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Hi Puddy,

Well, if we are going to throw all our eggs in the basket that there is something more to life than the billion to one possibility ( the chance that Richard Dawkins points to in his book that a tide pool containing amino acids combined with lightning and created the first DNA or RNA molecule) that all is completely meaningless, how many additional purposes to life should one expect there to be?

As MyCoolFitz points out, the Bhudda was pointing out the problem of thinking there was more than one reason for life. Jesus was pointing out the same problem. Since the stoics were teaching something quite similar in Jesus's day, (i.e. "let go and let God") Jesus probably got his awakening from them IMO, and spent the rest of his life trying to get the truth of it across to others.

Bill W. certainly saw the same truth. He filled the Twelve and Twelve with it. His teachings begin with the BigBook®: "The point is that we are willing to grow along spiritual lines." That, Puddy, is the single purpose for which all life is created if in fact it is created.

In the Twelve and Twelve, step 10, third page, Bill has the audacity to write: "It is a spiritual axiom that every time we are disturbed, no matter what the cause, there is something wrong with us." What is it that's wrong? We are selfish and self-centered. We have big egos and therefore have a great deal of ego-neediness. We spend most of our time trying to get our ego-needs filled and protecting our egos from other people's assaults upon it at all costs. This is animal. It is, as the first sentence in step 5 (12&12) states, "natural." And that same sentence also points to the only possible purpose of life. The wise and truthful teachings of daily living reduce the size of all egos. The only question is, am I willing to internalize my daily bread of humbling truths, or will I fight their internalization right to the point of needing to use mental anguish pain killers to manage the pain of that fighting?

With the reduction in size of the ego, the truth of humility takes its place. Slowly, an increment of experience at a time, the wisdom of humility replaces the ignorance of egoism. Read the 2nd paragraph of step 7 and see for yourself what the term, "growing along spiritual lines" meant to Bill W. See how he could state that, "we will lose interest in selfish things and gain interest in our fellows. Self seeking will slip away."

Today, there's a fellow making himself a multi-millionaire pointing out that the one purpose in living doesn't change, and hopefully, his books will make it possible for those outside 12 step programs to not need to go down wrong roads to the point where they are finally willing to go to any lengths to get off them in order to become willing to grow along spiritual lines. His name is Eckhart Tolle and his book that I read was, "A New Earth." I didn't learn anything new, but would recommend the book to anyone sick and tired of being sick and tired that can't put a finger on why they feel that way. He has his own vocabulary of "spiritual words" but his base is the same. Spiritual Growth is all about getting rid of the ego.

As that growth materializes, the love available to the universe grows. Who needs for there to be any more purpose to life than that? Love and Blessings - one of