The universe is vast, and we are small. If we vanished tomorrow, the universe would go on much as before. If our solar system vanished, or the entire Milky Way galaxy, the result would be the same. Against the backdrop of the universe, our existence seems insignificant to say the least. And if the macrocosmic universe itself is an illusion, is that not final proof of our ultimate insignificance in the great scheme of things?

And yet four centuries after Galileo, we still imagine ourselves at the center of all things. We insist that we have a role to play on even the greatest stage. But do humans really have such a purpose? Are our tiny lives important to the universe? Or is it arrogance alone that makes us think so highly of ourselves?

Are we as insignificant as we seem to be?

In all likelihood we are exactly that insignificant. But before we accept the obvious answer, perhaps we should examine what we know.

First, we are a legitimate part of the universe. We have no reason to assume that we are less legitimate than other elements of this vast all. If our part of the universe is insignificant, we likely must conclude that other parts of the universe are just as insignificant. We might have to ask whether the universe itself has any discernible significance.

Alternatively, if we assume that all elements of the universe have some significance—for no other reason than each element plays a role in the functioning of the whole—then we must conclude that our existence also has at least that much significance. We play some role. We are not accidental to the mechanism of the universe, but rather part of the functioning of that mechanism. Even the illusion of self may have some minor part to play in the illusion that is the whole macrocosmic universe.

Does the universe want or need us to exist?

Second, as far as we know, we and other conscious entities are the consciousness of the universe. And since our knowledge of conscious entities is limited, it is conceivable, if unlikely, that we ourselves are a primary source of consciousness in the universe. Even if we are not alone, we are a means for the universe to experience conscious existence.

To state the obvious, that experience includes the basics such as observation, awareness, and intentionality, but also more intangible things such as language, imagination, creativity, literature, philosophy, science, civilization, not to mention friendship, love, loss, and even death.

What if the universe can know itself and all these things only through us and other conscious entities? Is that our role? Does that give our existence meaning and importance?

Are we part of the purpose of the universe?

Third, what if in addition to knowing itself through us, the universe also finds purpose through us? Not because we are its purpose, but because we search for purpose. In other words, through us the universe experiences a search for purpose.

We need not assume that we are the reason for the universe or that the universe was created for our sake. We can accept what seems obvious from the tiny scope of our existence, i.e., that we are not the most important part of the universe. But we are a part of it. And we happen to be a part that looks for purpose, both our own and the purpose of the universe itself.

Is our search for purpose important?

Could our seemingly insignificant lives help the universe find its purpose? Does the universe even have or want a purpose?

Again, all we know for sure is that the universe has conscious entities within it that search for purpose and meaning. Just as the universe experiences consciousness through its components with consciousness, the universe may experience meaning through its conscious components that search for meaning.

Is that enough? Can the universe rely on conscious components to find meaning and thereby create the universe’s own meaning?

Does the universe need more meaning than that?

We often imagine that the underlying meaning and purpose of reality is discoverable, something known out there that we cannot see. We spend lifetimes studying the universe or meditating to uncover its secrets. But could it be true that the universe has only what we give it, that it has the meaning that conscious entities within it search for and create?

The universe may or may not have a purpose, but it has a search for purpose. It has us.