Can we Create or Change our Destiny

2nd Aug 2022 | Author - Viraj Malik

Is Destiny a predetermined course of events, or is it something flexible over which we have some control?

Approximately half of the world believes destiny is predetermined, while the other half believes one can shape their own destiny. 

There could be a paradox whereby both these viewpoints could be true, that  destiny is fixed as well as controllable. 

To understand this paradox, one has to accept and appreciate the nature of reality, the nature of the physical world, a world made of matter. Science has reached the conclusion that the physical world is made of atoms, and atoms are made of electrons, positrons, and neutrons. If one goes inside the atom, there is no matter, there is no mass,  it's only space. 

Intuitively, some of the ancient seers and Yogis like Yogananda Paramhansa  have said, “Matter is the grossest form of thought and thought is the subtlest form of matter.”

If we apply this to our daily lives, we would see that imagination, visualisation, desires and dreams are necessary for any kind of creation to work, so it may be true that our destiny does get created with our mind. However, all of us have flickering minds and not many of our thoughts and desires are powerful and deep within us. As a result, not much will power and action will get associated with such thoughts.

So our minds and thoughts are creating our reality. A lot of times, our past memories and experiences are creating our future. A lot of actions we take are in response to the present as perceived with the lenses of our beliefs and experiences. Actions we take today create the future, so definitely we have a role to play in creating the future we want.

However, can one create any future ? Or is there something predetermined which is destiny?

With experience, one would realize that only  dreams, desires and persistent actions are sometimes not enough for us to achieve the desired results, and destiny seems to be already fixed with us having a little control over it. 

Ancient Seers and Yogi contemplated this, and I fully relate to the analogy of a cow tied to a  rope. We are like a cow tied to a rope. We are free to do anything within the length of the rope. However, the length of the rope is decided by life. As we practice Yoga we are able to bring greater alignment of our own mind and body with life and that gives us more control over our destiny.

So there is a paradox indeed. Destiny is changeable as well as fixed, fixed to the extent of the rope we are tied with, and we are free to choose within the circumference of the rope we are tied with.

With Yoga we can keep stretching the rope longer and longer till we are completely free and liberated.