As human beings, the apex predators and perhaps the most intelligent life forms in the universe known to us, it becomes paramount to believe in something, to have a dogma or a set of principles to follow as the bedrock on which we build our lives. it might not seem necessary or opportune to do so in the early stages of life, but, as we struggle against the world, against the ones closest to us and, to a fair extent, against ourselves, it becomes obvious that a tether is needed to bring us back to sanity at the end of it all. That tether is our belief - in ourselves, in a higher power, in the powers of nature, in our soulmates, in love, in power - in whatever we can seek comfort in. Belief is not something where one size can fit all. It is an extremely personal choice and should be exercised with ample freedom tempered with necessary guidance.
When it comes to beliefs, broadly speaking, there are fatalists and then there are those who emphasize on individualism. If you are sitting in quiet contemplation, thinking of how you should tackle this problem called life, you have perhaps these two options - you go all "Carpe Diem" on life, believing that every decision, every action of yours contributes to your destiny, and to the fate of the entire universe in an additive manner; or you can kick your feet up on a hammock, believing that a higher power has charted a course for you and, no matter what you do, you will sail along that route. Now, both of these approaches are sound and both of them have their flaws.
When dealing with the individualistic approach, it helps people carve a better living because they have a motive to work towards their betterment. Each and every second, each and every action, each and every decision, each and every word influences the outcome of what our lives can be, or so the approach warrants us to believe. So, people strive to make themselves better - kinder, smarter, hard working, honest - in the quest to conquer destiny, to have the liberty to mould and shape our lives as per our will. The problem here, however, is that, assuming there is no fatalistic end point predetermined for each of us, life across the universe is extremely complex. Imagine the smallest fragment of time you possibly can - fractions of a nanosecond if you will - that is a function defined by a polynomial equation with billions of variables and an order tending to infinity. Out of those innumerable variables, you are one. Your actions, in the grand scheme of things (defined by that unimaginable polynomial), are as close to insignificant as you can imagine. No matter how hard you strive to achieve a goal, the outcome will depend on so many other factors that you cannot control. That is where the motivation of people dies - when mathematical exactitude fails. We, humans, are selfish little pricks too often. We expect an exact return to our efforts, failing which, we are quick to render any associated beliefs as false, without truly understanding the underlying intricacies of the complex nature of individualism.
Fatalism seems the more convenient of the two. Life becomes multiple orders of magnitude simpler when you believe that the path to all the goals that you need to achieve has been charted for you as soon as you were born, that you will not achieve anything less or anything more than that, irrespective of what you do, say or think. Every action you take, every decision you make, every word you say has been scripted by a higher power - your actions are not your own, neither your thoughts, nor you words. You are merely a vessel, sailing along the course determined for you, towards a destination already defined for you. Every person has their own journey, their own goals, their own troubles. This belief precludes the quest for mortal greatness, negating any motivation for individuals to achieve something beyond their measure, thereby ending the constant need for us to strive for improvement. The universe, a ball of hot stars, empty spaces and a handful of living beings, is bouncing along a curve define by a specific constant equation and we have to go along. But, if we are not striving to improve as a species, we will give in to a nihilistic craving that is caved within us and destory ourselves given ample time. Perhaps that would what destiny picked for the human race. But then, again, our decisions do matter. In the immediate plan of things, what we decide alters the course of the goings-on around us. It might not all be deterministic after all.
What then is the middle path? Perhaps a belief in a margin for deviations from the predestined course that has been set for us? That we can influence the smaller scale of things to an extent but the larger scheme of things remains unaffected, irrespective of our struggles and ambitions? That we can alter the scale of our success or compound the intensity of our failures based on our actions and decisions? What else is there is not a belief in higher powers and a call to action?
When it comes to beliefs, broadly speaking, there are fatalists and then there are those who emphasize on individualism. If you are sitting in quiet contemplation, thinking of how you should tackle this problem called life, you have perhaps these two options - you go all "Carpe Diem" on life, believing that every decision, every action of yours contributes to your destiny, and to the fate of the entire universe in an additive manner; or you can kick your feet up on a hammock, believing that a higher power has charted a course for you and, no matter what you do, you will sail along that route. Now, both of these approaches are sound and both of them have their flaws.
When dealing with the individualistic approach, it helps people carve a better living because they have a motive to work towards their betterment. Each and every second, each and every action, each and every decision, each and every word influences the outcome of what our lives can be, or so the approach warrants us to believe. So, people strive to make themselves better - kinder, smarter, hard working, honest - in the quest to conquer destiny, to have the liberty to mould and shape our lives as per our will. The problem here, however, is that, assuming there is no fatalistic end point predetermined for each of us, life across the universe is extremely complex. Imagine the smallest fragment of time you possibly can - fractions of a nanosecond if you will - that is a function defined by a polynomial equation with billions of variables and an order tending to infinity. Out of those innumerable variables, you are one. Your actions, in the grand scheme of things (defined by that unimaginable polynomial), are as close to insignificant as you can imagine. No matter how hard you strive to achieve a goal, the outcome will depend on so many other factors that you cannot control. That is where the motivation of people dies - when mathematical exactitude fails. We, humans, are selfish little pricks too often. We expect an exact return to our efforts, failing which, we are quick to render any associated beliefs as false, without truly understanding the underlying intricacies of the complex nature of individualism.
Fatalism seems the more convenient of the two. Life becomes multiple orders of magnitude simpler when you believe that the path to all the goals that you need to achieve has been charted for you as soon as you were born, that you will not achieve anything less or anything more than that, irrespective of what you do, say or think. Every action you take, every decision you make, every word you say has been scripted by a higher power - your actions are not your own, neither your thoughts, nor you words. You are merely a vessel, sailing along the course determined for you, towards a destination already defined for you. Every person has their own journey, their own goals, their own troubles. This belief precludes the quest for mortal greatness, negating any motivation for individuals to achieve something beyond their measure, thereby ending the constant need for us to strive for improvement. The universe, a ball of hot stars, empty spaces and a handful of living beings, is bouncing along a curve define by a specific constant equation and we have to go along. But, if we are not striving to improve as a species, we will give in to a nihilistic craving that is caved within us and destory ourselves given ample time. Perhaps that would what destiny picked for the human race. But then, again, our decisions do matter. In the immediate plan of things, what we decide alters the course of the goings-on around us. It might not all be deterministic after all.
What then is the middle path? Perhaps a belief in a margin for deviations from the predestined course that has been set for us? That we can influence the smaller scale of things to an extent but the larger scheme of things remains unaffected, irrespective of our struggles and ambitions? That we can alter the scale of our success or compound the intensity of our failures based on our actions and decisions? What else is there is not a belief in higher powers and a call to action?
