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--- In tiruvengadam@xxxx, "Sudarshan M.K." <sampathkumar_2000@xxxx> 
wrote:

Dear friends,

I came across the following article in the Times of India today. It is 
very interesting from the point of view of our ongoing discussions on 
"fate and free-will" as described in the religious literature of 
India.

Hope it is useful to all of you.
Regards,
dAsan,
Sudarshan

******* ********* *********


Where Fate Ends and Free Will Begins 

By Sudhanshu Ranjan

IS man the master of his own destiny? The debate has gone on
for ages, the one between fate and free will, and it at once
determines the difference between the 'exoteric' and the 'esoteric'
astrologer.

The former is a confirmed fatalist who believes that his life has been
mapped out before him, something over which he has no control. But the
esoteric astrologer believes that as a man sows, so he must reap 
because he is of the view that although 'the stars condition, they do 
not compel.' 

There are numerous instances where predictions have proved true 
despite all efforts to disprove them. David, son of Jesse, was once 
the favourite of Saul, King of Israel. But Saul, knowing that it was 
decreed that David, and not one of his sons would succeed him, sought 
to kill him, and David fled. Then in a great battle against the 
Philistines on the slopes of Giloba, the three sons of Saul were 
killed and a shattered Saul killed himself.

In the Yoga Vasishta the sage explains karma or action and phala or 
result to Rama and Lakshmana. Vasishta says that man gets the result 
of his own action and the result is the final outcome of reaction 
between one's action and one's environs. He finally says that if one 
doesn't get the proper result of one's action it is because of his 
actions in the previous life. 

In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna elucidates upon fate and free will 
when He admonishes Arjuna that he, Arjuna, should not shy away from 
killing his adversaries as he was only an agent and would be killing 
those already killed, which He could see but Arjuna could not. 

He further explains that not even a leaf moves without His will. Then 
how is the man responsible for his deeds and misdeeds? Sages would 
argue that this logic can be adduced only when one surrenders oneself 
completely to God. 

It is said that Ved Vyasa had himself made the horoscope of Duryodhana
and predicted that Duryodhana would be a great and invincible monarch, 
and have a long life. When Duryodhana was killed people asked Ved 
Vyasa why his prediction did not come true. Ved Vyasa replied that it 
was because of his unbecoming actions, which negated that beneficial 
impact of stars. 

The early sixteenth century Europe witnessed a fierce debate on the 
whole issue of fate versus free will with Martin Luther publishing his 
work on predestination and Desiderius Erasmus writing a book on free 
will against Luther's doctrine. Erasmus's critics replied in 
vituperative pamphlet, but later acknowledged ''the freedom of will in 
all men who have the use of reason''. Erasmus answered with an equally 
vitriolic pen and Luther confessed that he prayed for a curse upon 
Erasmus.

In the seventeenth century, witchcraft and astrology were completely 
banned in Britain. When William Lily Rose's prediction in 1646 that 
London would be razed by a devastating fire in 1661 came true he was 
tried by the House of Commons. People thought that Rose would be 
executed but that was not to be. He gave such a convincing reply that 
he was discharged with ''utmost civility''. Almost all the predictions 
done by Nostradamus long back in the sixteenth century have proved 
correct. 

The great astrological savant, Dr B V Raman's world predictions made 
Hindu astrology popular in the West. He had predicted World War II a 
year or two in advance. His famous book World Prospects in 1938- 1939 
was highly acclaimed. Dr Raman opined that astrology was a science of 
tendencies. Free will played an important role in human destiny which 
was entirely conditioned by past karma. 

Destiny could be broadly divided with two categories -the essentials 
and the non-essentials. Life events covered by the essentials were 
birth, death, marriage, career, parentage and status in life while the 
rest were non-essentials. Free will played its part on non-essential 
events when one would get the feeling of achievement. But no amount of 
human effort could prevent death. Its time, place and manner were 
pre-determined on the day one was born. 

Alan Leo has summarised this conflict between fate and free will: 

''Man is a spirit or to speak more correctly a soul, with a body. His 
'spirit' is free, immortal, undying and permanent, but his soul is 
imprisoned in the 'matter' or bodies, through which it manifests on 
the lower planes. Matter is ever changing, impermanent, limited and 
circumscribed, hence matter is fated while the spirit is free. Between 
motive and act, the spirit and the body (or 'matter') man's soul is at 
some times bound, at other times free -never wholly free, nor wholly 
bound, but linked to both states of existence by subtle bonds and thus 
ever harnessed to the circle or 'wheel' of necessity.'' 

(The Speaking Tree) 

****************************
--- End forwarded message ---






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