. It is exactly for the reason that He does want us to
know His personality and qualities, that He inspired writers, 40 of
them, to write the Bible we have today. It is the manual on how we
should live and treat other people. Ecclesiastes 12;13.." The
conclusion of the matter, everything having been heard, is, Fear [
obey] the true God, and keep His commandments. FOR THIS IS THE WHOLE
OBLIGATION OF MAN".

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints = Mormon believes God
had an experience like ours long ago, and he handled adversity so well
he became all powerful. Our life on Earth is a step in becoming
Godlike. Most of us are doing poorly, yet the possibility is that we
can become as God is.  All of us had a pre-existance in which we lived
with God and progressed as far toward Godhood as possible without
experiencing mortality, which Mormons call our second estate. All of
us will be resurrected eventually, some to damnation and some to
exhaltation and most of us to one of several in between
states/mansions. There are more details, but Mormon philosophers are
not in agreement.  Neil

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0085959/

For Neil; I thought resurrection was a "bringing back to life". My
Bible says that death is the punishment we receive for sinning, and
that even new born babies are born sinners, having inherited sin from
Adam. If, and I use this word with care, God is a loving, caring God,
who does everything for us, because He needs nothing himself, why
would He resurrect anyone and then punish them again by committing
them to "damnation". My Bible offers all of us a bright better life,
with no strife and with all bad influences removed. I do not think
anyone can better that offer. My prior comments on bible questions
have stated all the pertinent scriptures, which I agree with.
Question?? If we all finish up in heaven, why did God bother to create
angels. And what value does that put on Jesus` sacrifice and
suffering..for us. God could just as well have made and restricted
Himself to angels and cut out the middleman...Us.

It's so simple.  Like the "benzene circle", or "E equals M times
C-squared", or flying, once you know the "secret(s)", "The Meaning Of
Life" is very obvious.

God was alone, and when you are alone, you have no object for your
love.  And if you have no "Object" for your love, it is impossible for
you to express love.
So the "Purpose Of Creation" was fulfilled when God created Adam and
Eve, so that (joy and beauty), (i.e. true love), would exist between
them and God, for eternity, because God would then have an object for
His love.   And that "Object", equal to God, would then be able to
return that love, in a glorious tapestry of give-and-take stretching
into eternity.

So since God is all knowing, all-powerful, and all good, how could
evil come into being?  Well, God had to have an object for His love,
so Adam and Eve had to fulfill their "portion of responsibility", in
order to grow up and be equal to God, as His "Object".  Although God
has the power to change us into obedient robots, that would defeat the
"Purpose Of Creation", since a robot can neither receive nor give
love.
So God could only give that one "Commandment" to Adam and Eve.  God
could not interfere in their fulfilling their "Portion Of
Responsibility", or He would defeat the "Purpose Of Creation".
The Bible says that God grieved so much, at the "Fall Of Man", that He
actually wished that He had not made "Man(kind)".  Do any of us ever
feel that level of God's grief, during a "normal" lifetime on this
Earth?
And once the "Fall Of Man(kind)" had occurred, God could only continue
to attempt to give Mankind the opportunity to fulfill their "Portion
Of Responsibility", to restore what was lost in the "Fall of
Man(kind)".

And that is the world we are born into, which defines the "Meaning Of
Life" much better than Monty Python, although I'm sure that God fully
appreciates Monty Python's "The Meaning Of Life", since I'm sure that
God does have a sense of humor.  :-)

God has had some success, in restoring what was lost.  When Mankind
began to obey the Ten Commandments, the lowest level of Spirit World,
(above Hell), called the "Form Spirit Level", was opened to those who
obeyed, when they passed into Spirit World.  This is the realm where
God is your "Master".

Jesus opened a higher level of Spirit World, (where God is your
Father), called the "Life Spirit Level", where those persons who
believe in and obey Jesus go, when they enter the Spirit World.
Now, the Second Advent has occurred, and He has brought the "Completed
Testament" to Earth, named "Divine Principle".  Those who believe in
and obey Him will enter the highest level of Spirit World, called the
"Divine Spirit Level", when they die and enter the Spirit World.
Divine Principle also explains the "Meaning Of Death", which of course
must be fully explained, by any definition of the "Meaning Of Life". 
There is of course a lot that I cannot explain here, because GA does
not give me the space to put the entire Divine Principle book here.

For the full details of "The Meaning Of Life", the "Original - 1973" Divine 
Principle book text is at:
http://www.unification.net/dp73/

For those who would like to immediately try even a trial "obedience to
the Second Advent", He has asked everyone to please read for one hour
a day from the following materials.  This material is called "Hoon
Dohk Hae" in Korean, which means "Gathering Together For Reading And
Study".  He has stated that those who study from the "Hoon Dohk Hae"
material will definitely receive God's highest blessings into their
lives, in ways that cannot happen in any other way.  At my normal
reading speed of 15 pages per hour, one should complete this material
in about 210 days.
HOON DOHK HAE CONTENTS:

If you wish, you may recite the Family Pledge, as at:
http://www.unification.net/misc/fampledge.html

THEN READ, (PREFERABLY ALOUD), FROM ANY OF THE FOLLOWING PUBLICATIONS, INCLUDING:

the books, (1), (2), and (3):
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
[THIS ONE BOOK IS THE ONLY HDH THAT I HAVE NOT FOUND ON THE INTERNET.]
(1)  {Blessing and the Ideal Family}, by Moon, Sun Myung
"A collection of Rev. Moon's speeches on the blessing and the ideal family",
HSA Publication, New York, 2nd edition 1997, 632 pages, soft cover.
[THIS IS THE ONLY HDH THAT I HAVE NOT FOUND ON THE INTERNET.]
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO

(2)  Way of God's Will:
http://www.unification.org/ucbooks/WofGW/index.html

and the providentially important speeches, (A), (B), (C), and (D): 
(A)  "View of the Principle of the Providential History of Salvation"
http://www.unification.net/1996/960416.html

(B)  "In Search of the Origin of the Universe"
http://www.unification.net/1996/960801.html

(C)  "True Family and True Universe Centering on True Love"
http://www.unification.net/1997/970616.html

Then we must try guide our lives based on these Words. 

True Father 43 days later added the speech:
(D)  "True Family and I"
http://www.unification.net/1995/950625.html

and the book:
(3)  God's Will and the World
http://www.unification.net/gww/

to the selected Hoon Dohk Hae material to read, and declared that a new book: 
{Blessed Family and the Ideal Kingdom} = (1) + (2) + (A) + (B) + (C) + (D)
would be published in the near future which would combine everything except 

the book:
(3)  God's Will and the World
http://www.unification.org/ucbooks/GWW/index.html

You can obtain this Hoon Dohk Hae material in printed form, by contacting:
books@hsanahq.org
or:       
magnus@hsanahq.org

I hope this helps. :-)
God Bless, ITN,
trueparent-GA

That appears to be Sun Myung Moon's explanation, correct?

Hi, sam123boo-ga, and tutuzdad-ga,
Concerning your comment/question, tutuzdad-ga, I guess the most
accurate answer I could give you is "Yes and No".

All sorts of non-Christians, (and even Atheists), have found profound
full truth in the "Divine Principle", and have joined the Unification
Movement since 1954.     However, this "Divine Principle" that The
Most Rev. Sun Myung Moon has "discovered", lived and revealed for us
is most powerful in its connection to and fulfillment of the Bible,
and is not just generated by one man's "explanation", as one might
think at first glance.

By that, I mean that the convincing, awesome power of "Divine
Principle" is that it explains clearly and succinctly, what is literal
and what is symbolic, (and what the symbolic statements mean), in the
Bible.  So Christians, (especially those well acquainted with
Scripture), are especially well prepared to "receive" the "Divine
Principle".  So, we are confronted with the reality, that the "pieces
of the puzzle" in the Bible can only "fit together" ONE WAY, not two
or more ways.  Since I read somewhere on the Internet recently that
there are currently over 30,000 DIFFERENT CHRISTIAN DENOMINATIONS, we
must therefore assume that at least 29,999 of them are at least
partially "incorrect" in their "interpretations" of the true,
complete, "integrated" meaning of the Bible.   More importantly, all
these Christians, if they maintain an open, rational mind, will indeed
be "forced" to accept the authority of the "Divine Principle", as the
only "teaching" that explains and successfully integrates all the
parts of the Bible, many of which APPEAR to be contradictory.  Thomas
Paine, in his "The Age Of Reason" covered some of these APPARENT
contradictions very well.  But all these Biblical "loose ends" are
completely "integrated" by "Divine Principle", which is no small feat,
(to say the least).

If "Divine Principle" were just one man's "explanation", out of many
possible alternatives, it would be far less convincing, and far less
powerful.  But the truth is, that a "full read/study" of the "Divine
Principle" leaves one with only two possible choices.
(1)  One must either reject the Bible, (as God's revealed "Word" to Mankind), or 
(2)  one must accept the premise that The Most Rev. Sun Myung Moon is
at the very least "close to God's Will".

Because of the profound way that the "pieces of the Biblical puzzle"
"fit together" in our study of the "Divine Principle", there simply is
no other interpretation of the Bible possible, which would fully,
rationally encompass all of Scripture, and satisfy "modern day
scientific Mankind".

So this is why I would have to answer your query with "Yes and No",
tutuzdad-ga.  Your query simply does not contain the possibility that
ONLY ONE CORRECT "explanation" is possible, of the Bible.  But that is
indeed the case, with "Divine Principle's" relationship to the Bible. 
Just as the New Testament "fulfilled" the Old Testament, without
denying anything in the Old Testament, so "Divine Principle", (i.e.
the "Completed Testament"), "fulfills" the Old Testament and the New
Testament.

So, the above Comment on the "Meaning Of Life" I offered, based on
"Divine Principle", is more of a "discovery" by Rev. Moon, than His
"explanation".  I'm sure you can understand the crucial importance of
this fine line of distinction, because of the realities of this
question, tutuzdad-ga.

It's sort of like my explaining that jumping off a hundred story
building will kill you, with someone asking me, "That appears to be
YOUR explanation, right?".
My answer to that would also have to be, "Yes and No".  In other
words, it's not just AN "explanation"; it's factual beyond any
possible rational alternative "explanation", as is the case with the
"Divine Principle".

Please believe me, that there is not one iota of arrogance in what I'm
claiming to you about "Divine Principle".  It is indeed what it is. 
And I thank God for it.  And I thank The Most Rev. Sun Myung Moon and
His wife, The Most Reverend Hak Jah Han Moon for it.

Another obvious reality of this situation, is that I have only offered
my own "best understanding" of applying "Divine Principle" to the
question, "What is the Meaning Of Life?".
I have the feeling that Rev. Moon would give a more comprehensive
answer than I have.  :-)
Thank you for allowing me to answer your very interesting question. 
I hope this helps.  :-)
God Bless, ITPN,
trueparent-GA

What is LIFE...LIFE is a magazine....What does it costs? $2.00....I
don't have $2.00...Thats LIFE!

"to use your self to affect your self and your environment"

This is probaly more like the purpose of life, but what the heck.
It also leaves the question wide open of "what is self?"...
Am I my spirit (if such a thing exists)
Am I my mind (if this is different from spirit)
Am I my body (what of the parts of my body I don't control, or things
in my body? where exactly does my body end?)
What of my voice? does it stop at what hears it, the air particles
affected, my vocal cords, the part of my brain that controls my vocal
cords?

heck I'm gonna search for that question next.

*sigh* not much on the question of "what is self"

asked the question a few different ways but didn't come up with much.

One fairly good answer was this.

http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=166622

but it doesn't look like the question has been asked much.

My apology for this confusion, but my research in making my above
Comment containing "Hoon Dok Hae" info was incomplete.
Here is a "corrective" addition to my above list of "Hoon Dok Hae",
(HDH), sources, which are very powerful "positive spiritual magnets",
so to speak, if read/studied for one hour a day.
To make a long story short, the following two URLs should be added to
what I've already listed above.
The "original" 15 volume series, actually named "Hoon Dok Hae", is at URL:
http://www.unification.org/ucbooks/HDH/
(About half of these 15 volumes is repeated in the later published
material listed in my above HDH Comment.)

Another book added to HDH is:
{The Completed Testament Age and the Ideal Kingdom}, 
740 pages, ISBN 1-910621-97-7, as at URL:
http://www.tparents.org/Moon-Books/Cta-ik/0-Toc.htm

The only HDH book that I cannot find on the Internet yet, is:
{The Way of Unification in God's Providence}:  
(It's subtitle is "The Theoretical Foundation for the Unification of
East and West and of North and South", 527 pages, ISBN 10892163-06-3)

As before, to order the published Hoon Dok Hae material, contact:
books@hsanahq.org
or:  
magnus@hsanahq.org

Without counting the HDH material that is repeated in the later
published HDH, I have calculated that it takes 270 days, (not 210
days), reading at my normal rate, for one hour each day, to
"completely read" all the HDH material.

But Hoon Dok Hae material is not meant to be read once and
"completed".  From all indications, this "direction from the Second
Advent of Christ" will be permanent, and the HDH material is meant to
be a constant daily source of God's guidance, even after we've read it
"a million times".

In fact, it has been rumored that at some point in the future, a
specific part of HDH material might be "suggested" daily, worldwide,
so that everyone would be reading the same HDH material on any given
day.  If that were done, it would certainly seem to present intriguing
possibilities, concerning the amplification of both "physical" and
"spiritual" forces working more powerfully to restore the Kingdom of
Heaven on Earth, (i.e. return to the Garden of Eden).
I hope this helps.  :-)
God Bless, ITPN,
trueparent-GA