|
You ask a very profound question, Rui. It is a basic question on which whole ECONOMIC and SPIRITUAL/PHILOSOPHICAL systems are based on and are fought over.
MOST of religion is based on the idea of TRANSENDENCE...of living for something other than yourself. This may arise from a HIGHER REALITY that is greater than the individual OR (as some might argue) the greater SELFISHNESS of the group over the individual. There's still a debate among scientists whether such a thing as REAL altruism (altruism for organisms that don't have your genes or even belong to the same species as you) exists...
Regardless, when we die, I can guarantee 99% that we will be evaluated and REMEMBERED by the larger society (outside our group of friends and family) not so much for what we did for ourselves but but for what we did for others.
One thing is clearer though.... in terms of economics, living for one's self yields greater and better results than living for others. Just compare CAPITALISM with COMMUNISM and you'll get my drift.
|