Purpose of Life - by Carlo Filice (Paperback)

About the Book

Suppose that this world is not an accident, but an expression of a divine super-mind. This book boldly contends that divine motives are guided by values that exist objectively, defending a cosmic vision that has been prominent in the Indian subcontinent for thousands of years.

Book Synopsis

Suppose that this world is not an accident, but an expression of a divine super-mind. What might motivate a divine super-mind to express itself? This book boldly contends that divine motives are guided by values that exist objectively. We exist to realize and enhance such values. This text defends a cosmic vision that has been prominent in the Indian subcontinent for thousands of years-a vision often embraced within the New Age movement. However, its defense here is strictly philosophical. Filice argues that even as characters in an imaginative divine game we still carry independent value, that a world governed by such values should be a fair world, and that earthly moral goals cannot be our only ambition. The Purpose of Life maintains that any divine being(s) involved must be in perpetual process, that humans must not be the only embodied subjects that matter, and that each of us is destined to live many lives. Easy-to-read, the book's 73 mini-chapters are specifically tailored to fit the stop-and-go rhythm of daily life.

Review Quotes

"Carlo Filice's The Purpose of Life is an intriguing book for anyone who feels the pull of philosophy as the search for wisdom, and it would be a terrific book to use near the end of an introductory course in philosophy or even in a culminating experience for undergraduate majors. . . .[A] rich resource for teaching, as well as for personal reflection. . . .[The Purpose of Life is] exciting and very useful in drawing out the critical capacities and the imaginations of students." --APA Newsletter on Teaching Philosophy

"Filice's sweeping saga begins by assuming that the world bears inherent meaning and then works backwards to see what could make that possible. His approach is brilliant and innovative. Anyone interested in the topic of the meaning of life has strong reason to pay great attention to this account. . . . Believers in inherent cosmic meaning will relish the author's bold vision. Filice shoots the arrow of his longing heavenward and readers reap the rewards." --Raymond Angelo Belliotti, distinguished teaching professor of philosophy, SUNY Fredonia, author of What is the Meaning of Human Life? and Happine

About the Author

Carlo Filice is professor of philosophy at SUNY Geneseo. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois, Champaign. His areas of expertise include philosophy of religion, ethics, and comparative religious ideas.