I don't believe that
human beings have control over their destinies.
Between free will and determinism, I lean toward determinism. We're
products of our environment. We like what we like and enjoy what we
enjoy and dream what we dream and do what we do largely because of
what we've experienced in the past.
Yet in a world of free will
“versus” determinism, I cop out. I believe both play a roll at
once. When looking at past and present, it seems impossible to
believe in free will, as determinism in the form of human behavior
and natural genetics plays such a heavy-handed role in how we behave.
But there is a third item to look at.
In the moment is
where free will reigns. When I mean “the moment,” I don't mean
every moment, but only in those moments that we are fully aware of
what we're doing and so are able to make conscious decisions. In this
way we can out-dual even our habits. At the ice cream shop we may go
in unaware of what we're doing and choose vanilla out
of habit (determinism), or we may show patience and see
the numerous flavors, and in our awareness, discard our past experiences
to choose something not out of habit, but against it.
And so in the moment, with free will, there is no destiny. No one can predict what a conscious being will choose to do, or how he or she will react. We may all be destined for something, greatness or otherwise, but many of us can, with practice, live a life outside of that destiny, even as it unfolds around us.
For some this is a harrowing
task, and with so many possibilities, some are unable to choose at
all. I am one of those types (I often fall back on habit because choices given to me in life are too daunting, complicated, or confusing). And yet within the moment, out of
awareness, free will still reigns. Not directly tied to past or
future, choices are made for other reasons than habit and
behavior. Choices are made out of awareness.
This post isn't about
choosing ice cream flavors, it's about choosing something much more
important. In life we face challenges each and every day, and
these challenges are toxic, violent, uncomfortable, etc. If we are
not aware, we will depend on our past experiences to react to what is
happening to us right now. If we were brought up with violence, we
may act with violence. If we were brought up with compassion, we may
act with compassion. These are generalities, of course. All people
are different, and the makeup of one's brain certainly supersedes
environment. But it's determinism in the end, and this may lead (even for, or especially for, the compassionate) to a life of frustration, having things happen to us and not understanding why, or why we react the way we do.
But with awareness there is
another option. Not to behave as we've always behaved, but to behave
in a new way, a way that better suits the situation at hand. To step out of the norm of human behavior and face challenges with a new set of tools, active and purposeful, instead of our former passive habits.
And so I have decided (at
least for today) that I have only one real choice in life. I am in
control over only one thing. I control how I react—but only if I am
consciously aware of the moment.
I must choose anger or
acceptance. I must choose fear or joy.
There's not a whole lot else
I, as a human being, control. I cannot control what others do or
feel. I cannot control the society or culture I am born and raised
in. I cannot tell someone “build me an ice cream shop with many
flavors” or get ice cream for free (making me a slave in so many
ways to so many different things).
But I do control my
reaction to the eventful situations life throws my way. This may not
be a big deal to others, or for some they may have realized this fact
many years ago, but up until this realization I had always struggled
to understand a world in which both free will and determinism were
possible. How could I fit them together? I have now done that, and
it's a breakthrough in many ways.
Past...future...present.
One (determinism) controls two of these, and the other (free will)
just the one, but all are important in understanding why people do
what they do; understanding why I do what I do.
I don't believe in
destiny. I do believe in right here and right now. “Destiny”
is just another moment in time to me.
Posts
You bring up great points. I do believe both can work together, too. And this is partly from my religious upbringing as well as pondering the point. According to Islam, 3 things are already determined: time of birth, time of death and who you marry (even if it is multiple times like divorce and remarriage, it is still destiny). We are given freewill in other situations. You can choose how to behave, you can choose how to think, and there is even the possible of changing one's self. One might say, OK I'm going to die whenever I die so just be reckless and eat whatever I want and so forth, but even if one did not die, they would have to worry about quality of life. You choose the quality of life by how you leave that life by either risks you take or things you chooses to do or not do. You are a product of your environment, but one can choose to change habits and be conscious of behavior. When one is conscious they have the greatest chance of changing themselves. Great post! Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Take care!
ReplyDeleteTrue love, destined, is so romantic :D
DeleteI agree about your example on health. Some people think "living in the present" means doing whatever one pleases without restraint or respect for self and others. I should use what you've said about that whenever I meet one of these short-sighted individuals, lol!
Destiny only exists in the past and future where things are unchangeable. We live in the present!
I believe in free will, although many scientists do not, and in my own experiences ones choices can be swayed by internal biochemistry....
ReplyDeleteOr social pressures. I think that, more than even biology, determines a lot of what we do...
Delete"I must choose anger or acceptance. I must choose fear or joy."
ReplyDeleteI choose acceptance, and I choose Joy, but is it really something we can control?
I wonder about that. For some people, maybe, but for most people? For the "average" man or woman? We're so bogged down by biology and society and old habits that I find it hard to believe that the average human being really has a choice in the matter, but I think "anyone" can come to the point where they do have control. Meditation seems, to me, to be that pathway, and yet not all people who meditate exert control over their lives. Even there it seems to be one more habit.
DeleteJR this was such a great post...I wish I read it sooner! I agree when you write:
ReplyDelete"I am in control over only one thing. I control how I react—but only if I am consciously aware of the moment."
I like what Alan Watts had to say about this. In one of his Out of Your Mind lectures I remember him saying something like, "The past has no more control over us than the wake of a ship has on the direction of the ship...unless we allow it." (paraphrasing)
The more I've studied and reflected the more I've realized how so much of our actions and the outcomes in our lives are determined by a whole host of external factors. At the same time, I'd like to believe, and do for now, that when one is truly mindful, in the present moment, they have a choice, free of any particular patterns that press in to direct our course. The thing is, most aren't ever really aware and conscious in the present moment...even those of us that know about it's transformative nature and the fact that in the present is the only place where real reality can be found. It's definitely a practice to learn to experience and live in the present. The most important one, in my opinion.
Great post!
I remember Watts saying that! I remember the first time I heard him say that, I disagreed, and thought it was the first thing he had ever said (that I had heard) that I didn't agree with, and yet when I began to think about it, well, obviously I've changed my mind on it.
DeleteFor those of us who know, it definitely still takes work to actually put it into practice. There may be a switch to turn on, but turning it on is not done simply by knowing that it exists...
I'd like to believe that the choices we make determine the destiny we carve out for ourselves. We always have a choice.
ReplyDeleteI agree, for the most part. But it's amazing how many people are making choices without really thinking things through. It seems the biggest most important choice is to make a conscious decision or not.
DeleteJ.R., I love how you've delineated between free will and determinism. Brilliant!
ReplyDeleteI agree, too, that we can only control our reactions to situations. Those choices made in moments of true self-awareness are the ones which, I believe, lead us into spiritual growth. We do create our destinies by those choices, so we must choose wisely.
Great post!
Blessings to you!
Thanks, Martha! I agree, the only way to spiritual growth is by being conscious of our choices :)
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