"In the last analysis, the individual person is responsible for living his own life and for "finding himself." If he persists in shifting his responsibility to somebody else, he fails to find out the meaning of his own existence"

Thomas Merton's statement emphasizes the profound responsibility each person holds for the course and meaning of their own life. At its core, he asserts that self-discovery and the pursuit of purpose cannot be delegated, outsourced, or transferred to others, no authority, institution, or relationship can substitute personal engagement with existence. Every individual is charged with the task of understanding themselves, shaping their identity, and discovering intrinsic meaning through conscious living. Engaging in this process often involves grappling honestly with one's desires, fears, values, and experiences, acknowledging both strengths and limitations.

By warning against "shifting responsibility", Merton cautions against the common tendency to blame outside forces, family expectations, societal norms, institutions, or fate, for dissatisfaction, stagnation, or uncertainty. Reliance on external guidance may provide temporary comfort or absolve one of difficult decision-making, but it risks estrangement from the authentic self. When individuals persistently abdicate responsibility, they become passengers in their own journey, guided not by personal conviction but by the will or opinion of others, thus forfeiting the opportunity for genuine self-understanding.

The process of "finding oneself" is depicted as an active and personal endeavor, one requiring effort, courage, and sometimes struggle. It entails making choices, accepting consequences, reflecting deeply, and adapting as one grows. This path can be fraught with doubt and discomfort, but it is also the source of freedom and fulfillment. Meaning, Merton suggests, is not something delivered from outside or predefined by circumstance, but something discovered, constructed, or revealed through authentic engagement with life.

Ultimately, the passage affirms the dignity and responsibility of individual existence. Fulfillment is contingent on the willingness to accept this challenge, to resist complacency or victimhood, and to face the existential task of living deliberately. Only through this commitment does one encounter the true meaning of their own existence.