Recently, I went through a very painful and dark period, after my furry soulmate Shania passed away. Suddenly I was buffeted by such strong emotional winds that I felt I could not cope. At first, I did my best to pretend that everything was perfectly fine. However, it was not long before everything crumbled and I felt tired all the time, was physically ill, had no appetite, and couldn’t muster the strength to get out of bed.

It was during this time that I read The Tao of Fully Feeling and from there I started to explore the interesting field of Buddhism. Unlike a lot of Western psychology which emphasizes only the positive, Buddhism starts off by looking at suffering, the causes of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and how to achieve it through the 8-fold path. That Path is the path to enlightenment.

Buddhism, Enlightenment, and Suffering

Enlightenment –
A concept in spirituality, philosophy and psychology related to achieving clarity of perception, reason and knowledge.
Being advanced and having gained necessary information or knowledge, especially spiritual knowledge.
(buddhism & hinduism) A state in which the individual transcends desire and suffering and attains nirvana.
~~[Your Dictionary]

The wonderful thing about Buddhism is that it approaches emotions and suffering from the deep perspective of understanding and wisdom. In this way, all the definitions above apply. Enlightenment is achieved not through some arcane ritual that we take on faith, but through deep self-examination, self-experience, and reflection on the three characteristics of all phenomenon –

1. Impermanence – Everything rises and ceases. Because everything is transient, we will face loss; the loss of belongings, the loss of loved ones, the loss of happiness, aging, illness, and death.
2. Dissatisfaction – It is in the nature of our mind to continuously categorize all things as good, bad, or neutral. As a result of this we form attachments to the good and aversions to the bad. Because all things are impermanent, we get dissatisfied and suffer when conditions change from what we perceive as good, to what we perceive as bad.
3. Emptiness and No-Self – All three of these characteristics are quite deep and nuanced, however, this last one was the most difficult to understand and accept. Emptiness refers to how all things are empty of inherent existence. In the Dalai Lama’s book on Buddhism he captures this concept well by explaining how a melody is not contained within a flute. Rather, it is brought forth by the combination of musician, flute, and air vibrations. I.e. the melody is not intrinsic to the instrument but arises dependent on various causes and conditions.
    
   Similarly, our emotions are not intrinsic to us, but arise dependent on causes and conditions. Remove any one of those causes and conditions, and the emotion ceases to arise. Our brain’s categorization of all things into good, bad, and neutral are also empty of inherent existence. They arise based on conditions such as our emotions at the moment, physical sensations, mood, habits, beliefs, memories, and more. Change any one of those things and we get a different result.
    
   Good, bad, evil, loser, and other traits that we commonly attribute to self or other are also not intrinsic. What we consider to be the self of this moment, is different from the self of the previous moment, and that of the next moment. We may judge an act to be cruel, but like the melody, the act is not intrinsic to self or other. Just like everything else, it arises dependent on causes and conditions. Blame in this context becomes pointless.

Repeated reflection on the three characteristics, together with the application of appropriate antidotes can be very helpful for emotion regulation and in stopping entanglement with problematic emotions.

Our minds are infinitely malleable. It can learn, change, and grow in a fairly short period of time. This makes us highly adaptable, which is a great advantage to our survival and evolution. Whatever unhealthy habits and incorrect beliefs we have formed in childhood and later can be unlearned, retrained, changed. However, this also means that our minds are susceptible to unhealthy suggestions, misunderstandings, and pervasive conditioning. This is why we employ mindfulness, introspective awareness, the 3 characteristics, and various antidotes, to prevent such disturbances.

The Problem with Enlightenment

The problem with enlightenment or the promise of an end to suffering, is that we quickly cling to attainment of that ideal. In so doing, we give in to our fear of suffering and end up pushing enlightenment farther away. This is similar to how the direct pursuit of happiness makes us more unhappy.

As always, the answer lies not in the goal, but rather in the journey itself. The Buddhist Path gives us the tools to lessen our suffering each and every day, if we choose to travel upon it. The Path or journey is its own reward, just as life is its own reward. Neither needs a meaning or an end-goal. Grasping for an end to suffering will only create greater dissatisfaction for us in the present, and prolong our current suffering.

I recently read an article on the enlightenment experiences of several Buddhist teachers. Described within it are a series of personal accounts of spontaneous enlightenment, achieved after having met Poonja-ji. Even more interesting is a follow-up article with a series of responses from teachers and luminaries in the field. Here are excerpts from some of the responses –

Perhaps your issue has done the community a favor in displaying the very prejudice and pride that, hidden behind the cloak of “liberation spirituality,” is ripping the planet apart. Our vulnerability to such spiritual narcissism tends to weaken faith and confidence in the very practices that are intended to liberate.
~~[Michele McDonald-Smith and Steven Smith, Insight Meditation Society and Vipassana Hawaii]

I think this pointing-out instruction is particularly relevant to us in America, where we seem to have a penchant for the “quick fix,” even in spiritual practice. Intimations of freedom are not liberation. They can either inspire us further or lull us into complacency. It is up to us.
~~[Joseph Goldstein, Insight Meditation Society]

Given that this debate is one that has bedeviled the Buddhist community for centuries (cf. gradual versus sudden enlightenment in Zen), we would have hoped for a more balanced approach, … Exposure to other perspectives and teachers can certainly be helpful in gaining fresh insights that make our previous understanding seem incomplete, even naïve. This need not indicate a deficiency in that first tradition, merely an immaturity and impatience in oneself.
~~[Fred von Allmen, Damma Gruppe, Stephen Batchelor, Gaia House]

I am fairly new to Buddhist teachings but here are my thoughts on the two articles. The first article increased my doubts on the truth of enlightenment. While spontaneous enlightenment may make memorable stories, they lack in methodology and do nothing to help increase my understanding of emotions, self, life, or anything else. Furthermore, these stories were told by teachers who have not had success with years of following rigorous practice and techniques, only to go searching for something better. This does not exactly instill confidence in the teachings.

The second article pulled no punches and was definitely a burn. Perhaps we should only be happy for our fellow sentient beings who have achieved a temporary peace. However, a rebuttal may be necessary due to the doubts and misunderstandings left by the first article.

Is Anyone Truly Enlightened?

All this left me to wonder if anyone is truly enlightened. These are all people who have practiced the Path for a long time and yet they seemed not too different from the rest of us; still beset with emotional warts and afflictions. Then it struck me that this comparison is self-defeating and a product of getting entangled in doubt and fear. In actuality, I learned many things from both articles and they inspired me to write this piece.

Enlightenment is not an all or nothing event. For me, enlightenment is a process of understanding. It is the mind trying to understand itself. This increased understanding has helped in my day-to-day emotional health. I still get entangled in afflictive emotions, but less so today than yesterday.

The articles made me realize that I was still grasping for the end-goal of some special enlightened state. Instead, a daily focus on practicing mindfulness, introspective awareness, as well as contemplating the 3 characteristics was already bringing good results and would likely serve me well for the future. Ultimately, I do not know if true enlightenment or a total end to suffering is possible. What I *do* know is that grasping for a total end to suffering will only bring us more suffering.

The many teachings of Buddhism have made a big difference in my life. I do not agree with all of the doctrine, but the spirit of questioning lies at the heart Buddhism. This adherence to mind exploration and freedom are what I love most about Buddhism.

It is said that the famous ninth-century Chinese Buddhist monk Linji Yixuan told his disciples, “If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him.” The statement deliberately confounds people and is meant to jolt them from complacent ways of thinking. However, beyond this purpose there is another. One should seek the inner Buddha nature that resides within, not an external Buddha for liberation.
~~[Oxford University Press]

If you meet the Buddha, kill the Buddha. In other words, if you encounter a “Buddha” separate from yourself, you are deluded.
~~[Learn Religions]

Unfortunately, such fear motivated desires rarely lead to fulfillment. These desires are extreme, outcome based, uncompromising, intolerant, and not in-step with reality. As soon as we succeed, fear compels us to race toward the next goal, the next one after, and on and on it goes. Nothing is ever good enough and only constant perfection will do. Since our world is imperfect and ever changing, we will forever be racing about, always one step in front of fear, trying to achieve the impossible.

What Is Wasting Time?

The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.
~~[Bertrand Russell]

What is wasting time? To answer this question we need to set up some kind of value system for our time. In essence, this would be a value system for our life and for ourselves. If we spend our time achieving our meaning of life goals, then we are not wasting time, and we are worthy.

Our current society’s value system is based on money (material possessions), power (influence over others), and fame (admiration from others). Of course history and experience has shown us that the rich, powerful, and famous, do not live more meaningful, happy, or peaceful lives than anybody else. In fact, research shows that those who prioritize such extrinsic goals are least likely to be happy.

Thoreau, Bertrand Russell, and others may perhaps argue that enjoyment is the true currency of life. Enjoying beauty (nature, literature, song) and enjoying the process of creation are often cited as two of the key reasons for living. Therefore, to not waste time we should try to experience as much beauty as we can and create as much as we can. However, when life turns and presents us with pain and suffering, do we lose our reasons for living? When we no longer enjoy or cannot enjoy anything, for example when deep in grief or chronic depression, how do we cope? As Frankl discussed in Man’s Search for Meaning, enjoyment alone is insufficient as a meaning of life.

So then what qualifies as a worthy enough purpose for our time and for our life?

Fear of Wasting Time

Our fear of wasting time comes from our love of life. Because we love life, we naturally fear death and fear not utilizing our limited time to the fullest. Feelings of fear are normal and will arise whenever we love. If we love, we will fear the loss of that which we love.

Many of us see fear as a terrible enemy that must be eradicated from our lives. However, fear only becomes a problem when we do not tend to it and try to suppress or reject it instead. By trying to eradicate fear, we feed it and make it stronger.

When we analyze our fear of wasting time, we will realize that it more accurately comes from a fear of unhappiness or feeling bad. We only have a limited amount of time so we do not want to waste it feeling bad, unhappy, or discontented. We may reason that money, fame, and power will make us happy and so consider the pursuit of these happiness substitutes to be *not* wasting time. Similarly we may reason that enjoyment brings us happiness and pursue that instead.

The problem with these direct pursuits is that they originate from fear. Fear motivated pursuits often become hyper-desires, which are unhealthy, unrealistic, outcome based, and extreme. Fear narrows our perspective so that avoiding a negative outcome takes on an outsized importance. This results in a hyper-desire to achieve a positive outcome no matter what. In this case, we are so afraid of wasting time or feeling bad that we develop a hyper-desire to feel good all of the time. Any time we feel a little bit bad, fear comes and we frantically go searching for something else, something special, that will make us feel good again. When we cannot match the happiness of previous experiences, we become discontented and then fearful. When we see someone else being more happy, we become discontented and then fearful. Anything short of perfect happiness becomes a waste of time.

Ultimately, fear causes us to withdraw from life because nothing in life is good enough. We start to ask ourselves, “is this all there is to life?”

Is This All There Is to Life?

Life is not perfect. Whenever we use perfection as our yardstick for success, we will surely fail. That failure will cause us more pain and suffering, which will lead to more self-doubt and self-pity, resulting in more suffering and so on. In this way, we may fall into chronic anxiety and depression.

The key to happiness is to recognize that engagement in life or a love of life is its own reward. We do not need to search for reasons to love life because engagement with life will bring its own special joy and happiness. In contrast, indulging in fear and withdrawing from life will bring unnecessary pain and suffering.

One of my most problematic core beliefs is that I am in control of my own life. I had a very unstable childhood with divorced and messed-up parents. When I was growing up, I found this belief of control to be extremely empowering and soothing. I told myself that as soon as I am able, I will leave home, make my own decisions, and take control of my own life. This worked for a while.

Unfortunately, this is not how life works. In reality, there are many things in life that I do not control. Most of the time, I am *NOT* in control of my thoughts, emotions, body sensations, external situation, the people around me, and life in general. I will get ill, I will get old, and I will die. This fact of very limited control smacked me in the face when I lost my furry soul-mate Shania.

Life is ever changing and full of dualities. There is love, but from love comes fear of loss. There is happiness and sadness, pleasure and pain, success and failure, fame and disrepute, victory and defeat, gain and loss. In life, we will experience all of these states and often a mix of them. We cannot only choose to experience one side of the duality and not the other. When we face pain, loss, failure, and defeat, our instinct will be to recoil or withdraw from life. It is in these moments of suffering that we must embrace ourselves the most and remind ourselves to stay engaged with life.

With the great power of mindfulness, we can become fully present to the unbearable beauty and the inevitable tragedy that makes up human life. We can honorably and fully experience this one and only life that we have been given, with all its ups and downs. In my own life, I try to remember the words many of us have heard from the Ojibway Indians: “Sometimes I go about pitying myself when all the while I’m being carried by great winds across the sky.”
~~[Jack Kornfield]

Engaging with Life

When going through the dark night of my soul, I established a very simple rule – to always face my fear. I believe that a love of life and therefore engagement in life is a natural state of being, and fear (aversion) is the main emotion that causes me to withdraw from life. Therefore, by facing fear I can overcome most unhealthy tendencies toward withdrawal.

Our worries about wasting time is an excuse that fear uses to get us to avoid our difficult feelings. We avoid burdensome internal growth by focusing on external goals such as money, fame, and power. We try to change the external world rather than trying to change ourselves. By avoiding personal change and growth, we may get some short-term comfort, but we will ultimately endure a lot more unnecessary suffering.

Wanting to reform the world without discovering one’s true self is like trying to cover the world with leather to avoid the pain of walking on stones and thorns. It is much simpler to wear shoes.
~~[Ramana Maharshi]

To face my fear of wasting time, I use mindfulness techniques to calm my mind, feel the emotions, and analyze them. The more I face the unhappy feelings, the more tolerance I build. The more I understand the source of these emotions, the better I can update any incorrect beliefs that lead to them.

Every time fear arises, it is a reminder to embrace her and to continue to stay engaged with life. Every time I face my fear, I am choosing engagement over withdrawal. When I am engaged in life (loving life), I am not wasting time. In this way, fear is a great ally for getting me not to waste time.

He who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learned the secret of life.
~~[Ralph Waldo Emerson]

According to most religions, there are consequences when we commit sins in the real world.

In Judea-Christian religions there are the 7 deadly sins which include envy, gluttony, greed, lust, pride, sloth, and wrath. If we sin, we will be punished by God in this life or in the after life. In the New Testament there is also an emphasis on forgiveness. To avoid punishment, we must admit to our sins, ask for forgiveness, and then sin no more.

In Islam, a sin is any action or thought that does not follow the commands of Allah. There are also several levels of sin including

mistakes, immorality, transgressions, wickedness, and ascribing a partner to God. ~~ [Wikipedia]

Sin and the fear of punishment from God are effective ways of control over our conduct and they keep us from indulging in excess.

Real Sin vs. Virtual Sin

Virtual Sin

Today, we spend a big portion of our time interacting with others in online virtual worlds.

• Can we sin while in an online virtual world?
• Is virtual sin like real sin?

Presumably, our soul is one and the same in the real world as well as in a virtual world, therefore, it should follow that we can also sin in a virtual world.

However, the physical aspect is missing in a virtual environment. Since many sins do involve some physical components, the absence of real world contact must surely affect the form of those sins.

• If we kill another player in a virtual game, does that mean that we have committed murder?
• If we lust after another in an online world, does that mean we have committed adultery?

Virtual Sin - Can we sin while in an online virtual world?

Real Sin vs. Virtual Sin

Engaging in virtual sin weakens our spirit and resolve against committing real sins.

Clearly our laws do not consider a virtual kill to be on par with an actual murder. From a religious perspective, a virtual kill is different as well because it does not entail the taking of another’s life.

However, some have argued that killing others in a virtual world numbs us to the thought of killing and makes it more likely for us to engage in similar thoughtless and sinful behaviors in the real world. We may also develop a joy for killing others.

In this way, engaging in virtual sin weakens our spirit and resolve against committing real sins.

Similarly, it may also deal a mental blow to our online victim. Being killed in a virtual environment may not be as final as a real death, but it is unpleasant nevertheless. Often, it will involve some loss of time and virtual resources. It may also cause embarrassment and a feeling of worthlessness.

In turn, this may cause us to get angry and we may want to strike out at the one who has done us wrong. This is called wrath and it is one of the 7 deadly sins. In fact, there have been some reported instances where a virtual killing has resulted in real world violence.

Similarly, engaging in online love with a married online character may not involve any intimate physical touches, but it can certainly be an emotional betrayal.

Engaging in illicit virtual relations may also lead to illicit real world relations.

Real Sin vs. Virtual Sin - Are they the same or different?

Is Virtual Sin Like Real Sin?

Virtual sin is different from real sin. However, it can be harmful and it can lead us to real sin.

• Frequent repetition of virtual sins may numb our feelings towards others. This lack of empathy makes is easier for us to commit sinful acts on our fellow man.
• Virtual sin may encourage us to commit real sin, for example taking vengeance on those who have virtually wronged us.
• If we think that virtual sins are harmless, we may also start taking real sins less seriously. In this way, we become more susceptible to temptation.

In general, performing negative or sinful acts that hurt others is never a good solution in the real or virtual world. Negative energy will only generate more negative energy. It does not matter who is really right or wrong, because in the end, there are only losers.

Similarly, if we act in a positive way and help others, we will not only make life better for them, but also for ourselves. This is true both online and offline.

Is Virtual Sin Like Real Sin?

Much of who we are today, including our confidence and self esteem are shaped by the stories that we listened to during childhood. These childhood stories teach us what values we should aspire to, and who we can be when we grow up.

What do childhood stories tell us about women? Let us see.

Childhood Story 1 – Legend of King Arthur

There is much to love about this compelling childhood story of a brave and young king; who together with his group of loyal knights, restore hope and goodness to his kingdom.

There is adventure, there is magic, there is romance, there are wars, and there are betrayals. One cannot help but fall in love with the many colorful characters in this childhood tale including Merlin the wise and magical advisor, Lancelot the shining knight and loyal servant to the king, and his son Galahad who is both chivalrous and pure.

Childhood Stories - Good or Bad for Girls?

Interesting what this childhood story conveys about the morality and motives of women.

There is beautiful Guinevere, Arthur’s queen. She betrays Arthur by having an affair with his chief knight Lancelot. Their adultery ultimately brings about Arthur’s fall. There is Elaine, Galahad’s mother, who tricks and seduces Lancelot into bedding her by pretending to be Guinevere.

Then there is Mogana le Fay, Arthur’s half-sister and a powerful enchantress. She is often portrayed as a key architect to Arthur’s downfall. In some stories, she is even cast as Mordred’s mother. She uses magic to seduce Arthur, then uses the son (Mordred) from their incestuous union, as a pawn to bring about Arthur’s end.

So there is Arthur, Lancelot, Galahad, and Merlin; all good, able, and special in their own way; helping to build a strong, just, and peaceful kingdom. Then there is Guinevere, weak at best, treacherous at worst; and of course the villainous, over-ambitious, Morgana. They both bring about Arthur’s fall, and the fall of Camelot.

Interesting what this childhood story conveys about the morality and motives of women.

But what of the women characters in this childhood story?

Childhood Story 2 – Troy and Her Wooden Horse

Aphrodite, the goddess of love made this extremely attractive woman, Helen, fall in love with a visiting prince of Troy.

This childhood story starts with a goddess called Eris. Eris, the goddess of strife and discord, was bored. So she came up with a plan to have some fun and create some strife and discord.

She presents a golden apple to three goddesses, Athena, Hera and Aphrodite. The fairest one of them would claim this golden prize. Their subsequent bickering over the golden apple put into motion a series of events which led to the Trojan War.

In essence, Aphrodite, the goddess of love made this extremely attractive woman, Helen, fall in love with a visiting prince of Troy, Paris.

Helen seduces the prince, betrays her husband Menelaus, and runs away with her new lover. The husband, Menelaus, is outraged, and together with his brother Agamemnon, goes to war with this foreign prince to reclaim his bride and regain his pride and dignity.

Menelaus and Agamemnon wage a war that lasts for 10 years against Troy that resulted in the deaths of many heroes. Troy finally falls as a result of a ruse that smuggled troops into the city with a Trojan horse. In the end, there is sadness, there is destruction, and everybody dies.

Just like Guinevere, Helen betrays her husband and brings about the fall of a nation.

What does this childhood story say about women and how do you think it could affect their self esteem?

Childhood Story 2 - Troy and Her Wooden Horse

Childhood Story 3 – Fairy Tale Princess

Finally, no childhood for a girl is complete, without reading the fairy tales of princesses in faraway lands.

There is Snow White, who is both beautiful and virtuous. In fact she is so beautiful, that her stepmother, the Queen, becomes jealous of her beauty, and hires a huntsman to kill her in the forest.

The huntsman, however, is unable to perform that evil deed, and Snow White ends up hiding in the forest with the seven dwarfs. The Queen discovers this, and manages to trick Snow White, and render her unconscious a total of three times.

Childhood Story 3 - Fairy Tale Princess

Snow White, for all her beauty, was not the sharpest girl on the block.

She keeps falling for her stepmother’s traps. Finally, she is saved by a handsome prince, who sweeps her away, marries her, imprisons the evil stepmother, and they live happily ever after.

There is Sleeping Beauty, who is cursed at birth by a jealous, evil, fairy. She is carefully protected by her father, the King, for most of her life. Unfortunately, before she celebrates her sixteenth birthday, she gets tricked by the wicked fairy, and falls into a deep sleep, as does the entire kingdom.

Many years later, a prince comes to the castle, and breaks the evil curse with a kiss. After saving Sleeping Beauty, they get married, and live happily ever after. In addition to Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty, there is also Cinderella, and many other princesses in distress.

Based on these stories, a proper princess spends her days being properly obedient, sitting around waiting, and sometimes hiding. This is because her evil stepmother is wicked, jealous, and up to no good.

Princesses are pretty, but unfortunately not very clever, so they easily get tricked by their stepmothers. Once tricked, they fall into a deep, helpless, swoon. Everything looks grim until the Prince arrives, saves the princess, and gives her a happy life.

Everything looks grim until the Prince arrives, saves the princess, and gives her a happy life.

What We Learn From Childhood Stories

1. Men are usually trying their best to do the right thing (e.g. Paris, Menelaus, Lancelot, Arthur, and even Mordred).
2. Men may sometimes lose their way, and inadvertently rape, pillage, and war, but that is because they are driven to it by seducing, treacherous, weak women (Guinevere, Helen) who betray them; or seducing, treacherous, strong women (Morgana) who betray them.
3. Women are either too weak, or too strong. The ones that are too weak give in to their baser instincts and cause the fall of man; the ones that are too strong, give in to their vanity and lust for power. Ultimately, both types of women are sinful, destroying everyone and everything.
4. Proper women (Princesses) are very pretty but not very clever. Therefore, they should stay home, hide, and wait to be saved. This happens when the man, i.e. “Prince” arrives, marries them, and gives them their happily every after.
5. Non-proper women (i.e. independent, assertive women), are jealous, ambitious, and wicked. These stepmothers and stepsisters hatch evil plans, which bring down calamity upon us all.

Until we change some of these powerful childhood stories and legends, it will be difficult to attain true equality for women. We often wonder why girls have self esteem issues, and why many women do not believe they can achieve as much as a man.

These childhood stories, that men tell, are a big part of the problem.

Do you think these childhood stories are good or bad for girls?

Fate or destiny refers to a predetermined sequence of events or outcomes.

Belief in fate implies that there is a higher force or being that defines these outcomes for its own mysterious purpose. It could be the God of a religion, some cosmic entity that we have yet to meet, or the consciousness of the universe itself.

Do You Believe in Fate or Destiny?

Why do we believe in fate?

Many of us believe in fate because it offers us comfort and security. When bad events occur, fate tells us that this is all part of a greater plan. This gives our tragedies meaning.

On the other hand, if all outcomes are written in stone, then we have no control of our own destinies. As a result, lack of free will may cause feelings of helplessness, and worthlessness, which can lead to depression. If we cannot change anything, then there is no point in trying, and no ownership of action.

What Fate gives, can be taken away just as quickly.

Why do we believe in fate?

Fate and Free Will

Fate and Free Will

A literal belief in fate usually precludes free-will. However, there are various non-literal interpretations that allow fate to coexist with independent action.

Here are 4 common interpretations of fate –

• Some believe that there are a predetermined finite set of outcomes. Our actions may allow us to change paths, but all the possible outcomes are fated.
• Some believe that what we choose is predetermined. In essence, all the choices that we make are already written in cosmic dust, and part of a larger plan. Although it may seem that we have free-will, our choices are simply an illusion.
• Some believe that fate refers to our inexorable drive to survive. This most basic instinct compels us to act in certain predetermined ways, which may be seen as a type of fate. More generally, our genetic code affects much of our future actions and decisions, and thus our fate.
• Some believe that the entire universe is deterministic, thus everything within it is deterministic as well (i.e., governed by a fixed set of physical laws). Given a set of initial conditions, we can accurately determine the outcomes based on these physical laws. This suggests that all of our fates were set at the start of the universe.

Do you think all of our fates were set at the start of the universe?

When considering fate and free will, it all comes down to level of detail.

If we believe that all our individual choices are predetermined by a deity, then there is only the illusion of free will. If we believe that fate exists at a higher level of granularity, for example through our genetic code or the physical laws of the universe, then there is wiggle room for personal freedom and achievement.

Even if the universe is deterministic, there is randomness at the individual level.

According to several standard interpretations of quantum mechanics, microscopic phenomena are objectively random.^[6] That is, in an experiment where all causally relevant parameters are controlled, there will still be some aspects of the outcome which vary randomly.

…

Individual events that are random may still be precisely described en masse, usually in terms of probability or expected value. … More simply, although a single toss of a fair coin cannot be predicted, its general behavior can be described by saying that if a large number of tosses are made, roughly half of them will show up heads.

~~[ Wikipedia ]

Most of us live short lives when compared to the age and movement of the universe, thus our lives exist in the brief random moments that the universe takes towards its fated end.

When considering fate and free will, it all comes down to level of detail.

The Two Sides of Fate

The Two Sides of Fate.

There are two sides to fate.

On the one hand it gives meaning to our tragedies. On the other hand, it takes meaning away from our accomplishments.

On the one hand it allows us not to take responsibility for our crimes. On the other hand, it takes away our motivation to act, and take control of our own life.

I believe that the universe is governed by a fixed set of physical laws and is deterministic. In this way, fate exists. However, I also believe that there is randomness between the start and end states of a complex system, which allows for free will.

We all know that our life on Earth will end, but it is all the steps in between that matter.

What do you think is fate or destiny?