This statement once made by the German philosopher Martin Heidegger about the human condition was one of the few concepts I was able to take away from his writings since not much else he wrote I was able to get exited about to the extent that I could either relate to it or inspire me to continue to study him in more detail.
Heidegger said this in the context of his concept of “Being”, as in “Being in the world” which he named “Dasein”, a term that refers to the unique way humans are the world, when they are able to confront their existence with questions about mortality, meaning, destiny and the like. This as opposed to merely just being in the world as one of many different species”.
When it comes to raising various questions concerning the meaning of life, its origin, purpose etc. traditionally it has been the purvey of organized religions to provided all the answers. But we have since grown up and learned to think for ourselves such that we are no longer able to accept the fabricated fables of their imaginary metaphysics.
And while we have been clever enough to see ourselves as a product of of a lengthy evolutionary process, as much as this tells us about how we came about as a unique humanoid species: this does not tell us anything as to the “why”, as in “why are we here?”. So when it comes to being able to account for our presence here on earth beyond being merely another creature on it we are definitely left wanting.
Science cannot give us the answers either: as renowned physicist and Nobel Laureate Steven Weinberg stated in his 1977 book “The First Three Minutes: A Modern View of the Origin of the Universe” The more the universe seems comprehensible, the more it also seems pointless. … “.
Just because you can explain how something seemingly very complex is put together does not give you the “why” for compiling and launching a particular process in the first place. What is required is a sense of intent or purpose to be able to connect the dots and complete the picture.
The conclusion has to be that we do not appear to have the intellectual acumen that can take us from the questions we have about our place in the world to an intelligible framework of facts and explanations that would give us a sense of purpose within the context of a destiny able to inspire and motivate us. Right now we absolutely do not grasp the reason for our being here, at this time, on this planet, in this universe: we likely require a significant upgrade in the grey matter department to get a sense of what is being played out here and what our role in this cosmic venture ought to be.
And so we can’t get there: we are too early for being able to accept our role in the world because we cannot see beyond the event horizon of our current perception as being just one more species among many and grasp what lies waiting for us at the centre of all that is the world as we find ourselves immersed in it.
If this means anything at all – and that is the point I am trying to make here – it is likely that evolution clearly isn’t done with us yet – and that , in all likelihood , we will be superseded by a superior version of ourselves and that is able to put itself as an integral entity into the picture of a meaningful “being in the world”, in harmony with the interests of this magnificent cosmic venture we refer to as “the World”.
And let’s be honest: based on our collective actions to date we clearly aren’t the species to safeguard the future of this magnificent creation called Earth. Just look at our current destructive efforts which – to date -have resulted in making this planet less habitable for many forms of life: human induced pollution is poisoning the atmosphere (carbon emissions), the oceans (garbage) and the landmass (pesticides).
In addition, the often careless ways in which we go about about our business on this earth can be absolutely devastating for our fellow creatures. To give just one tragic example: the North Atlantic right whales should live well past 100 years, but threats to the endangered species – including entanglements in lobster and crab fishing gear, and strikes by commercial vessels – have cut their lifespan to a fraction of that and now they’re dying around 20. Their troubles already compounded by the historic whale hunt, their population has been left with almost no older whales — and little inherited wisdom for the younger generation, such as how to navigate the ocean to find food as the climate changes.
Beyond that – and if we excel at anything – we are experts in killing each other en masse with our clever weapons of mass-destruction specifically designed for that purpose. As a consequence, ALL forms of life on this earth are under duress and less likely to prosper, if not driven into extinction, and all this the result of a species ruled by mindless ambition and greed as opposed to a thoughtful mindset guided by empathy and compassion based on the understanding that we are all in this together.
But this magnificent planet – which I believe is a living, conscious organism – will defend itself and evolve the next iteration of our species hopefully in time to save itself and the millions of creatures and other forms of life that are being nurtured by it.
“We are the product of 4.5 billion years of fortuitous, slow, biological evolution. There is no reason to think that the evolutionary process has stopped. Man is a transitional animal. He is not the climax of creation. (Carl Sagan – The Cosmic Connection)”