Storytime Tapestry Newsletter

The newsletter devoted to spreading love and cultural awareness around the world.

Beyond The Mirror – A Bill Allin Column

April 20, 2007

What Is The Truth? (Part 16)
by Bill Allin

[Caution: What follows may be offensive to some people because it is based on fact, reason and probability, not on an established belief set (religion). If you are offended by anything that does not support your belief set, you should choose to not read this article.]

The Meaning And Purpose of Life

As we near the end of this series, we must address one of the most important questions that humans have ever posed over our long history. Or it may be two questions, depending on how you word them.

What is the meaning of life? What is the purpose of life (why are we here)?

The problem with this is not that the answer doesn’t exist around us. The problem is that it has become obscured by an endless stream of propaganda and dross whose purpose is to distract us from our purpose, usually with the objectives of selling us something or making us commit to something that will benefit someone else more than us and our families.

For example, if you watch television for one hour, your senses will have been assaulted by 15 minutes or more of the most sophisticated propaganda that money can buy. Advertising agencies have sociology specialists whose prime area of expertise is to get a message into your brain and make it stick there.

Religions have such people as well. They’re called charismatic preachers. Though not all of these have evil intent by any means, many are experts at squeezing cash out of everyone in their live or television audience. Some live in big houses, have yachts and private planes while they appeal for money for their ministry, usually to spread their word or for charity purposes where families are separated and children are starving.

In several cases, these charismatic preachers have been charged and convicted of crimes of fraud where they have taken money from people under false pretences. Yet most of them have such loyal followers that they continue to support their preacher even after he has been convicted. That’s effective brainwashing.

Religions have always had cult leaders who operate just outside of the influence of the main organization. Today we have rogue imams of Islam who teach lies about the words of their Prophet, thus turning innocent young men and women into human bombs and snipers. The main organizations are agast at such violations of their core beliefs, but the rogue preachers are more effective with their preaching than the regular imams.

We have people around us every day whose objective is to influence us to do something we don’t need to do, to believe something we don’t need to believe, to be something we don’t need to be. With each convert or sale, they gain greater favour and usually wealth and influence.

Mohammad didn’t teach about war or jihad, except in the event where his people or his religion was about to be exterminated. The Prophet taught peace. The words Islam and Muslim both derive from the Arabic symbols for peace (s,l,m).

Jesus didn’t teach about making his clergy wealthy and powerful. He taught love, humility, helping others.

Jesus and Mohammad weren’t the first to teach these messages. They have been core values of almost every major religion the world has ever had. They have been values of most societies, at least since the passage from tribal days.

The societies and religions don’t necessarily treasure those value and practise them vigourously on a daily basis. In fact, they get lost in most societies and religions because there are so many people who are experts in the principles of sociology and socialization who work to divert their people from those values. Those values don’t make their teachers money.

No matter how religions may differ in their rituals, their manner of dress, their manner of communicating with their deity or their language, they continue to hold these same core values. No matter how many cultures we have with so many different languages and customs, most hold dear those core values.

Ask not what is the meaning of life or why we are here. Ask yourself why you are here. You are the only person over whom you have complete control. You are the only person who is responsible for what you do, what you think, how you treat others.

Two major religious leaders have told us what to do, how to think and how to treat others. Countless social leaders have told us similar messages. They are the messages we need to listen to.

They are the guidelines we need to follow.

We have no need to fuss about the meaning of life in general. We can focus on the meaning of our own lives.

If we do that well, others will see us and want to follow our good role modelling. That will, in turn, have the meaning of life spread around the world as a primary message.

You have the message. Keep it and follow it.

Bill Allin
Turning It Around: Causes and Cures for Today’s Epidemic Social Problems, a book about real and inexpensive solutions to personal and community problems most people think are inevitable evils of modern society. They aren't. We just have to look in the right place.
Learn more at http://billallin.com
Contact author Bill Allin at turningitaround@sympatico.ca