The Purpose of Existence

A topic so big it makes you tired. A topic so hackneyed it makes you disgusted. But most of us aren't philosophy students so maybe we can handle it on a simple, practical level.

Why did God create people?
If we are as some say all fragments of God trying to make our way back to our Source, why did God fragment in the first place?
How does the scientific idea that things have to be observed in order to be figure into this?
What do other cultures have to say about these questions?

Maybe it's as simple as this "it is better to exist that not to exist". In that case we'll just talk about the weather. ;-)