Rabbi Dumb Get's Intellectual

[Comfortably Dumb]

I just got finished reading The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy about a month ago. It was certainly an excellent book. The author, Douglas Adams, always seems to raise a few questions about God, God's existence and just existence in general in all of his literature.

Anyways, there was this one segment in the book that I found interesting. It features two mice who happen to be scientests. These mice build a supercomputer in order to find out the answer to life, the universe and everything. When they finish building the computer, they ask it this question. The computer tells them to give it seven and a half million years.

So came the day where the computer was to answer the queston of life, the universe and everything. Everyone is standing around waiting to find out. The descendants of the mice that built the supercomputer ask it the question. The computer responds with an answer of, "Forty-two." Pretty much everyone are shocked and outraged. But then the computer concludes with an interesting point. How do you want an answer if you don't know the question?

Do any of us know the question?

I mean, we keep asking ourselves these questions about our own existences, "Why am I here? What is my purpose in life? What is the meaning of life?"

But when you think about it, after millions of years of man asking that question, does it finally seem like we're asking the wrong question?

[WhoAmI]

i like the intellectual rabbi dumb...

[lost33]

i also prefer the intellectual rabbi dumb

[PrUnE]

its not a dumb question, the question is asking god or something why are we here its not a bad question its just one that cannot be answered by any living thing/machine.
I've said all that is needed to be said.

[Dontknow]

CD, you bring up something quite interesting. I however, do not think we are asking the wrong question, but perhaps we do not need to be asking at all. why is there a need to ask besides for interest? I mean i always ask, what am i doing here, why am i necesary? but im never going to know the answer, so why keep asking? maybe we should stop asking and just live life. its kinda like that what if thing, what if i do this and then this happens? what if, what if, what if? well what if we just lived life with out asking what if? and lived this life to the fullest? i think we should all give it a try... i hear its nice

[ElectricMayhem]

Yeah, HG2G is awesome. CD, did you read all 5 (6 if you count "Zaphod Beeblebrox Plays It Safe") or just the first? Anyway...

It certainly is a good question, what is the question? But I think the problem is the other way around. In other words, you're saying maybe we're asking the wrong question, but I think we already have the only question we need and we're looking for something that doesn't exist. What is an Ultimate Question supposed to be? In later books, Adams implies that the Question is "What do you get when you multiply 7 by 6?" by saying that a distorted version of the question is the same thing with (I believe) 8 and 7. The point is, there is no Ultimate Question, at least as far as it concerns us. What do we care about anything that doesn't touch our lives? Philosophers have tried to understand what God is, the reasons why things happen, the ideas of objects vs. their attributes, and other useless puzzles; all that emerges from these studies are frustration, while nothing of practical value comes out of it - we never really get any closer to the answer. The same applies here: why bother, when we can never find the question and it won't change a thing? All that matters to me is that I can touch lives and make a difference in the world; whether I am asking the wrong question will not help or hinder me in my search for meaning in life.

[Comfortably Dumb]

its not a dumb question, the question is asking god or something why are we here its not a bad question its just one that cannot be answered by any living thing/machine.
I've said all that is needed to be said.

How are you so sure that somewhere, anywhere in this world that there is no person, machine or possibly even some sort of sign that could tell us?

CD, you bring up something quite interesting. I however, do not think we are asking the wrong question, but perhaps we do not need to be asking at all. why is there a need to ask besides for interest? I mean i always ask, what am i doing here, why am i necesary? but im never going to know the answer, so why keep asking? maybe we should stop asking and just live life. its kinda like that what if thing, what if i do this and then this happens? what if, what if, what if? well what if we just lived life with out asking what if? and lived this life to the fullest? i think we should all give it a try... i hear its nice

I respect your opinion fully, but I am a person of curiousity. To me, something like this is amusing. I enjoy thinking about the idea. However, I don't plan on racking my brains out, looking through books about it. It's just a question that I wonder about often.

Yeah, HG2G is awesome. CD, did you read all 5 (6 if you count "Zaphod Beeblebrox Plays It Safe") or just the first? Anyway...

I'm currently in the middle of The Restaurant At The End of the Universe.

It certainly is a good question, what is the question? But I think the problem is the other way around. In other words, you're saying maybe we're asking the wrong question, but I think we already have the only question we need and we're looking for something that doesn't exist. What is an Ultimate Question supposed to be? In later books, Adams implies that the Question is "What do you get when you multiply 7 by 6?" by saying that a distorted version of the question is the same thing with (I believe) 8 and 7. The point is, there is no Ultimate Question, at least as far as it concerns us. What do we care about anything that doesn't touch our lives? Philosophers have tried to understand what God is, the reasons why things happen, the ideas of objects vs. their attributes, and other useless puzzles; all that emerges from these studies are frustration, while nothing of practical value comes out of it - we never really get any closer to the answer. The same applies here: why bother, when we can never find the question and it won't change a thing? All that matters to me is that I can touch lives and make a difference in the world; whether I am asking the wrong question will not help or hinder me in my search for meaning in life.

You make very good points, but as I said before, I just think about it often.

I believe that there has to be an Ultimate Question to the Ultimate Answer. There has to be some meaning. Something. I'd rather think that I have it than don't have anything at all. It would be nice if I had a reason why I wake up every morning and do the daily grind.

Maybe I'm just foolish, mad, crazy, etc.

[PrUnE]

Then there would be no point to the question. If you understand what I'm saying.

[Comfortably Dumb]

Then there would be no point to the question. If you understand what I'm saying.
Elaborate, please. My pea brain doesn't understand much these days.

[ElectricMayhem]

You make very good points, but as I said before, I just think about it often.

I believe that there has to be an Ultimate Question to the Ultimate Answer. There has to be some meaning. Something. I'd rather think that I have it than don't have anything at all. It would be nice if I had a reason why I wake up every morning and do the daily grind.
If you're searching for "a reason why I wake up every morning and do the daily grind" then aren't you effectively asking what the purpose is in existing - in other words, "Why am I here?" Wait, doesn't that sound familiar?

I'm sorry if I'm sounding a little condescending, so just realize that I'm not; you clearly are trying to say something else, or else you just contradicted your original post. So would it be possible to explain a little better what you're trying to say?

[Comfortably Dumb]

Errrr...

Well, it looks like I have blindly contradicted myself.

I'm going to stick to asking different questions.