[OrangeBlaze]

I was once in a similar situation: I felt full but empty at the same time. I was very content with my life but I knew something was missing and I had no idea what it was. Some people have suggested to spend time ‘giving back’. But why? There is no real objective reason to be altruistic. It seemed to me that it was all meaningless. The very foundations of morals and ethics became weak. I hated this perspective and tried to inject some pseudo logical reason to give me purpose in my empty life. Like yourself, I concluded that I simply can’t carry on living like this.

What took me out of this loop was a stronger belief in God. I acknowledged that I was lost, submitted myself, and simply asked for guidance. This required a level of self-honestly and introspection. Incrementally, my life became filled with meaning as I began to understand Allah. Everything that I do, I do it in worship of Allah. I live and love in His light and life has never ever been better. My love and trust in Allah has given me a sense of purpose that is unparalleled. My relationships have improved tremendously and I am no longer subject to intense emotions of anxiety and existential dread. In turn, my productive output has improved as well as my mental clarity.(all by the grace of Allah)

I understand a lot of people may not believe in God. I implore you to throw your ego away and truly seek your wellbeing.

hug

Note: Allah literally translates to “The God” as Islam is strictly monotheistic.

[bad_good_guy]

Is submitting yourself to the concept of a god not the opposite of introspection? You are forgoing the need to find meaning in yourself and the world around you and instead choosing to believe a pre-made 'answer' to those questions.

To me this is like choosing to throw yourself into a relationship only because you find that you struggle with being single. Using an easier, readily-available external source of comfort found in being part of a 'collective' rather than the more difficult path of becoming comfortable with yourself as an individual.

[OrangeBlaze]

I believe you misunderstood the concept of submission. In life, worship is inevitable. For instance, people could worship material gains or the longing for the acceptance of society. Whether you like it or not, you will worship something(or multiple things) in your existence. In the act of submission, you conclude that there is nothing worthy of worship but Allah, the creator and sovereign of all worlds.

Part of this conclusion involves introspection. I believe there is a false dilemma in your approach where you imply that you can either find meaning in yourself or follow a 'pre-made answer'. These are not mutually inclusive. In fact, in numerous verses in Quran(the word of Allah), you will find that Allah strongly encourages the reader to sincerely reflect and find truth in him/herself and the world. Allah has given us the gift of reasoning and introspection and we can use that to reach the ultimate peace in submission to Allah.

Islam, being very strictly monotheistic, promotes that true comfort and solace is provided solely by Allah(in submission), not in being part of a 'collective'.

I hope that was insightful. :D

Disclaimer: Don't take my word, or anyone's word regarding Islam, for granted. I strongly recommend reading the Quran with an open mind and open heart.

[yters]

Yet there is a lot that seems not so great about religion and very human in the evil done in its name. I find it hard to devote myself to a 'god' if the teachings could well be made up by a person and just be used to control people. How do you make sure you have the truth and not a man made ideology?

[imhoguy]

You can try to worship "god" thru appreciation of surrounding nature, laws of physics, math, life complexity. Just use common sense and your own moral barometer.

[em-bee]

keep searching and investigating independently. don't just follow someone else. evaluate everything that you see on whether it makes sense to you and, to the world. evaluate what the various religious communities are doing, how they put the words into action.

don't stop searching until it all makes sense to you.

[Gollapalli]

Not a Muslim, but I think this is right answer. You were made for something, what is that thing you were made for? What set of tasks? Why live? The answer is really not up to you, but up to God.

[viklove]

> There is no real objective reason to be altruistic.

> stronger belief in God

This is a bit conflicting, no?

[OrangeBlaze]

I meant that without belief in God, there is no real objective rational reason to be altruistic.

[lol636363]

Evolution has built altruistic behavior in many animal species. Just recently I read about some single celled species where in extreme circumstances, a few of cells self-scarfice so that rest can survive.

[paledot]

Thank you for sharing. Your journey also resonates for me as a humanist. The only difference is that my belief lies in other people.