Reflections on the World

                The Vast Cosmos · Life Sings · Existence Plays · Creation and Annihilation
                Dream · Reality · Destiny
                O wheel of fate, whither dost thou turn?
                The meaning of the universe? The meaning of life? The meaning of existence?
                *Author's Note: I have no religious beliefs. The following is just a casual piece.

    Perhaps there was never any meaning at all.
    Perhaps the entire universe is but a firework display[1] .
    The essence of time is change. Imagine, if every particle in the universe ceased to move, frozen completely still. Would time still exist? The answer is self-evident.
    A great being waves a hand, and creation unfolds. The universe is but Brahma's dream. Should that dream end, all possibility would vanish——no change, no motion. Time itself would halt, and the world collapse.
    In the beginning of creation, there was no distinction between illusion and reality. Energy and matter transformed into one another; all things were possible. Something from nothing, iron trees in bloom. This was the great Era of Genesis.
    In this universe, countless civilizations rise and fall. The most glorious past is but a fleeting cloud before the eyes. No matter the legends, no matter how splendid the material and spiritual treasures, none can endure forever. Across the long eons, even black holes evaporate into nothingness, leaving behind only a chaotic particle soup.
    Youth is the finest cosmetic, yet it cannot last. How we long for a world as beautiful and simple as a fairy tale! No matter how far we wander in this mortal realm, we still yearn for those things most pure, most simple, and most beautiful.Yet reality often defies our wishes.
    It is like life itself. Everyone has known the fervor of youth, the bloom of their prime, yet no one can preserve it forever. We forever praise youth——but why does heaven grant us this dreamlike splendor, only to let time steal it away? Across the ages, how many have mourned the passing of youth? We might resent the heavens: if all must be lost in the end, why let us experience such beautiful years at all? Why must everyone endure such loss? What is the meaning of life?
    The most fundamental need of life is to survive. Life is a burning flame, its essential nature is restlessness. It is the stirring in the mother's womb, the stirring of spring desire, the verdant green of summer, the golden harvest of autumn, and the quiet reserve of winter. The seven emotions and six desires[2] drive mortals to reach outward. We cannot remain idle. This is the very nature of life's impulse.
    But combustion requires oxygen and fuel. In the process of development, life constantly demands more resources. This necessity compels life to run ever forward, to expand ever outward.
    Life is a caged bird that cannot be contained, forever seeking to break through. And one day, when we gaze back upon our homeland, will tears of homesickness fall?
    If a Creator fashioned life, then He kindled a flame. Life, possessing its own conscious will, thinks and gazes up at the starry sky. Truly it is said: I kindled the fire, yet I cannot control it.
    If there really is a creator, it creates the most fundamental “thing”[3] and then lets go, allowing it to develop freely. The creator is also like an observer. It silently watches it all, every detail of the cosmos laid bare before its eye. For it, a thousand years pass in a single glance; the universe is a book it can flip through at will, alighting on any page it chooses.
    In the annals of cosmic history, we are just a fleeting bloom, a firework destined to fade...
    However, we should also recognize: fireworks are born to burn. We light them up precisely to enjoy the fleeting beauty of their blooming. The universe thus becomes colorful.
    We need not grieve for loss, for it is the law of the universe.

                Having been brilliant and dazzling,
                Ultimately, one cannot escape the judgment of time.
                Having possessed and enjoyed the limelight,
                Yet everything eventually turns to smoke.
                We are all just passers-by in this world,
                Leaving behind a trail of footprints,
                Deep or shallow.
                O traveler in time and space,
                Are you tired?
                In the endless cycle of reincarnation,
                Have you realized anything?
                If you have lived,
                That is the meaning.
                Enjoy the process,
                Regardless of the outcome.
                The canvas of life,
                Has no fixed answer.


[1] Let's compress billions of years of space and time into a single day. Take stars as an example. We would see that within an extremely short period of time, a light spot would rapidly brighten and then fade away, just like festival fireworks.
[2] One theory is that, in traditional Chinese thought, the "seven emotions" refer to the innate feelings of joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hatred, and desire. The "six desires" refer to the cravings arising from the six sensory faculties: sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, and mind.
[3]As I understand it, in the Chinese Daoist view, the Dao is eternal, ever-revolving, and ceaselessly generative. It is a primordial source, a maternal matrix, and that which utterly defies naming. Yet it is precisely this elusive, intangible mystery that gives birth to everything — all while knowing nothing of the creative process itself.