This is a question that many people have asked over the years. I do not wish to recieve humorous answers to this, because, the things I will say is serious. Why do we exist? What is our purpose of life? Why were we put on Earth?

I believe that the purpose of life is to make someone happy. Being popular, being smart, being rich, having a giant mansion, and things of the like are pleasures. Those are extra things that can make someone happy. But, I'm talking about truly making someone happy.

Not by getting them gifts, or bringing them to a concert, or anything. I believe that if you can make someone happy, even if stuck on an island surrounded by snakes and you were going to die in a day, then that is what you were truly meant to do. To be happy because you have made someone else happy...

That is a great feeling. Not even making them happy so they can fall in love with you, not so you can get rewards, or anything. Just doing it to cheer them up, or just to see them smile. It can be a great feeling knowing that you can make them smile without making a funny face, telling a funny joke, doing a funny gesture, or anything.

Just to make them smile when they see you. I believe that is quite possibly one of the reasons we may have been placed on this planet we like to call Earth.

I ask for your input, to tell me what you believe we are here for.

A cliché question with a cliché answer:

There is no all-encompassing purpose to life in general, much less us. The purpose of our existence is whatever each of us defines it to be.

A more fitting question would be - "What is your purpose?"

I believe everything was created by God(and if you don't, that's totaly cool and I respect you for it). I don't think God put us here just for his entertainment. We are clearly here for a reason and purpose.

Mabe someone is here to cure AIDS? Maybe even all forms of cancer? I belive that we were all meant for great things, but for some people it didn't go as planned(such as killing, drugs, and other bad choices).

Maybe we were here for survival of the fittest(not intended to be funny)? Is it possible that only the smartest, fittest, and prettiest survive in society?

And finally, maybe we are just meant to ejoy life itself. Look around you: There may be pollution, war, corruption, and more, but through this thick smoke screens of evil, lies a beautiful planet with vast gloriousness, breath taking senery, wildlife, and so much more.

In the end, the point of existence will always be unclear. Which leads to my final idea:

Maybe the point of life, is to decide what your view on it is? What you think about life affects just about everything, and makes up who you are. Through this, we find uniqueness and more, and most importantly, existence.

My personal purpose is exactly as I posted above. Just as I said, being popular and all that stuff in that list, that's pleasure.

I personally felt great about myself when the most important person in my life laughed recently, because it felt so good.

I was happy that I made her smile. I wasn't happy that I was funny, or that I she was my friend. I was happy to see her smile, and I smiled too. Not laughing at my own joke, or anything.

I was just happy to know that I made her happy. I believe that is something worth mentioning.

However, I am very far from fufilling my purpose in life. Making one person smile and feel safe around me, no matter how important that is, I still feel like I am lacking something vital.

I know I sound selfish saying I want everyone to like me, and have fun by being near me. I have made one person feel that way.

This question is much harder than I thought but I think I am on the road to something...

See, that's is SD66 view on life, and because of it, he's a great guy who everyone likes.

Unlike some scrub who says: "The point of life is to steal and get rich!"(still not meant to be funny)

All lifeforms in general aren't created for a single particular reason. some are designed for particular motor functions such as the birds ability to fly but that's not the same as a purpose. Many scientist belive the purpose of life is to reproduce, and keep life going, I sort of agree with this, but that's not the same as purpose. I believe our purpose is to create our own.

[devil's advocate]

Who's to say life even has a purpose? There's a chance that desiring a purpose is only a construct of the human mind. We all want to think there's a reason for us to exist, but just because we want a purpose, that doesn't mean we have one.

[/devil's advocate]

Indeed Rob I agree with you.

There's no such thing as "Destiny" or "Fate". Simply random occurrences that come together into multiple forms. Things such as coincidences are simply a mental tool of the mind to compare one thing with another giving a sense of flow and unity to the world.

In short: You're useless and you'll never amount to anything. If you're too weak to accept that then it merely proves natural selection works.

I have to agree with Rob and Dragoon on this one.
I'm more a man of science than one of faith.

I'm a man of faith. I have reason to believe in faith. I have a list of probable places in my life I could have died. If I have no purpose then I just keep getting really lucky for some reason. I really do wish to have some kind of purpose, because it's much more fun than believing that, "wow, a coin flip could decide your weak life, couldn't it?"

I also have a question for double-d. How exactly does believing you're alive for something...anything... prove natural selection (which is already scientifically proven with concrete means, not philosophical ones.)

Are you trying to say, "it proves that I am smarter than you because my opinion is more smarter?" or "believing in "fate" or "destiny" or any of that hippie crap makes some humans less viable for sexual reproduction than other human beings."

Ummm... not quite.

What I was referring to was the people who commit suicide for believing that "You have no place in the world". Well guess what? Fate nor destiny is gonna tell you your place in the world. You make it for yourself.

I don't believe in destiny or fate, I believe in the creation of ones own form of existence (or more commonly referred to "life").

Our purpose? Survive and reproduce. Past that it's all self-indulgence.

By "our", of course, I mean humanity in general. Individual humans create and fulfill (or at least try to fulfill) their own purposes. And there's nothing wrong with that.

That's my view on it. *shrug*

I believe a mix of that. I think that you are given a destiny, and you are meant to follow it. I think that many things happen for a reason, and we should just accept that.

However, I also think that if you are aware of this "destiny" that I spoke about, and you know you want to change it, then I think you can. By trying hard enough, you can possibly change your destiny.

I think that for many, they just follow destiny, but there are others. There are people that are determined not to fall at the hands of destiny. Some people try to change their destiny.

Sometimes it's for the better, sometimes for the worse. In almost every case, it is better to think that it changed for the better. Even just thinking that you did something, that can be a step to truly changing your destiny.

That is how I feel, anyway.

Whoa! I totally didn't get that connotation x.x; Sorry about that.

I agree with that-- people who kill themselves over not having a purpose are pretty much destroying any chance of them ever having a fate or purpose. And, yeah, they're basically culling their ideas out of the gene pool.

I am of the ilk that thinks that maybe...maaaaybe some people have some kind of greater thing that the universe has set them out to do. But in a lot of ways I also think that purpose, destiny, and fate are a construct of the human mind. That, in Matt's words, the most basic human purpose is to go fourth and fill the earth, and that in order to justify themselves for their own existance, human beings will create a vivid mythology or divine portent driving their lives.

I guess I could summerize my position very easily; my purpose? Figure out why I'm here.

I believe in fate and destiny to a certain extent. Like, fate/destiny only decides GREAT things in your life, not everything, like what you have for breakfast.

Suicide is the coward's way out of life. Just letting that known(I hope this statement isn't offensive to does who know someone who commited suicide).

I don't think natural selection works with humans. In the wild, natural selction is basically the death of those who are not the fittest. The fittest survive, the weak perish.

Having said this, does it mean that if I pull a gun on someone and kill them I'm better than them? No. They could have been some athletic, pretty, and a smart person, and I'd be... well, me.

I think we all have some inner purpose. I don't believe that thinking their IS a purpose to life is an illusion. Our goals, accomplishments, loves, and everything else is life. We just have to know what our opinion on all of it is.

If your opinion is a good one, then you will have a good life. Just the opposite for other people.