The Purpose of Human Existence: Four Interwoven Dimensions

“Why do humans exist?” This question has haunted philosophy, psychology, and religion for millennia. No single answer can fully capture the complexity of human life. Instead, the purpose of existence unfolds across four interwoven dimensions: biological survival, meaning-making, self-actualization, and transcendence/connection.

Biological Grounding — The Body and Brain as Foundations

Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution framed humans as products of natural selection, primarily oriented toward survival and reproduction. Richard Dawkins, in The Selfish Gene, even described humans as “gene vehicles.”In this view, our body and brain are the precondition of existence. Basic drives—hunger, fear, pleasure—are not trivial but foundational, shaping the very ground on which higher forms of meaning and purpose can emerge.

Meaning-Making — Humans as Storytellers

Philosopher Ernst Cassirer called humans animal symbolicum—“symbol-making animals.” Unlike other species, we live not only in nature but also in the symbolic world of language, myth, and culture.Psychiatrist Viktor Frankl, in Man’s Search for Meaning, argued that the deepest human drive is not pleasure but the will to meaning. Through stories, rituals, and shared narratives, humans construct the answer to “why live?” and continually reinvent their place in the world.

Self-Actualization — Growth and Creativity

Psychologist Abraham Maslow placed self-actualization at the top of his hierarchy of needs. For him, the ultimate aim of human life is to realize one’s potential and to live creatively, ethically, and aesthetically.Carl Rogers deepened this view, describing humans as “organisms tending toward actualization.” For Rogers, authenticity and personal growth are not luxuries but the essence of what it means to exist as a person.In this sense, human purpose is clarified not just by surviving or storytelling but by embodying growth, creativity, and value-driven living.

Transcendence and Connection — Beyond the Self

William James, in The Varieties of Religious Experience, studied moments of self-transcendence—states in which individuals experience unity beyond the ego. He saw these not as illusions but as authentic possibilities of consciousness.Philosopher Martin Buber emphasized that human existence reaches its fullness in the “I–Thou” relationship—when we meet the other (and the Divine) in genuine encounter.Modern neuroscience adds support: studies on meditation and flow states show that the brain’s default mode network (DMN) quiets down, softening the boundaries of the ego and allowing a felt sense of cosmic connection.

The purpose of human existence is not reducible to a single goal. We are:

• Embodied beings grounded in biology,

• Storytelling beings constructing meaning,

• Creative beings striving toward self-actualization,

• Transcendent beings reaching beyond the self.

These four dimensions interweave, forming a living tapestry of meaning that each of us continually weaves in the act of being alive.