Fate or Free Will

Fate or Free Will?

By Swami Jyotirmayananda

Many times in the course of one's life, the perplexing question arises, "Is everything des­tined, or is there something I can do to direct my own destiny?" It is natural for aspirants to question whether or not they have free will and, if so, how much? In this form of reflection, one finds oneself pondering the implica­tions of the terms "fate," "destiny," and "predestination." Confused about this profound question, many people conclude that they are totally depen­dent upon fate, that everything has "already been written," and that they have no choices in the situations they encounter. Others may conclude that they have free will to alter situations. In the light of Yoga and Vedanta philoso­phy, however, your life is considered a blend of fate and freewill, with the spirit within you acting as the architect of its own destiny at every moment.

If you analyze your mind when­ever you are feeling dependent upon "fate," you will realize that your mind is burdened by inertia and is seeking some sort of psychological escape from reality. When the mind is domi­nated by tamas (dullness), it becomes clouded and the instinct for free will becomes dampened. Consequently, one leans towards fate and destiny. Instead of facing your present situa­tion, you want someone to give you a consoling picture of what is definitely going to happen in the future so that you don't have to worry about working for it. Every time a tree shakes in the darkness of night, a child feels there is a ghost in the tree. Similarly, each time the tree of your life shakes and things do not work out the way your ego has envisioned, the ghost of fate manifests as a reality in your mind and you start to feel overwhelmed.

A term similar to fate is "destiny." Destiny gives a stamp of infallibility to things. When you blame "fate" for something, you are only half-hearted in feeling that events are determined for you, but when you blame "destiny" you are very convinced that things are going to turn out in a certain way.

A third term, related to these two, and frequently encountered in reli­gious teachings, is "predestination." To many people, "predestination" implies that everything is designed by God, and that He knows how every­thing will unfold in advance. Because He is omniscient, He must know past, present and future. Therefore, nothing can happen that has not already been designed by the Cosmic Mind of God, and nothing can be altered by man. In a great record book, the clerk of God has kept track of every item in such detail that not even an atom can func­tion without God being aware of it.

When you fall into the trap of this strange logic and form the idea that God knows everything because he is omniscient, and that everything in life is predestined, you feel that you are just a preconditioned puppet in a Cosmic plan. This concept is erroneous. The confusion about predestination arises because of the limitation of human intellect. Due to limitation, you are projecting your mis­guided concept of omniscience on God.

To better understand Divine omniscience, think about how the sun interacts with the earth. It shines far away from the earth, yet illumines everything upon it. Does the sun keep an account of every little thing in this world? It does not. It simply illumines. So too, the Divine Self simply illumines past, present and future and, in this manner, knows all.

Accepting What Cannot Be Altered

According to Yoga, every individual is essentially a soul that has travelled through many embodiments. Each time you are born again, there is a set of kar­mas from your past, called prarabdha karma, which determines your family and charts a general outline of your life. There are aspects of that prarab­dha karma that cannot be altered, for example: your family, your country of origin, your bone structure or height.

Where Does Your Freedom Lie?

The Law of Karma is constantly sustained by your own mentation, and therefore, by changing your mental movement, you can change the direc­tion of your karma. You have the power to modify and even completely over­throw certain aspects of your karma from the past by transforming the subtle impressions within your mind.

Certain negative situations that are occurring now, which have been brought about as a result of your thoughts and actions of the past, may frustrate you deeply. Your freedom lies in how you choose to handle these adversities so that rather than impeding your spiritual movement, they enhance it. With spiritual insight you can take advantage of an adverse situation by transforming it into prosperity. If you have that type of attitude, then by the time the negative karma wanes, you will have developed immense will­power. Therefore, the negative karma that had placed you in the difficult situation will, in the end, turn out to be a blessing.

Similarly, if you do not understand how to handle situations of prosper­ity that occur as a result of your good karma from the past, that good karma may actually become a curse. For ex­ample, suppose that due to good karma you do not have to struggle to earn money, and all comforts and luxuries come to you easily. Well, should you become vain and waste all your time and money on trivial pursuits? If you do, then you have misused this good karma from the past. You have reduced its potency, and consequently, it has weakened your will.

Can Astrology Help You?

In popular terminology, astrologers and palmists are called "soothsayers." If they are not authentic, or if you are not spiritually reflective, then the only thing that you may receive from them is tem­porary comfort. If your skin itches and you apply a soothing cream, the source of the itch is not cured. Similarly, where you are suffering from confusions and expectations, you may see an astrologer to ease your tension with a comfortable prediction of your future — but that pre­diction does not really get to the root of your problems.

Unfortunately, unauthentic as­trologers are often quite adept at using psychological tricks. For example, you are told, "There was a time during this past week when you were terribly dis­tressed." You think, "How did he know that? He really is authentic!" What you fail to realize is that the astrologer is impressing you with statements that could apply to anyone, or telling you what you want to hear based on clues that you have given him.

This, however, does not imply that astrology does not have its authentic­ity. Authentic astrologers can help you understand the basic outline of your prarabdha karma and its operation but they cannot tell you about how you will alter, react to or transcend that karma. Your spirit is endowed will infinite freedom to embellish upon the general outlines of prarabdha in the most amazing ways.

Astrology is not independent of the karma that your spirit created. By referring to a horoscope, the astrologer gives you a general outline of how you prarabdha karma is going to operate. But the stars did not create your karmas — you did! Your soul chose the planetary configurations for its birth, just as it chooses the time for the fulfillment оf all its karmas. Thus, it is not astrology that has guided your life. It is your karma that guides the astrological calculations.

An astrological prediction is like a weather forecast. Such a forecast informs you that tomorrow will be cold, or windy, or that a storm is coming. Hearing this, people will react in different ways and will be benefited to different degrees. Those planning to go for an outing on their sailboat will be affected differently than those who are planning to stay in their homes. So too, astrological predictions give you a basic outline of what to expect in the future, but it is up to you how you use the information according to your insight into higher truths and the strength of your will.

If you have consulted an authentic astrologer who has given you a gen­eral indication of future patterns, then reflect upon that information and pre­pare yourself to meet the future like a spiritual hero. For example, intensify your spiritual practice of japa (repeti­tion of Divine name) and meditation to strengthen yourself if you are about to fail in some undertaking. Or, should you encounter extraordinarily good fortune, increase your spiritual practices to avoid becoming vain. If you are using astrological information in a spiritual way, you will be better able to handle whatever manifests before you, and you will understand that in God's Plan whatever happens is for your benefit.

The human mind, being caught in the world of names and forms, constantly wants to know the future. But if one actually knew ex­actly what would happen on exactly what date, life would be boring and mechanical. It is the unfoldment of the unknown that gives joy to human life and allows a sense of creativity.

You may go on asking astrologers and palmists about the future, but deep within, you cannot really believe in an irrevocable fate that limits your possibilities. There is an instinctive urge in a human being to constantly work for something and to obtain it, to investigate and to discover — and that instinct must be followed.

There is a saying from the Tulsi Ramayana, "Daiva daiva alasi pu-kara," which means, "An idle man calls, "destiny destiny," while a satwic man with perseverance and brightness never takes recourse to the weak and degrading thought of destiny.

There is an interesting Hindu story in the Puranas about a king who approached a Sage and asked, "Oh, Sage, you are the knower of past, present and future. Tell me, what is in my destiny?" "Why do you ask?" the Sage said. The king answered, "If I know certain troubles are waiting for me, I will avoid them." "You will not avoid them," replied the Sage. "I know that for certain." The king said, "O Sage, test me. Tell me whatever you can about the trouble that is to come, and then we'll see if I can avoid it."

"All right," the Sage replied. "I will tell you a series of things that are going to happen, and I challenge you to avoid those things. First, on a certain day someone will bring you a horse that you should not accept. However, although I have told you not to, you are going to accept it! Now, on a certain day when you are riding that horse in a forest, you will come upon two roads. One road leads to the east and the other to the west. Don't take the eastern road; go to the west. However, you will take the eastern one. If you take the eastern road you will encounter a lady who is forlorn and desolate and you will develop great compassion for her. Although compassion in itself is good, those feelings are not appropriate in this situation. However, in spite of my warning you will develop too much compassion for her. Now, although you may develop compassion, do not make that lady your queen. However, although you have been forewarned, you will marry her.

"Your new queen will insist that you perform certain sacrifices to en­hance the sacredness of your marriage. Do not perform those sacrifices. How­ever, you will want to please her and so you will decide to perform them. During that performance of sacrifice a young brahmin will arrive. Do not welcome any young brahmins. Turn him away. However, you will accept him and allow him to stay. That brahmin, due to the distraction in his mind, will ridicule the queen and you will become so angry mat you will kill him. As a result of that sin your entire body will be afflicted with leprosy. The only cure for that leprosy will be to listen to the entire account of the Mahabharata with great devotion. Now that you have heard these things that will befall you, try to avoid them!"

According to the scriptural story, the king couldn't avoid any of the events foretold by the Sage. Every step of the way he ignored the advice of the Sage, thinking, "What does it matter if I do so? There is only one ultimate danger I must eventually avoid." So he continued to fall prey to the circum­stances until all the predictions of the Sage had been fulfilled.

Is it the intention of this interest­ing story to give you the mes­sage that everything is predestined and that a man can do nothing to avert his destiny? No. The fact is that this story is merely allegorical. The story is designed to figuratively illustrate that there are certain experiences that the soul must encounter. The soul is the king, and in this world process it cannot avoid the horses of the senses. These senses eventually lead him to the despondent queen, which represents the limited intellect in the wilderness of your mind. Giving value to your intellect without enlightening it, you become involved in your selfish thoughts, and that involvement is your sacrifice. Gradually, you commit negative actions at the insistence of your limited intellect. Acts of violence, greed, jealousy and hate of varying degrees afflict you with the leprosy of a contracted consciousness. The only way out of this affliction is to develop devotion to God by listen­ing to the great scriptures and, as a result, to attain Enlightenment.

Thus, every incarnating soul is predestined to suffer miseries and afflictions due to ignorance, and ultimately to overcome ignorance and become Self-realized. Can this form of predestination be avoided? No! It is predestined that all souls who suffer the joys and sorrows of the world eventually attain Enlight­enment. Apart from this there is no predestination.

Nature Is the Wisest Teacher

In the Divine Plan, Nature has purposely kept the future from your view. This keeps your mind relaxed and allows you to know things only when you are prepared to face them. To be told things before you are ready is unnecessary, and could be quite upsetting. For example, can you imagine how you would feel if you are twenty-five years old and an astrologer or some type of seer shows you a photograph of yourself at age ninety-five? Seeing your gray hair and your face full of wrinkles,and knowing that you cannot avoid looking that way might absolutely horrify you. On the other hand, when you age gracefully, with fulfillment in your life, then what you look like to others does not matter to you. You are deeply satisfied with your inner life, and not at all affected by your external appearance.

Mold Your Destiny with Creativity

If you are developing sattwa, you realize that the future does not hold anything grim and hopeless for you. Rather, the most glorious future awaits you, for your ultimate destiny is Self-realization, and nothing lesser. In the light of this ultimate destiny, any other destiny is nothing more than a mental creation due to egoistic illusion.

The fact is that the scriptures do not teach dependence on fate or destiny or on the type of predestination that the human mind erroneously imagines. Scriptures teach that the soul in a hu­man being is infinitely free, because the innermost reality in man is Brahman. Intrinsically you are absolutely free, but due to ignorance you enter into a self-limiting experience. Because of that, what you create one day becomes your future.

Since you are the architect of your own destiny, the author of your own karmic movement, you always have the possibility of modifying what you have already created. You can also overthrow your past karma completely. No one has ever been in your way as you designed your circumstances in the past, and no one will be in your way as you are redesigning them for the future.

As a sincere aspirant, you have endless possibilities for changing the structure of your karmas. The key to bringing about these changes lies in the subtle mechanism of your mind. The mind is built upon impressions, and those impressions determine how you see your life. Your strongest convictions are often built on the roots of illusion that exist in your unconscious.

The Triumph of Free Will

Your mind may paint a picture of your life as being very black and gloomy. You may develop an intense feeling of hopelessness: "I have smudged the whole painting and nothing can be done about it. It is all ruined." This negative picture of things is never correct. You can never completely taint or ruin the canvas of your consciousness. You can never destroy your inner basis.

As you glimpse more and more into the freedom of the Self within, you discover your power to reshape your mental impressions with a free will. This sense of freedom endows you with the ability to steadily conquer the dreary aspects of your karma while promoting those aspects that inspire you towards Self-realization. When that state of Self-realization is attained, you experience infinite free will.

A parable is told about a priest who was very devoted to Christ. One day, as he was going to sleep he reflected, "I wonder what happened to those great scientists who didn't believe in Christ, yet did so much good for the world. Newton, Galileo, Darwin, Huxley and others — were they thrown into the fires of hell for their non-belief? What happened to them?"

In his dream, he found himself in the heavenly world. There he asked the heavenly angels about those great philosophers and scientists. The angels told him that they had all been thrown into hell because they didn't believe in Christ. He then asked if he could be given the opportunity to visit them and speak with them so that he could then teach them about faith in Christ. "All right," the angels replied. "There is an express that leaves early in the morning from the heavenly world to the lowest hell. Each station represents an increasingly lower level of existence, and the scientists can be found in the lowest level of all."

As the priest travelled on the express, he watched the gradual disap­pearance of greenery and lush vegeta­tion, the appearance of desert terrain, the occasional gushing of hot springs and then the frequency of blazing fires crackling and the explosion of flames here and there. As the train continued on, he observed the increasing inten­sity of miserable conditions through the window.

Eventually the train came to a halt at the last station and the conduc­tor shouted, "This is the lowest hell. Those who are destined to be here step down." So he stepped down and looked around. To his surprise, he found that the place was most wonder­fully designed. The entire lowest hell surpassed even the highest heaven in its architectural design and in its various facilities and conveniences.

When he encountered the great sci­entists walking around, the priest asked them, "Were you not thrown into the lowest hell?" "Yes, indeed we were!" they said, "But as scientists we knew that the materials that constitute the highest heaven are also the same materials that construct the lowest hell. So when we were thrown into the pits of hell, we immediately started investigating. "We drained the muddy water from the pits and started throwing it into the burning furnace where metal was melting. When this cooled the furnaces down, we began working with the metals and molded them into machines and various instru­ments that would serve us. With the help of the very same "science" and utilizing various ways of channelizing energy, we converted hell into the highest heaven. Therefore, we now have no need to go to heaven!"

This parable shows that when your mind develops sattwa or purity, it gains a profound insight into the inner resources of your spirit, so that you never need to feel insecure, hope­less or damned to perpetual suffering. You can never be thrown into "hell" and kept there in a powerless condi­tion. God cannot expel you from His own dominion; you are always in the Divine fold, backed up by His infinite resources. Knowing this, you can tap into those resources and turn hell into heaven. Therefore, "fate," "destiny" and "predestination" ultimately do not have any reality for you. When the mind moves toward sattwa, fate is conquered and the infinite free will of your Self is realized.

“International Yoga Guide”, Volume 54: No.2, October 2016

...