Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find anything that agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it." -- Siddhartha Gautama (The Buddha), 563-483 B.C.

An objective why of existence must agree with our experience of the world around us -- that which we feel, see, hear, touch, taste, and smell. It must be clear and simple and it must be something we can readily apply to our practical experience. The answer, happily, is right here for us to find. We have all of the evidence of our senses to work from, as well as the understanding provided by indirect knowledge through observation and analysis. We make judgments of purpose and goodness every day. Instinctively, intuitively, we all have access to the answer.

The material universe exists according to a set of rational principles. We, too, exist according to those principles. This understanding can help us explore human concerns that otherwise seem dauntingly subjective and intractable.