Existentialism Vs Born with a Purpose

Posted on by Reena Saxena

As I sat on a park bench, the sun filtered through the leaves, casting fractured light onto the cobblestones. A child chased a red balloon while her mother trailed behind, half-smiling, half-lost in thought. I couldn’t help but wonder: are we all like that balloon, drifting aimlessly in the winds of chance? Or is someone, somewhere, holding the string?

Existentialism tells us the string, a metaphor for a predetermined path or higher purpose, is an illusion. There is no preordained path, no higher purpose tethering us to the universe. It’s liberating and terrifying to think that meaning is ours to construct. As Sartre argued, existence precedes essence—we are born, we live, and only then do we decide who we are. The weight of infinite freedom can be both a curse and a gift.

But the counterpoint hums beneath it all. I think of people who seem called to their lives—artists compelled to create, doctors driven to heal, and activists burning with the need to change the world. Indeed, they weren’t born empty vessels. Is it possible that purpose resides in our marrow, like some genetic code waiting to be unlocked by time? This potential for purpose is a beacon of hope in the existential void.

I thought back to the girl with the balloon. She wasn’t concerned with grand questions. She was—running, laughing, holding on. Perhaps that is the answer. Maybe we’re all born with fragments of purpose, seeds waiting to grow in the soil of experience. Or maybe, as the existentialists say, meaning is ours to craft from the chaos. This power to craft our own meaning gives us control over uncertainty.

As the balloon slipped from the girl’s hand and floated skyward, her mother whispered something that made her smile. Perhaps they both found their answer in that small, fleeting moment—unique, unscripted, yet profoundly their own.

Friday Faithfuls

14 thoughts on “Existentialism Vs Born with a Purpose”

  4. Pingback: Existentialism Vs Born with a Purpose – Nonyelu Anyichie -kaleidoscope

  5. I love the idea about the balloon and weather somebody is holding the string or not, so we don’t fly off.  I think existentialism looks at people as if we are a colony of ants, and we all are supposed to do are jobs without complaining about them, and when one ant dies, there will be another ant that takes over. Thanks for joining in with your lovely thoughts.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  6. ‘The weight of infinite freedom can be both a curse and a gift.’ So true, Reena. Beautiful, thought-provoking post, Reena. Searching for the purpose of life is to nurture or satisfy our ego, I wonder.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Leave a comment