外刊精读 | 如何寻找生命的目的？

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泛读原文（盲听1遍，泛读1遍，对照文本听1遍）

When it comes to first impressions, we all want to make a good one. And that’s why we tend to focus on our best traits and qualities. However, we often fall into the trap of thinking that everything about us needs to be perfect. But that’s just unrealistic. We all have imperfections. It’s part of being human. And while it’s easy to believe that our ‘supposed flaws and imperfections’ make us less attractive, here are some that can actually make us seem more appealing to others:

Your purpose is the reason you are here on Earth. It’s the thing that you were built for. So it’s an incredibly important thing to figure out because it’s the thing that guides you. Without a purpose, you’re lost. You have no North Star. Your life will feel meaningless. And so today, I’m going to talk about how to discover your purpose according to the philosophy of Carl Jung.

While writing what is now widely considered his central work, “The Red Book”, Jung discovered the purpose of his own life. But he didn’t just discover the purpose of his own life. He also discovered where purpose comes from for all of us. And based on my understanding of “The Red Book”, Jung says that your purpose is found in performing voluntary self-sacrifice. What would you willingly sacrifice yourself for? This means that your purpose isn’t found in money, cars, clothes, status, or any other self-serving pleasure, but rather, your purpose is found in the thing that you would willingly suffer for. Your purpose lies in serving something that you deem as greater and more valuable than your own existence.

But what if you can’t find anything greater or more valuable than your own existence? Then you will experience life as meaningless and empty. A modern proverb states that life only promises us two things: death and taxes. And what does that mean? It means that life demands a sacrifice from us all. Death and taxes are both a form of self-sacrifice. All life is born to be sacrificed in some way. We’re not getting out of this thing called life without sacrificing ourselves in some way. Even the food that we eat is, in some way, sacrificed for our own continued existence. And so if you have nothing greater than yourself to sacrifice your time and energy for, you end up investing all your life force into yourself. But since you eventually have to be sacrificed, all the energy that you invest in yourself essentially just goes to waste. And so if all your energy is just going to be wasted, that makes your life meaningless.

Without a North Star or purpose outside of yourself, your life just becomes empty and meaningless suffering. But if you find something worth sacrificing yourself for, worth serving and dedicating your life to, then your suffering becomes meaningful, and when your suffering becomes meaningful, in some way, as both Friedrich Nietzsche and Viktor Frankl have noted, it ceases to be suffering.

And you know this idea is true when you see it. If you see someone willing to sacrifice themselves for something greater than themselves, you tend to think that that person found their purpose. When Socrates was imprisoned by his people, he had a chance to run and escape. But he willingly sacrificed himself for the principles of truth, justice, and honor. By sacrificing his own life, he believed that he was doing what was necessary to serve his city: Athens. Jesus willingly sacrificed himself for the good of humanity. And Cato, who, in some ways, can be thought of as the Roman Socrates, sacrificed his life as a final resistance against Caesar’s rule because he refused to serve under someone he viewed as a tyrant. He sacrificed himself for the principles of liberty and freedom.

And regardless of what you think of these three names, there’s one thing you can’t deny: these men all had a purpose. They were on a mission. And the reason you know that is because they all found something more important than themselves that they thought it was worth sacrificing their own lives for.

But we don’t need to go to big historic examples to find people who found something worth sacrificing themselves for. This happens every day. There are mothers who sacrifice themselves for their children, missionaries for their church, cops for justice, activists for equality, and soldiers for freedom. Every day, people find something worth sacrificing themselves for, and by doing so, they discover their own purpose.

So, what does it look like to implement Carl Jung’s wisdom of voluntary self-sacrifice into our own lives?

We can take it day by day and dedicate ourselves to the service of others in a way we would be willing to do. We can serve others in a way that we would want to serve them, in a way that we would be happy to wake up each day and do. We can create something that we would be willing to completely sacrifice ourselves for because eventually we will be forced to. That is what life demands of us all.

But if you don’t discover your purpose, your life becomes a forced sacrifice, and a forced sacrifice is felt as tyrannical and oppressive. You’ll start to experience life as a great evil. But if you discover your purpose, your life becomes a voluntary sacrifice. And a voluntary sacrifice, such as that of a mother for her child, is felt as incredibly meaningful. And so if you discover your purpose, you will experience life as incredibly meaningful and good.

So we come back to the original question: What would you willingly sacrifice yourself for? That’s where your purpose lies.

精读原文

When it comes to first impressions, we all want to make a good one. And that’s why we tend to focus on our best traits and qualities. However, we often fall into the trap of thinking that everything about us needs to be perfect. But that’s just unrealistic. We all have imperfections. It’s part of being human. And while it’s easy to believe that our ‘supposed flaws and imperfections’ make us less attractive, here are some that can actually make us seem more appealing to others:

单词

1. Purpose (目标): The reason or aim for which something is done or created.
Example sentence: The purpose of this project is to improve efficiency in the workplace. (这个项目的目标是提高工作效率。)

2. Philosophy (哲学): The study of fundamental questions about existence, knowledge, values, reason, and more.
Example sentence: He studied philosophy in college and became fascinated by the ideas of ancient philosophers. (他在大学里学习哲学，并对古代哲学家的思想产生了浓厚的兴趣。)

3. Voluntary (自愿的): Done, given, or acting of one's own free will.
Example sentence: The students participated in the volunteer program voluntarily, without any external pressure. (学生们自愿参加了志愿者计划，没有任何外部压力。)

4. Self-sacrifice (自我牺牲): The act of sacrificing oneself or one's own interests for the benefit or well-being of others.
Example sentence: The firefighters showed incredible self-sacrifice by risking their lives to save people from the burning building. (消防队员们表现出了令人难以置信的自我牺牲精神，冒着生命危险营救被困在大火中的人们。)

5. Meaningless (毫无意义的): Lacking meaning or significance.
Example sentence: After losing his job, he felt like his life had become meaningless. (失去工作后，他觉得自己的生活变得毫无意义。)

6. Existence (存在): The fact or state of being or living.
Example sentence: The philosopher pondered the meaning of human existence and the purpose of life. (哲学家思考人类存在的意义和生命的目的。)

7. North Star (北极星): The bright star that is close to the North Pole and appears to remain stationary in the sky.
Example sentence: Sailors used to navigate by the North Star, which helped them determine their direction at sea. (水手们过去靠北极星导航，它帮助他们确定在海上的方向。)

8. Tyrant (暴君): A cruel and oppressive ruler.
Example sentence: The citizens revolted against the tyrant who had been ruling the country with an iron fist. (市民们起义反抗那个用铁腕统治国家的暴君。)

9. Liberty (自由): The state of being free from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority.
Example sentence: The protesters demanded freedom and liberty for all citizens. (抗议者要求所有公民享有自由。)

10. Mission (使命): A specific task or goal that someone is sent or assigned to do.
Example sentence: The team's mission was to deliver aid to the earthquake-stricken region. (团队的使命是向受地震重创地区提供援助。)

句子解析：
1. And a voluntary sacrifice, such as that of a mother for her child, is felt as incredibly meaningful.
而自愿的牺牲，比如母亲为孩子做出的牺牲，被感受为极其有意义的。

- 主句主语：a voluntary sacrifice（一个自愿的牺牲）
- 主句谓语：is felt（被感受为）
- 主句表语：meaningful（有意义的）
- 主句定语从句主语：such as that of a mother for her child（比如母亲为孩子做出的牺牲）

这个长句的主句是"is felt as incredibly meaningful"（被感受为极其有意义的），其中主句主语"a voluntary sacrifice"（一个自愿的牺牲）作为主句的主语，表达了一个被感受为有意义的情况。主句的表语为"meaningful"（有意义的）。主句中有一个定语从句"such as that of a mother for her child"（比如母亲为孩子做出的牺牲），修饰主句的主语"a voluntary sacrifice"（一个自愿的牺牲），说明了自愿的牺牲的具体情境。

多项选择阅读理解题目：
1. According to the philosophy of Carl Jung, where is one's purpose found?
A. Money and status
B. Voluntary self-sacrifice
C. Pleasure and personal interests
D. Material possessions and success
2. What does the author suggest happens when one can't find anything greater or more valuable than oneself to sacrifice for?
A. Life becomes empty and meaningless.
B. One becomes a tyrant and oppressor.
C. Life becomes filled with suffering.
D. One's life is forced to be sacrificed.
3. Who are some examples of individuals who found something worth sacrificing themselves for?
A. Philosophers and scientists
B. Artists and musicians
C. Historical figures and everyday people
D. Politicians and business leaders滑动查看答案

答案

BAC

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