It Is Life That Asks The Questions Of Us, by Viktor Frankl

Viața este cea care pune întrebările
--de Viktor Frankl

==

Întrebarea nu mai poate fi ‘Ce vreau de la viață?’ ci doar ‘Oare ce vrea viața de la mine?’ Ce sarcină sunt chemat să îndeplinesc?

La o analiză mai amănunțită putem acum să înțelegem cum întrebarea despre sensul vieții este pusă greșit, așa cum e pusă de obicei: nouă nu ne este permis să întrebăm despre sensul vieții - ci viața este cea care pune întrebările, la nivel foarte personal...Nouă ni se cere să răspundem la întrebările esențiale ale acestei vieți.
A trăi înseamnă a fi luat la întrebări; existența noastră este răspunsul și responsabilitatea oferite vieții. Având această perspectivă, nimic nu ne mai poate înspăimânta, nici ceea ce ne rezervă viitorul, nici lipsa unui viitor. Asta deoarece prezentul este cel mai important, aici luând mereu naștere noi și noi întrebări din partea vieții.

Întrebarea pe care ne-o pune viața și încercarea de a oferi un răspuns în care să descoperim semnificația momentului prezent, nu doar că se schimbă de la ceas la ceas, ci și de la persoană la persoană: întrebarea este complet diferită în fiecare moment, pentru fiecare persoană.

Așadar putem observa cum întrebarea despre sensul vieții este pusă prea simplist, cu excepția cazului când este adresată foarte specific, în concretețea lui aici și acum. A întreba despre sensul vieții în acest fel ne pare la fel de naiv ca întrebarea unui reporter adresată unui campion mondial la șah: ‘Și acum, Maestre, spuneți-mi, vă rog, care credeți că este cea mai bună mutare?’ Este vreo mișcare anume care ar putea fi bună, poate cea mai bună, în absența unei situații concrete de joc, cu o anume configurație a pieselor?

Doar o singură alegere poate da semnificație vieții, anume momentului prezent - așadar ni se cere să facem o singură alegere când oferim un răspuns întrebării mereu diferite puse de viață. De aici deducem că viața ne oferă mereu posibilitatea de a îi da un sens, așadar această alternativă este mereu disponibilă. Se mai poate spune că viața poate căpăta un sens până la ultima suflare; câtă vreme respirăm, câtă vreme suntem conștienți, fiecare dintre noi este responsabil de a răspunde întrebărilor vieții.

==

Întrebări pentru reflecție: Cum vă raportați la idea că sensul vieții depinde de fiecare om și de fiecare moment? Ați putea împărtăși o experiență despre cum ați devenit conștient de natura fluidă și totuși reală a sensului? Ce vă ajută să oferiți un răspuns legat de semnificația/sensul momentului prezent?

Excerpt from Yes to Life: In Spite of Everything. Viktor Frankl (1905–1997) was a Viennese neurologist and psychiatrist imprisoned in the Auschwitz concentration camp, where he lost his mother, father, and brother. His 1946 memoir Man’s Search for Meaning remains one of the profoundest and most vitalizing books ever written, abounding with wisdom on how to persevere through the darkest times and what it means to live with presence.

Seed Questions for Reflection

How do you relate to the notion that the meaning of life can change both by individual and moment? Can you share a personal story of a time you became aware of the fluid but real nature of meaning? What helps you answer the question of meaning in the present moment?

Moved by this reading? Join a live Awakin Circle to discuss in community.

Join this week

More ways to connect

Join a Metta Circle

Practice loving-kindness meditation together

Explore peer-learning pods

Small groups diving deeper into shared themes

Start your own local circle

One living room, one intention — we'll help

Add Your Reflection

11 Past Reflections

Bette S Tiger

Apr 6, 2025

Traveling in Japan and coming to a most beautiful park and Shrine. The map in front of me had a star and said in English;"Are you here" -I assumed that translation got in the way and yet it made more sense -given that moment of beauty . Given being in my ninth decade I have learned to appreciate this moment -as all I have and now on to the next -as I text!

Colleen Mac Mac Dougall

Mar 14, 2021

Frankl is an elder of wisdom, born out of pain and eternal hope for the human condition. He trusted beyond the moment though I sense he would come back to a core meaning his life held even as his circumstances had no apparent meaning.
A moment: In 2010, standing in front of the crash site marking how fear broughtdown the very mission of hopeHammarskjold was bringing, I remember the questionLife asked me: How will I and my generation respond to the call he began to open?
I return to that question, along with "Who can I be here so others can be and live their dreams?" every time I feel fatigued, alone.
To lve the questions Life asks me takes everything I got - always, a labor of heart, mind, and soul. I cannot not answer in the way I can at any moment ot time.

Sonal Shah

Jul 2, 2020

Being in present moment. Awarenessof mind should be there. Consumption of things matters for our day to day life if possible.

Ambika

Jul 1, 2020

Choices a plenty. Constantly we are bombarded with making choices. Sometimes its difficult, most often it is confusing andrarely easy. Choice between 'this or that'. We are not familiar because we have not been woken up to the truth that it does not have to be between this or that but a third option. Beyond this or that there is 'My Way' as an option. Why not my way? This can remain as a question. The answer lies within the person. The truth is that a question always arises from an answer. No answer, no question. Most often answers appear through the process of Osmosis. We need to allow the question to rest and grow in the warmth of the answer. Then the answer appears when you are ready to receive it. The question disappears. The answer was always within you. At the necessitated time it makes it's appearance.
Life is not a question. life is an answer to it's desire, excitement and need to celebrate the created.
. .

Sandra

Jun 30, 2020

I think the general meaning of life for everyone is to learn to love ourselves, each other, & the world around us to the best of our ability.

Sunil, Bangalore

Jun 30, 2020

Spiritually, in life impermanence is the only permanence. The meaning of
thisfleeting human birth may be found in serving its core purpose of crossing the cycle of 84 to merge self into HIM.
â€‹â€‹â€‹â€‹â€‹While practicing the Surat-Shabd yoga to achieve this you may have a glimpse of such an experience. The intellect and wisdom gained during this process may offer all the answers to move forward meaningfully.

â€‹â€‹

David Doane

Jun 28, 2020

All creation is one whole, one activity, one being that is constantly changing. There may be the appearance of separate and static, but the nature of real being is oneness and fluidity. The meaning of life is to grow individually and collectively, which means to be continuously responsive to constantly changing reality in a way that enhances growth. Awareness of that came to me through discussion, reading, reflection, and living, an awareness that was initially a whisper and has grown and continues to grow in volume, clarity, and depth. As stated earlier, what makes sense to me is that we are here to grow, and my inner voice and my best judgment help me know that.

Jagdish P Dave

Jun 26, 2020

There is an existential approach or standpoint when it comes to asking the question what is the meaning of life. The meaning of life is not static and so is the question. Life is dynamic. Life is changing. How do I relate to this truth of life? By using the past frame of reference or by planning for thee future? My response to life is relating to life as it unfolds. The unfolding life presents specific challenges in the concreteness of here and now. We all are aware of the challenges we are facing at this time. We see the cruel face of mankind, the hurting heart of mankind, the angry outburst of mankind. This is an existential challenge to all of us. How do I relate to this existential challenge? I do not believe in remaining indifferent or quiet. I also do not believe in taking it in piecemeal or in a fragmented way. It is a systemic problem and it needs to be tackled in a systemic way. I am examining myself and becoming aware of my own biases and prejudice. Is my mind static? Am I h... View full comment

rahul

Jun 26, 2020

Not so long ago, I was struggling with a person who lived near me. Her behavior seemed hostile, selfish, destructive, and obstinate all at once. In the face of directly observable facts-- like those that were recorded on video-- she rejected any notion of an agreed upon reality or set of baseline facts. I was simply flummoxed and at the end of my wits to understand how to deal with this person. Then it just so happened that I became aware of her extreme financial vulnerability. The room spun. Suddenly I understood why she couldn't meet me in 'reality'. My view of her transformed from 'destructive and obstinate' to 'scared and desperate'. I could see both of these views, and knew they were both stories -- two among many that existed simultaneously. This multiplicity of views does not mean that all views are equal, but exposes a nearly universal flaw in our thinking where we simultaneously assume there is only one right view (ours) and also identify with and cling to that view as if the core of our being and the meaning of our life depends upon it.

Meaning is a story to respond the question of 'why?'. Why me? Why here? Why now? Why this? At first, we're given the stories of our culture, religion, family, and society to answer those questions. Some of those stories cause us pain or make us uncomfortable, especially if we're not the type to be placated with easy answers. Then a few of us learn the art of spinning our own stories. These stories open a new level of power, as we begin to take agency and responsibility in the face of suffering. From this space of choice and activity, yet a smaller number us still sit uncomfortably with the meaning we ourselves spin. If we're courageous enough, we can sit with what is without seeking or clinging to any meaning. Finally one day we may arrive at something beyond meaning on the other side of all our whys. Before that time, each person sits with a unique river of circumstances, questions, and stories which they navigate on an inevitable journey towards the ocean we must all cross. Hide full comment

Bansi Pandya Jul 1, 2020

Very well said Rahul. The life we see reflects our own unexamined, culture-bound assumptions, and expectations. If we see life as a transparent flow of consciousness and do not resist the flow then the story of a character would not start. Resistance is the character itself centered on conflict, comparison, contradiction, and competition, looking for meaning in its own chaotic story.

Maggie Feb 19, 2021

Hi Rahul, your comment really resonates with me. I am going through something similar with a friend. I was struggling to reconcile two completely different perspectives on a situation, one of which (hers) I believed painted me as a bad person, and mine, in which I believed I had made the best decision under the circumstances. I thought it was an either-or; I didn't knowour perspectives could both exist simultaneously and didn't rule each other out. It took me several months to separate the concept of her response and my self-worth, so I could open myself to listen to her perspective and try to understand while still honoring and validating my own. Leaning into this confidence means opening myself to receive her (negative) response without letting it overwhelm my belief in my own decision. This was a painful learning experience but I believe important. Thank you for your words.