Frankl’s philosophical sayings about the meaning of life

1. The final freedom of human beings is the freedom to choose attitudes under given circumstances. The environment may not be changed, we can only change our attitude. ----"The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

2. Our greatest freedom is the freedom to choose our attitude. ----"The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

3. Man is a responsible species, and he must realize his potential meaning of life. I say this because I hope to emphasize that the true meaning of life must be found in the world, not in people or in the inner spirit, because it is not a closed system. Likewise, we cannot find the true goal of human existence in the so-called "self-realization"; because human existence is essentially self-transcendence rather than self-actualization. In fact, self-realization It cannot be the goal of existence. The reason is very simple, because the more desperately a person pursues it, the less he can get it. How much effort a person puts into realizing the meaning of his life will determine the degree of self-realization he will have. In other words, "self-realization" as a goal can never be achieved. It is only a by-product of "self-transcendence" ---- "The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

4. I want to be bold. To put it bluntly, there is nothing in this world that can help people survive in the worst situations, unless the human body recognizes that its life has a meaning. any'. " ---- "The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

5. This kind of naive questioning is caused by viewing life as achieving a certain goal by actively creating something of value. We have long understood that the meaning of life covers more than this, it includes survival and death, dying and pain ---- "The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

6. Once a person suddenly relieves his mental pressure. , mental health will also face a test.

In this psychological stage, people with a more primitive nature will inevitably not escape the impact of the brutal atrocities in the camp. Once they are released, they think they can do whatever they want. Use freedom ruthlessly. In their eyes, only one thing has changed: they have become the oppressors instead of the oppressed. They are now the instigators of power and injustice. The humiliated drowned dog. ----"The Search for the Meaning of Life"

7. One day, when every released prisoner looks back on his experiences in the concentration camp, he will no longer understand how he endured it. When the day of release finally came, everything seemed like a dream to him, and one day, all the experience of the concentration camp would look like nothing more than a nightmare.

The most important experience for those who return to their hometown is the wonderful feeling they have after going through all the vicissitudes of life: From now on, there is nothing to fear except God - "The Pursuit of Life." "Meaning"

8. The meaning of life is not given, but proposed. ----"The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

9. The meaning of life depends on people. It varies from day to day, even from time to time. Therefore, we do not ask what the general meaning of life is, but what the specific meaning of life is at a certain moment of a person's existence. We answer this in general terms. The question is just like when we ask a master chess player: "Master, please tell me how to make the best move in the world?" There is no such thing as the best move, or even a good move. It depends on a special situation in the game and the personality type of the opponent. The same is true for human existence. One cannot find the abstract meaning of life. Everyone has his own special calling or mission. The mission needs to be realized concretely. His life cannot be repeated or replaced, so each person is unique and only he has a special opportunity to fulfill his unique gifted mission.

----"The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

10. The meaning of life is different for everyone, every day, and every moment, so what is important is not the universality of the meaning of life, but the universality of the meaning of life. The special meaning of life for each person at a given moment... You should not ask about the meaning of life in the abstract. Everyone has their own unique mission. This mission cannot be replaced by others, and your life cannot be repeated. ----"The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

11. "The Meaning of the Past" Those who allow themselves to fall because they cannot see any future goals often fall into memories of the past. As I have already mentioned, there is a tendency to recall the past in a different way that makes the present, with all its horrors, less real. But there is a danger in the avoidance of reality. It makes it easy to overlook opportunities that could make life in the concentration camp positive, and such opportunities did exist. ----"The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

12. What we really need is to fundamentally reform our attitude towards life. It is up to us to educate ourselves—and to teach those on the verge of despair—to recognize a fact. What really matters is not what we expect from life, but what life expects from us. We should not continue to ask about the meaning of life, but should recognize that we are accepting the questioning of life all the time. Faced with this questioning, we cannot answer with words and meditation, but with correct actions and deeds. In the end, we will eventually discover that the ultimate meaning of life lies in exploring the correct answers to life's questions and completing the mission that life continues to assign to everyone. ----"The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

13. The parties involved will inevitably ignore the opportunities that do exist in reality and can be used. Treating the current "provisional existence" as an illusory and unreal existence-this attitude itself is an important reason why the captives lose their vitality. Once a person has this attitude, everything becomes meaningless in his eyes. He forgets that difficult external circumstances often give people an opportunity to transcend themselves and grow spiritually. He did not regard the plight of the concentration camp as a touchstone to test his inner strength. He did not value his own life, but despised it as an insignificant thing. He would rather close his eyelids and dwell on the past. Such people will naturally feel that life is meaningless. ----"The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

14. Conflicting intentions can also be used in cases of sleep disorders. Concern about insomnia leads to an excessive focus on falling asleep, which in turn prevents the patient from doing so. To overcome this particular concern, I usually advise patients not to try to fall asleep but to do the opposite, which is to stay awake for as long as possible. In other words, the excessive focus on falling asleep, arising from the anticipatory anxiety of not being able to do so, must be replaced by the ambivalent intention not to fall asleep, and falling asleep is quickly realized, I want to be awake all night! ----"The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

15. If a person can accept his fate and all the pain attached to it, and shoulder his own cross, even in the worst environment, he can There are still ample opportunities to deepen the meaning of his life and preserve its perseverance, dignity and selfless qualities. Otherwise, in the cruel struggle to protect himself, he is likely to forget his human dignity and become no different from an animal; the dangerous situation provides him with the opportunity to gain spiritual value; this opportunity can be grasped by him, or he can Give up, but his choice can determine whether he is worthy or not worthy of the pain he has suffered. ----"The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"

16. Man is "capable" of retaining his spiritual freedom and mental independence, even if his body and mind are under such terrifying pressure. "Everything a person possesses can be taken away, but the last freedom of human nature - the freedom to choose an attitude and a way of life in any situation - cannot be taken away." ----"The Pursuit of the Meaning of Life"