Struggling with Nihilism

MrMagtow · 2019-01-09T05:42:08+00:00

Welcome to the human condition.
Everything you feel has been felt before, and some very articulate people have not only written those thoughts and feelings down, but have gone beyond and asked some very difficult questions, and explored their possibilities.
I have a friend who suffered from insomnia for many years. He has read Aristotle, Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, and many hundreds of books on history, technology, psychology. He still deals with feelings of inadequacy and of not being able to "make his mark". His issue is worrying about the end of the road, and not the journey itself.
The road is long, and today's reality is not tomorrow's reality.

Mgtaoteching · 2019-01-09T06:13:47+00:00

In my opinion, the purpose of life is to be alive. This is a wonderful and strange opportunity to be this weird, conscious, thing that came out of the universe to experience itself. This is my only counterpoint to nihilism, because nihilism is an exhausting and miserable way to live.

I encourage you to sit down and meditate more with these thoughts and see where they go. Don’t judge them. Don’t grasp them. Just watch them pass by like a cloud. Where do clouds go? They just cloud around. As humans, we human around. We have these marvelous abilities that we forget and take for granted every day, unless we remind ourselves of this miracle we experience each moment.

Do what you like. I think that is critical if you are in a nihilistic rut. Find joy in yourself. Feel gratitude for being able to see and contemplate mountains and forests. Ride a motorcycle and feel the adrenaline. Read a book in solitude, only to learn that loneliness is an illusion.

You are your best teacher. The answers you seek do not appear anywhere outside of you. Be mindful, and sit quietly.

deathtocontrollers · 2019-01-09T05:32:11+00:00

If there is nothing enjoyable in this world for you, then there is no point to existing on this Earth. That's the truth. One that will trigger all those religious people who see life as an amazing gift. If there are still things you can enjoy, then stick around.

Im_Talking · 2019-01-09T05:52:56+00:00

Why is not sharing life with another person meaningless? I run an asperger's support group with about 60 members and get tremendous satisfaction. After my mother died, my father taught English to recent migrants, absolutely loved it, and had 3 of the girls speak at his later funeral. Nothing to do at all with a woman.

harmonic_blast · 2019-01-09T06:19:11+00:00

A few minutes ago I asked myself if life without joy is worth living.

I decided it was as long as you have peace.

As soon as it's mostly suffering then it's time to hop off this ride.

hill1205 · 2019-01-09T06:56:03+00:00

You can try self authoring. It’s designed to help you work out your emotional baggage. Focus on your strengths and work on your weaknesses and works to help you find a fulfilling and meaningful life.

It probably can’t hurt anyway. You sound like a searcher. I’m a searcher, too.

Nano_altacc · 2019-01-09T07:30:59+00:00

Brother, I used to think that I needed a woman too, maybe I'm still attached to the idea but I'm slowly changing it. What made me stronger was actually my will for vengeance. I realized I had drawn all my strength and determination from women in the past and it led me to me almost ending my life. Now I use my own vengeance that comes from within me to keep pushing onwards, after all, what does a man who's lost it all have to fear or worry? I'm not saying it will work for you or that it is the healthiest option, but this is what worked for me. Find something that comes from you and you alone and you'll find your way

soothslayer2k · 2019-01-09T07:13:09+00:00

Meaningful or Meaningless life. Take your pick. https://youtu.be/wLvd_ZbX1w0

[deleted] · 2019-01-09T08:51:04+00:00

If you don't mind my asking, how do you feel physically? Do you feel like shit? Headaches? Fatigue? I struggle with nihilism myself. I honestly believe that my nihilistic thoughts are an accurate reflection of reality, but how I feel physically can change how I feel about those thoughts. I believe life is inherently meaningless, and when I smoke and drink and eat like shit and don't take care of myself, that meaninglessness is depressing. But when I'm sober and well fed and lifting that meaninglessness is a blank canvas to paint my own values on. Focus on the basics: Maslow's hierarchy of needs (google it). Take of of what your body needs and your mind will be free to adapt to the situation, no matter how bleak. That's what has kept a gun out my mouth so far.

FlourishedCass · 2019-01-09T12:16:06+00:00

Try to be present in the moment and you'll be able to find out what your 'default' state of being is.

Things like nihilism, stress, anger, dread are all way less potent when you're actually present in THIS moment. Don't spend your life living in the past/future. Live it as it is now, because now is the only tangible bit of reality you have - everything else is either a memory or an imagination.

Do you ever see Nihilistic dogs, polar bears, or fish? No. They can only be present in the moment because they don't have the same consciousness we do. Fish don't give a fuck if they're popular, if they're the strongest, if they get laid, if they're old, if their pond doesn't matter to the world. They simply live.

You're going to die. It can't be stopped. Your parents will die. Your friends will die. Your kids(if you have them) will die. Your exes will die. Your pets, your mentors, your favourite celebrities, your colleagues. They will all die. 153,425 people die every day. This, you cannot control. So focus on what you can control.

You can control your reaction to this inevitability. You will either spend your life living in the moment, doing things you like, and making meaning out of something meaningless, enjoy your time whilst you have it and die happy. Or you can spend all your life worrying about how it all means nothing, how no one will remember you existed by 2219, whether you 'matter' or not. But you'll still die either way. The only difference is that you will have lived a worse life if you choose the latter.

Be whole on your own. You don't need someone else to complete you. If you did, you would have been born with a conjoined twin. You don't need a 'mission'. If you did you'd have been born with one. You don't need a job. You don't need bills, or a TV. All of these things are optional. You came into this world with everything you need, and once you realize that, you'll see that you have more choice than you thought.

Try out some mindfulness for a few minutes. It may be able to explain what I mean better than words.

Look around you and observe what you see without thinking or passing judgement. Feel yourself breathe deeply and listen to your breath. Make note of all the sounds around you. Feel your fingers and your toes, and your legs. Feel your full body working. Your heart beats without thinking. Your lungs breath without thinking. Stop everything else for a minute and feel inside yourself. Being, not doing - that's your natural state. Anything else you feel outside of this moment is just extra shit you're putting on yourself by spending too much time in the past/future.

Sorry if this didn't make sense. I'm not super great at explaining things like this, but I hope you understand what I mean. I was at your point a while ago, and I also used to suffer with depression and nihilism. I think of death often, and it still unsettles me sometimes, but I get myself back in the moment and forget about it. r/Stoicism r/Meditation may be helpful for you to take a look at. If you like videos, I'd also recommend taking a look at some of Leo from Actualized.org's videos on youtube. He has some good stuff on these types of topics.

ILoveJuices · 2019-01-09T11:47:35+00:00

You can console yourself through the understanding that all suffering is caused by craving and aversion. The wisdom of experience can guide you. The 8 fold path awaits.

www.dhamma.org

ABrokenBeing · 2019-01-09T12:42:40+00:00

Look up existentialist and existentialism.

Found out it was a philosophy I subscribe to and was a cause of nihilism for a while.

Decided to start living authentically (work in progress) and now have much more balanced mindset.

PlantsAreAliveToo · 2019-01-09T13:56:14+00:00

Is there a point to even being here?

Not by default. This is actually better than the alternative. Now you can choose what you want this point to be. You can choose your own end. You can go your own way. Do want to have fun? Go for it. Do you want to end world hunger? Sure. Make it your life's goal and work towards it. There is literally nothing holding you back to choose whatever you want. This is actually liberating if you think about it.

young_MGTOW23 · 2019-01-09T14:33:01+00:00

I just try to have the best time here while I'm here.

MrMannheim · 2019-01-09T06:47:17+00:00

I find it a liberating thought; if nothing matters and life has no meaning, then do whatever the fuck you want (legally). Fuck other people's opinions, their opinions don't matter. I live my life how I want because nothing else matters to me.

ikhwan_arif · 2019-01-09T07:37:50+00:00

Maybe this will help

huMAN There is no re-experience

christophertracy92 · 2019-01-09T08:50:13+00:00

If you are struggling with Nihilism, you should read Fyodor Dostoevsky. Brothers Karamazov, Crime and Punishment, Demons etc. His novels are brilliant works of art that are made just to counter nihilistic thoughts.

In any case, just cause you might not be able to share your life experiences with one person doesn't mean neither that your life experiences don't matter in the first place nor that you can't share parts of them with different persons.

If you have to share them exclusively with one person, in order for them to matter then you are not heading the right direction.

Life is all about being alone and going through challenges and difficulties.
If our life was without suffering it would be flat and we would cause chaos ourselves in order to give it meaning.

You need to learn to be self sufficient and you need to find happiness within the peaks and valleys of life.

NordHamsteri · 2019-01-09T09:17:10+00:00

You could try finding some community that you like upkeeping. I had wakeboarding community but it can be anything like arts, hobbies...

Varsel · 2019-01-09T10:47:26+00:00

https://www.abebooks.com/9780835603034/Art-Listening-Liberate-Undreamed-of-Potential-0835603032/plp

https://www.focusing.org/gendlin/docs/gol_2234.html

https://www.amazon.com/Centering-Guide-Growth-Sanders-Laurie/dp/0892810505

Shady9211 · 2019-01-09T20:46:43+00:00

Nihilism is not just a worldview. It is your reaction to a certain worldview. So if you say nothing really matters why do anything? That is nihilistic. If you say 'nothing really matters so I can do anything' That is freedom!

This world is your sandbox, do whatever you want! You don't need to do anything if you don't want to. No one can force you to do anything and no one cares if you do anything or not.

Your life is worth exactly what you think it's worth. Nothing more, nothing less

CaritosVeritatos · 2019-01-10T00:39:06+00:00

Here's a start:

https://youtu.be/fp0tIhW1YyY

Title	Struggling with Nihilism
Author	OP720
Upvotes	40
Comments	29
Date	January 9, 2019 5:24 AM UTC (7 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/MGTOW
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/MGTOW/comments/ae3n4a/struggling_with_nihilism/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/MGTOW/struggling-with-nihilism.427936 https://theredarchive.com/post/427936

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