Thoughts 4/24/2007 April 24, 2007
Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Philosophy.Tags: Philosophy
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I’ve been contemplating the concept of destiny a whole lot lately. Think about it. Is there such a thing as destiny? Because if there is, it’s all or nothing. You can’t halfway believe in destiny. I find it hard to believe sometimes that every single thing in life is planned out, because just like many people have said, that means I’m not in control of my own life, doesn’t it? If there is such a thing as destiny, then either God is controlling everything, or your life was planned out by something or someone. That’s a very deep thought. I used to believe in destiny, but now I’m questioning that. Just as I said in an earlier post, we sometimes confuse emotion for God, and I believe the same goes for destiny. I think that sometimes when we get on those emotional highs, we think that things couldn’t happen any other way. I remember feeling this way about quite a few times in my life. Either the way I felt about someone, or some situation, I thought to myself, this has to be predestined.
So let’s say that you believe God is in control of your destiny. He controls everything that happens. Well if this is the case, then why do we pray? I’ve touched on this topic before, but nothing in-depth. Still considering that you believe in destiny, lets say that you’re destined to marry one particular person. Ok, well if it is destiny, do you have to do anything, or could you sit on your ass the rest of your life and wait for it to happen? A lot of people will say, well you can’t just sit around, but if you are a full believer in destiny, then it shouldn’t matter. No matter what you do, you believe you will end up with that person. That’s one reason I wonder a lot about it. If you’re familiar with the television show “Lost,” there are two characters that are polar opposites on this belief. John Locke and Jack Shephard. John believes in destiny. He believes that every single thing that happens has a meaning, a purpose, and a reason. But to Jack, everything is just happenstance. It’s science, it’s just how things play out. I want you to ask yourself, which one are you?
I found your blog by googling for something yesterday, and today I read back about 7 pages and I love your writing. I’m amazed that what you write about is so similar to what I feel. Questions you’ve asked and worked though mirror similar or exact things that happen to me to. And your writing style is great, so easy to read and so, how can I put it, complete.
Just last week I was contemplating the destiny and the illusion of choice that life presents us with. My life seems to be on autopilot to somewhere unknown. I try to change things and nothing ever changes. It feels like the bubble around Frank in Donnie Darko, Donnie would knock at it and couldn’t change it. But should we want to change it. What is it we want, or how do we find out what that is? I feel trapped, not unlike what you describe in your February 26 2006 post (see I did read). And despite feeling this way, I still want to believe that I’m in control of my life, my destiny and still want to get the most of out it, but I’m not sure how or if I do know how, I’m for some reason unable to get myself to do what needs to be done to better myself or my situation.
I don’t usually comment on peoples blogs, but I felt like I needed to say something because some unknown force wants me to, or something, or it’s just because I’m at work and want to kill some time, or all of the above.
Destiny. Search your heart. Is there something you have longed for, dreamed of all your life? If you are lucky, you know what that is. Most do not in our society because they are not truly free of their preconceived notions of life. It’s like we have a self imposed caste system we live by. I see so many people who have the talent and the resources to do what they say they desire to do but they are not convinced it can be done. No sense of destiny. When you listen to your heart and believe that this dream of what you really desire is your destiny, it is like a vortex that you are drawn into. If you can look back on all the events of your life, good or bad, that seem to be preparing you for that goal, that dream that is in your heart, that something that won’t go away, and if a sense of destiny seems to surround you, that’s all the evidence I can give.
I see so many people who are content to live their lives, paying the rent, buying things, going to concerts and restaurants, taking pills to relieve depression and I get a sense that they are lost because they do not sense a destiny for their lives. They do not dream, they exist.
We live in a country filled with opportunity and yet we limit ourselves by what we think we can do. I say, if it is in your heart and you are willing to struggle and accept failure and get up and try again, it could be your destiny that you must fulfill. True destiny will always make us better human beings. I believe that God is in control but He gives us choices and if we will trust in Him with all our hearts, He will reveal our destiny but we have to work it out day by day in a manner that is worthy of His greatness.
We learn courage:
If triumph’s easy smile our struggles greet, courage is easy then. But the King is he, who after quick defeat, stands to fight again.
When you pursuit your dream that cannot be denied, doors open, doors close. You walk and sometimes be happy just to stand. The saddest thing in this world is those that never try and do not believe that anything is possible.
That is the greatest affliction of our modern day society, that we do not listen to our heart and strive for that destiny God has put into our hearts. That pursuit is what will make us better people, a better society and a better world.
Sometimes I have this personal* perception that destiny is an excuse that people use when they do not want to take responsibility for the life they are living. Just like God, whom is the No.1 person to blame in times of suffering, destiny is just another simple way out to explain life and our lack of action to change it to make it to become a life that we want.
Perhaps I’m overstressing the ablility of mere mortals to control their fate, but most of the people that gives in to destiny are usually those whom do not try hard enought to combat the world and its pressures. I think destiny determines God’s choice of parents for you, but I think decisions determines your choice of life for yourself.
*Personal is the operative key word here.
Fascinating.
I believe that our raison d’etre in life is to journey along the pathway of happiness and fulfilment by doing kind deeds, being honest with yourself, loving one and all, etc.
At the end of the day, its all about discovering wellness in mind, body and spirit.
Interesting!
I wonder, though—perhaps certain events are “destined” to happen: i.e., you get married to person A, Napoleon will invade Russia, etc. But is it possible that while this event *will* happen, when it will happen, how it will happen, is up to you? That while certain events will be realized, the way in which they are realized is a matter of free choice?
Or, let’s look at it from another angle: even assuming that we do have free choice, how far does that free choice extend? We do not get to choose what country we are born into, what social status, what family, what time period. Could we not perhaps say that while we do possess free will, that will is “determined” by certain factors?
One other perspective: let’s assume there is no such thing as destiny, everything is random and chaotic. Could it perhaps be natural to us as human beings to take that chaos and assign it a meaning—to make what is random purposeful?
In other words, do we have choose between John and Jack, or is there a substantive amount of gray area in between both worldviews?
Just some thoughts.
Destiny? I don’t think so. It would be better described as a the top floor of a skyscraper constructed solely by you. Yes, other people influence you and your choices, and yes, you had no choice as to when/where/how/etc you were born. But no one ever has. Not even the first person who evolved (yes, evolved).
The fact is, humans do not have the choice to begin life. We are condemned to life, and thus forced to be free. We always have the choice to end our lives right now. But if you do not do that, it’s not because “god” has some unknown destiny set out for you in her mystical book of fate, it is because you choose not to.
The fact is, there is no predetermined destiny. You construct your own life.
And in regards to some of the other comments. The only gray area between both world views (i.e. determinism and free-will), is that we don’t have the choice to be born. Other than that, we are determined by our own free will.
Furthermore, in regards to all these ‘god’ giving us free-will comments. That’s simply not possible. If you accept the traditional (held by all major religions) that god is omnipotent and omnsicient, then it is not possible for us to have free will. god would have the power to see and do absolutely everything and thus already been aware of how our lives would end. Therefore we would not be able to defy her already held beliefs. Thus you are left with two beliefs. Either “god” exists and you have absolutely no freewill. or. God doesn’t exist, and you are in control of your own life.
I choose the latter.
I believe in God, but not destiny, or fate, or whatever you want to call it. Because if everything is already planned out for you ahead of time, then what is the point of living life? If there is a God, that doesn’t necessarily mean that there has to be destiny. The purpose of a god is to provide guidance and support to people in their times of need, not to control their lives for them. Yes, certain things are preordained, such as who your parents are, where you are born, what kind of family you are born into. Certain people are born with certain gifts and abilities. But that is only because people aren’t alive to make those decisions for themselves. A higher power does that for you, and it is done by chance. Once you are brought into this world, it is all up to you. You always have free will. You are the master of your own destiny, not God. God is only there to try to help you look into your heart and make the best decision that you can. God’s other purpose it to judge you when you die, and judge those very decisions that you have made in your life. The whole purpose of life is to set out and and make what you can of your life. This is also why bad things happen to good people. It isn’t because the bad thing was preordained to happen to the good person. It is because if we live in a world where people can make their own choices, then bad people can make decisions too, and their decisions can make bad things happen to good people. And yes, some things do happen for a reason, but that reason isn’t fate. There are many reasons that certain things that seem to have no explanation for their occurence happen, like making a person stronger, helping a person see what is really important in life…etc. So in conclusion, there there are no forces of fate pushing you to do something or leading you to a certain person, except for the forces that exist in your heart. Sometimes your heart or soul knows something that you don’t, but that is still a part of you…
I think this touches on the fact that society is still deeply religiously infused, despite all the fear mongering tactics the church uses against Christians to assert otherwise. There is a deep human resistance toward anything that is nihilistic even in notion, a resistance that religion plays on. For example, humanity generally rejects the idea of a pointless existence, a structural-free ethic, or anything that attacks structuralism in general.
But what exists that keeps these ideas, such as an objective free purpose? It seems as if destiny is a sect of an objective based existentialist mentality, a mentality that, because of religiously infused ideas, has a predominance in society.
To further explore this, I suggest the works of Kierkegaard and Nietzsche. Both are existentialists and offer differing perspectives on the subject. Both also touch on destiny.
July 5, 2007
Life is full of paradoxes…When we realize this, that is when we know that Destiny and Freewill are one and the same..
For it is in making choices (using our freewill) that we create our destiny…Since everything is based on karma (both bad and good karma) we will be predisposed to a certain destiny in each life due to our karma with others in previous lives…thus the motto “what goes around comes around..” We do create our life with the energy of our thoughts yet as we create our life our destiny is also being created..
But first we must realize that everthing is a paradox…
Here is another note: When we no longer are in need of lessons we can release the energy of karma from ourself, from all aspects of our past lives and from our ancestral line…Then we become energy movers instead of energy holders..This is done when we choose to expand ourselves outside of the field of duality…But we have to be ready to move past duality…
Namaste,
Grace