Does Life Have A Purpose?

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Image of the Week

Questioner:

Why do you maintain that Life has no purpose? If Life has no purpose, the individual life, even in pure being, can have no purpose either; because individual perfection can have a meaning only when there is a purpose in creation.

KRISHNAMURTI:

Life by which I mean, that life which is truth, in which there is no division, in which all things consummate, on which all things depend, in which all things exist that life has no purpose, because it is.

For that which is, there cannot be a purpose, because it is all inclusive. In that exist both time and space, and individual existence; but individual existence, in which totality is not yet realized, has a purpose. That purpose is the realization of this totality.

Individuality is not an end in itself because individuality is imperfection. It is burdened with incompleteness; and so the magnification of that individuality, to however great a degree, will still remain individuality. That which is imperfect cannot by magnification or multiplication be made perfect.

So the true purpose of individual existence is to realize this unity of things, this reality, in which there is no sense of object and subject, “you” and “I”, in which there are no reactions, but only the sense of pure being which is positive, dynamic. (When I use the word “positive”, I do not exclude the negative). This life is in all things in this table, as in the most highly cultured (hu)man.

But the individual in whom there is separation, in whom there is distinction of object and subject, in whom there is division, because of his limitation, his imperfection, must fulfill himself in perfection, in incorruptibility.

Therefore individual existence has a purpose, but life has no purpose.

Seed Questions for Reflection

How do you relate to the directive to fulfill oneself in perfection? Can you share a personal story of a time you felt life in all things? What helps you include the negative in your conception of the positive?

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10 Past Reflections
SH
shashidhar
Jan 8, 2025
So, what is the purpose of life after we realize this unity of things? Sorry to say but what JK says doesn't make. Every existence has its individuality and there has to be a separation. Can you sit in front of a tiger and say we united in some sense so don't eat me. The purpose of human existence who is full of intelligence is to realize his position in this creation analyze and live with sense of gratitude towards nature and time thus elevating oneself to the supreme unlimited realm where there is no anxiety, fear and curiosity.
ED
Ed Aug 19, 2025
That there is no "oneself" to elevate - that such notions of individuality and separation are illusory - is the basis of Buddhism. J. Krishnamurti has been described as 'picking up where the Buddha left off'.
PR
Palash Roy
Jun 24, 2020
J. Krishnamurti reading not for amusement but digging deeper. Here the real meaning individuality and all-inclusiveness
SB
Sylvia Blackwell
Jan 23, 2018

I am the  a proud  89 year African-American family Matriarch,,,,four children, 9 grandchildren, and 6 great-grand children!  My progeny has met  challenges, overcome disappointments and rejoiced with successes.
My being is manifested in their beings --morally, spiritually and physically.

JP
Jaap Puran
Jan 23, 2018

 I absolutely love this. Beautifully expressed.

PR
Jan 22, 2018
 I love the response that JK gave. Life has no purpose. Because it is. It has no beginning and no ending and it including you, me and everything that we love and hate. What it means to me is that when I am full of life, when I am just being in the moment, when I am fully present, there is no purpose, no time or no goal. Only life is present and there is no I or individual consciousness. When I am thinking, planning and mourning, then I have a purpose to make myself whole by doing, feeling and embracing the polarity that I am running away from. Think about it, just like life has no purpose, death has no purpose either. But we try to find meaning and give meaning to death. My father passed away last year. His life is fulfilled and death took him away. By mourning, by being upset that he died only makes me unable to participate in life. I am not engaged with life everytime I live in the memories of my father or when I am upset. When I serve others, when I celebrate other's success a... View full comment
ME
me Jan 26, 2018

 To know, to love and to serve the Lord ... is my top priority while here on earth.  This purpose is life's foundation.   Without God, Jesus and Holy Spirit, (even though one appears to be "living") she/he is already dead.  

DD
Jan 19, 2018

 To fulfill oneself in perfection means to fulfill myself in being all of what I am, being total and whole, being all of me present and manifesting.  I think I never felt life in all things, unless it was somewhere between conception and about age two.  I have come to think that there is life in all things, and that awareness has been enlivening for me and has helped me feel more one with all resulting in increased compassion for and with all.  What helps me include the negative in my conception of the positive is considering and believing that there is no negative and positive in nature, they are only in my perception.  There is one nature/reality that I am part of -- some of it I like and some I don't, some I agree with and some I don't, some of which I embrace and some of which I fear, but I know I and it are really all part of the one.

JW
James Wermuth Jan 23, 2018

 There is no difference between you and I, between the molecule or the rock than I. What pretense for Jiddu Krishnamurti to proclaim what is perfect, what is imperfect; every one of us if part of the timeless course of life. It is our errant perceptions where we, either singularly or in harmony, fail. Nature is imbued with potential to conflict with the flow of life. Whether it be holding onto a memory or a pain to feel more alive, or simple preoccupation, we all have but to release our notions and find the stream of life.

JP
Jan 19, 2018
 Reading J. Krishnamurti's writing makes me think, inquire and reflect. As I am reading this article questions do arise in my mind. Questions such as why individuality does not have a purpose? Can I have individual existence without having separation between my individual existence and another person's individual existence? Can I relate to the other person's individual existence harmoniously while we both respectfully accept our differences? These are not idle philosophical questions. I face them almost everyday. I keep an open mind and really listen to the other person as an individual. My individual existence has a purpose that is to create unity or harmony within my different voices within me and with another individual' existence. It s like being in a concert with different players and instruments creating concord and harmony. Or it is like a rainbow with seven different colors and merging into each other creating unity or oneness. I know from my  own experience tha... View full comment