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No matter how many times I read Man’s Search For Meaning By Viktor Frankl, my eyes can’t stop welling up. It is his memoir where he describes his life as a victim of the Holocaust. He ultimately survives it and goes onto develop the concept called Logotherapy – that life can have meaning even in the most extreme circumstances of pain and anguish.

Books like these make me wonder what the causes of human suffering must be.

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No matter where we are in life, how much we’ve achieved, and how successful we’re in the eyes of others, we all seem to carry a pit in our stomach. Something of our existential angst, where we can’t seem to grapple the reason for our existence.

We crave recognition, but fear rejection and disrespect. We become anxious of our children’s future. We are worried about their possible pain or potential heartbreak in the future. That’s the delusion of possession that we’re suffering with. And, seeing others in distress causes us suffering, especially when we become acutely aware of their terrible circumstances.

We hold onto grudges for way too long, and allow that burden of grief of an extended reaction time to crush us. We fear the inevitable, death, and cling to the impermanent, our fragile life. We forget that this moment is all we have. We mostly seem to suffer in anticipation of suffering.

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But, there’s a simple antidote to all this self-inflicted human suffering. Craft a life of service for yourself. Give more than you receive in all circumstances, be it, materially or spiritually or emotionally. Because, there’s much more to life than brooding about all the ways others didn’t meet our expectations or how other wronged us. With your wealth, intelligence, words and actions, benefit others with compassionate service. Give unconditionally and see your suffering dissipate.

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“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” ~ Winston Churchill

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The Big Head Sculpture

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