We all grapple with these questions, especially when it comes to something as massive as, well, existence itself. Why are we here? What's the point of it all?
One fascinating approach, championed by the great Kabbalist Baal HaSulam in his "Introduction to the Zohar," is to start with the end.
Think about it. Can you truly understand anything if you jump in midway? Probably not. To really get something, you need to know where it's heading, what it's all about. As Baal HaSulam argues, you can only truly understand something "from its end."
It's like trying to follow a movie plot if you walk into the theater during the climax. You might catch some of the action, but you'll miss the motivations, the backstory, the meaning behind it all.
And, let's be honest, everything has a purpose, right? I mean, unless you’re dealing with, as Baal HaSulam delicately puts it, “an insane person." We assume there's a reason behind every action, every creation. So what's the reason behind this creation – our world, our lives, everything? That's what we're really asking.