Why are we here? And what shall we do about it while we are?

Comedy writer John Lloyd said that there are only two questions worth asking in his TED talk titled "inventories the invisible":

Why are we here? And what shall we do about it while we are?

To help answering these two questions, he quoted two philosophers. One is Ludwig Wittgenstein, who said: “I don't know why we are here, but I'm pretty sure that it is not in order to enjoy ourselves.” Another one is W. H. Auden, who said: “We are all here on earth to help others; what on earth the others are here for I don't know.”

It was a funny 10 minutes talk. However, the two questions are very serious. We tend to ask ourselves all the time. My own take on these two questions is that we should not ask the first question at all.

If you have a strong will to live and are having a good time here on earth, why should you bother asking “why are you here”? For example, if you go to a party and are enjoying yourself, would you be asking “Why am I here”? By asking “why am I here” might get you kicked out of the party. It is a question which gets asked when we are depressed.

If you do not ask yourself the first question, then the answer to the 2nd question shall come quite easily. I shall have a good time for as long as possible. Or in other words, I shall have a happy and pleasurable life for as long as possible.

There are many interpretations regarding what is a happy and pleasurable life. I find mine so close to Epicurus, it makes me wonder whether I had read Epicurus in Chinese translation when I was a teen and forgot about it. He counseled his disciples to live a quiet, secretive life apart from society, avoiding responsibilities in public life or social life. This avoids the pain of ambition and fear caused by others. The highest good in Epicureanism is ataraxia, a tranquility derived by the absence of agitation. And the highest positive pleasure is a society of good friends.

This is the simple life I prefer.