Value of Life

Value, in the capitalist sense is a price that is set in a determined monetary unit for a good or product. The product has value because of its consumer demand. The amount of this value depends on several factors. The product must have usefulness and be desired, in other words, there must be a demand for this good. Another value determining factor is the supply of the product. Generally, if supply is low and demand is high, then a high value is placed on the product in question. For example, if winter came and there was a shortage of heating fuel, then the value or price of this material would be quite high. Before refrigeration was invented, ice was a very expensive commodity. Certain people became rich off of the business of selling, trading, and shipping ice for the use of refrigeration. Landowners would often get into the lucrative act of cutting ice blocks out of their ponds during the winter months and selling them to icehouse storage depots in southern areas. It was a highly regulated trade and it was illegal for ‘regular’ people to personally harvest ice from frozen ponds or lakes. Now of course, none of that matters anymore because there is no demand whatsoever for this ‘natural’ ice. In the 15th century, there was such a high demand for spices in Europe that a King’s greatness was measured by their personal spice stores. Wars were fought and blood was spilled due to the high value that was placed on spices.
These days, it seems unimaginable for us to war over something as commonly used as ice or spices, (we can purchase them in the local supermarket). A hundred years from now, people will most likely look back and be shocked at the insanity waged over the fossil fuels that our present day economies seem to worship.
The value that humans place on objects changes every few years or so. Things that we consider to have great worth today are valueless tomorrow. Who knows what material the humans will hold as sacred in the future? However, one value that has not changed over time is the value that we place on life.
What is it that gives life value? What inherent value can we obtain from life or that of ‘living systems’? In the capitalist sense, the answer is not so surprising. Food is given a price tag and human life is quite expendable. Recently, supply of human life has overwhelmed the economic demand, (ex. for laborers in economic production models), and this is what is meant by expendable.
But, what value can we place on, for example, The Great Barrier Reef, or the bacteria that make up 80% of Earth’s biomass. Bacteria are integral for the production of plant food that all animals consume. More interestingly, what is it that gives our own lives value and how can that value be measured?
Most people seem to think that a particular human is more valuable than another due to merit, or the accomplishments of that particular person. For example, if we lived in a small tribe of 20 people, trying to survive, the most valuable person in that tribe might be whoever was best at hunting or fishing. Perhaps the old chief might be most valuable due to his great knowledge and wisdom for the tribe. This idea remains within the social framework today. On a baseball team, for example, perhaps the best home run hitter will collect the most value for the team. Also, undoubtedly, the ability to impart wisdom certainly can raise one’s worth within a social group. This type of value is directly dependent on the society where this sage exists.
In summary, a person can aid in the development of their society either by being a champion power slugger or a great scientist. It depends on the demand of that specific society or what the society actually defines as value.
In terms of our own value, or the way in which we view our individual self-worth within the social context, it is vitally important to ‘feel’ our own self-importance. If we assume that, the purpose of life itself is to create more life, or in other words, to feed the living system in one way or another, then our personal ability to accomplish this is what brings the illusion of self-value. And, even though this illusion is only that, an illusion, there is an incredible amount of value existing in just that. How can we feed and enhance that illusion?
This feeding is done via information output from our mind into the collective. The greater the output of high quality products that we produce during our lives, the greater value or self-worth we feel. This self-worth, whether perceived or real is vital for general mental health as well as personal happiness. This is due to the purpose of life being satisfied.
For someone to feel satisfied during their life, they must fulfill their purpose. This is done by adding value or the illusion of value to their personal life. This can be achieved through the production and presentation of an artifact that the society may find useful. We must evolve the information that is produced by our mind’s eye and then express it in an enhanced variation, outwardly. The key to happiness and satisfaction is the production and expression of quality information into the conscious collect (society).
This quality information product can be in the form of art, music, ideas, technology, science, or philosophy. We must find our individual niche and consume our lives working toward the goal of forming our product(s) for society. This is the only way we may feel satisfied within the social framework in which we exist in.
How can we achieve this? How can we produce the highest quality product from the information that we are immersed in?
To create high quality information for the enhancement our immediate surroundings and to therefore pacify our hearts, we must first learn to see. If we subscribe to the idea that reality is composed of many layers, then it is the opening and steady discovery of the various layers that can open the eye.
Let us define our reality as a composition of layers; the first layer is the layer of the blind, or our inability to fully notice our surroundings. This is unawareness. The second layer is the layer of beauty, here; the eye is opened and we can be enchanted by the fantastic. In this second layer, we are aware. We can truly taste the reality pool of information. A third layer is the layer of the magical; here, in this place we are dazzled, deeply moved, and even at times, a little scared. This is a heightened state of awareness and is the most crucial for our continued development.
To achieve the ability to experience these multi-layers, we must open our eye and expand our awareness. To do this, attention must be given to the intimate details of the reality construct that we are exposed to. The details of nature are of utmost importance to enriching our awareness. The attention to details can be considered as a very important form of meditation.
For example, if we imagine a sunset on our way home from work. In the first layer of the reality framework, we would not even notice this magnificent announcement of colors and beauty. We would be blinded to it. We are thinking of stresses and are not in the moment. We are completely unaware.
In the second layer, we are aware of the amazing scene, we are in breathtaking awe of the dazzling mixtures of colors and we either feel energized or at peace.
In the third layer, we see beyond the sunset’s array of splendor and notice an inaccuracy, or slight glitch. This glitch allows for our own mind’s invention. The depth of our imagination then plays off of this anomaly and can initiate an internal grand display of mystical wonder that can carry us into soaring heights of artistic creativity.
Using the power that can be generated by our own mind, we can create, invent, and enhance our awareness even further. This power can be used to construct greater complexity in the area of artistic schemes, scientific advancement, or social dexterity. All of these machinations or inventions are greatly important for our future craft; enhancing information to satisfy our personal feeling of self-value.
To delve into the second and third layers, detail is the point of focus. For example, if we see a sunset, we cannot just look at it; we must feel entranced by it, connected to it. We must realize that this sunset is a special message directed to us. We must greatly appreciate this. To give appreciation, we need to exercise our minds to truly observe the beauty of this scene. Special exercises, including the counting of colors of a sunset, placing special notice on the shapes, or imagining the entire scene from different perspectives are of use. We can think of these exercises as forms of special transcendental meditation and it is in this way that the necessary method for improving the quality of the information that we absorb can be enhanced. Through these improved means, we can build upon the quality of our output information, or our product.
The creation of this quality product is what fulfills our purpose in life and this fulfillment builds our illusion of self-worth and value. This breeds satisfaction and happiness which can then improve the general scenario to an even more boosted state.
Positivity always breeds more positivity and this can be demonstrated mathematically through exponential growth functions. Likewise, negativity can breed negativity, and this causes exponential decay.
To be in motion is most important. Moving along the line of positive exponential growth is always preferred over decay. In this way, we can leave our footprints and accomplish our individual meaning of life from our purpose of existence.