Having a purpose in life is very important. The synonym of purpose is objective, intension, goal etc. A purpose or intension helps the mankind to stay focused on the things that matter most to him, the person, his family, friends etc. A purpose boosts spirit of living, it makes life interesting. It helps prioritize life; it helps to walk away from certain people or situations that do not add any value in other words are useless. A purpose in life helps us stay focused, it gives us the extra drive to move ahead in life. And, living purposefully is correlated to living longer. It keeps humans psychically healthy; it enables them to get healthy again even if they are seriously ill.
Viktor Emil Frankl was an Austrian psychiatrist who founded logotherapy approach. Logotherapy is a therapeutic approach that helps people find personal meaning in life. It is a form of psychotherapy that focuses on the future and on our ability to tolerate hardship and adversities suffering to achieve a purpose. Humans are unique; they have ability to think, learn, communicate and control their environment. This makes humanity genuinely different from all other living beings.
Viktor Frankl survived the horrific and adverse Nazi concentration camps in the 1940s. He witnessed many people dying in the camp who could not withstand the atrocities; he himself experienced lot of torture and he withstood the torture for four years. Frankl survived the experience of the concentration camp because of his strong desire to complete a manuscript he had been working on named ‘The Doctor and the Soul’.
After being released from the camps, Victor Frankl developed a theory in which he stated that individuals can endure hardships when they have a purpose in life. He developed theory of “logotherapy” which is a therapeutic approach that helps people find personal meaning in life. It is a form of psychotherapy that is focused on the future and on our ability to bear hardship for a search for purpose. Logotherapy describes a search for life’s meaning which is the central human motivational force. An example that is often given to explain the basic tenets of logotherapy is the story of Frankl meeting with an elderly general practitioner who was struggling to overcome depression after the loss of his wife. Logotherapy is almost same as cognitive behavioral therapy.
Vinayak Damodar Savarkar was jailed in cellular Jail at Andaman in which he was subjected to horrifying torture and inhumane treatment that tested the very limits of his conviction. He was eventually sentenced to double life imprisonment to be served at the infamous Kaala Pani prison, christened one of the darkest chapters in Savarkar’s life. He was, reportedly, restrained in chains, whipped, and resigned to six months of solitary confinement. Unlike numerous political prisoners who were driven to insanity or committed suicide, Savarkar showed remarkable resilience for his life’s mission freeing India from Britishers aa a Hindu nation.
I wish to give another example of a renowned music composer Ravindra Jain. He was born visually impaired, but started singing at a young age and his passion for music led him to Indian music industry and in the decade of 1970s, he went on to become the most notable music director. He was so much dedicated to music that during one of the recording sessions his father passed away. But he didn’t leave the studio until the recording was completely finalized. He once told a journalist “Music is everything for me. It is the very way of life for me” music was the purpose of his life.
Many people pick themselves up after severe illness, after losing a very dear person, after losing money, after being cheated – in short after a blow of fate that has knocked them down. But they recover and go on with life because of a purpose. Instead of always looking back on what they have suffered, they live primarily in the present, which they shape as best they can according to a value driven vision of the future. In this way they liberate themselves from the unhealthy smog of their trauma.
Nelson Mandela spent 27 years of his life behind bars on Robben Island, a notoriously cruel jail. He was confined to a small cell without a bed or plumbing and was forced to do hard labour in a quarry. He survived the horrific experience for his life’s mission – the apartheid for fostering racial defrayal.
Psychologists and doctors have pointed out since last many decades that meaningful goals foster a sense of purpose in people who withstand adversities. The purpose fosters better physical and mental health. Many believe that God choses some individual for some special purposes but that may be the truth.
Logotherapy is set on the premise of facing adversity which is a great teacher. It comes as a chance to gain valuable insights. We truly learn from our mistakes and wrong judgements. adversity plays in shaping our character, resilience and endurance. During adverse time one develops a deeper understanding about himself and how the world works.
