Destination destiny..

My drive to and from office the last few days has been rather interesting with Madhavi and I sharing our thoughts on rather profound subjects...so a disclaimer has to be mentioned that all things written here are my own musings and have not been construed by any workings of black magic, evil forces or political parties - of course, they can be classified as evil forces :p !

The topic that really got us into an animated discussion was related to something that seems to have left both of us at a loss for words and reasoning is "destiny". This word that is frequently used whenever we witness an accident, failure or even success has been taken too lightly by a lot of us for many years..but what exactly is this word that consoles the grieving or the jealous? Is it an irresistible power or agency that determines the future, whether in general or of an individual? Or is it a concept based on the belief that there is a natural order to the universe?(courtesy wikipedia) After a lot of confabulation with my "friend, philosopher and guide": google(!), I realised that all religious texts, be it the Quran, Bible or Bhagavat Geetha, advocate the same philosophy.... that destiny is something that is governed by a supreme body- all mortal and nonliving beings have been sent here with their end written clearly, with no doubts whatsoever. Islam calls destiny as divine knowledge with the world's trajectory pre ordained and things are moving with a specific purpose http://www.islambyquestions.org/destiny/meaning.htm. Then the bible also mentions somethings in the same light...that a lot of things that are meant to happen, will, however, it will be unseen by the human eye..this pre structured path of life, is destiny according to this holy scripture. http://www.seekgod.org/bible/destiny.html What does our very own home-made Bhagawat Geetha say to all this? It is rather interesting...the scripture says that dharma, artha, kama and moksha are 4 things that can be controlled by man..and thus control his actions..so in a manner of speaking, things can be under our control....however there is a 5th...to throw a spanner in the works..that of daiva..something that cannot be controlled by our freewill or choice...http://www.boloji.com/perspective/080.htm When I was reading all these articles, I realised that destiny is something that has already been set for us...our mere presence is meant for a reason..that every single word we utter or person we meet is meant to happen!!!

However, when I introspect, I realise that for me, destiny is the destination..not my journey...destiny to me, is what I will eventually do in my life..not how I do it. I know that I am here for a reason..to contribute to the happenings and eventual end of this world in my own small way....but how I go about doing it, is completely under my control. "It was destiny, this was bound to happen" : are words that seem to confuse me whenever I hear them...is this a way of convincing ourselves and wallowing in our own mediocrity, a convenient excuse to refrain from trying harder the next time to succeed...? I have heard its usage in terms of a defeatist's attitude...but that is not what destiny is meant to be..what if our destiny lies in our trying harder and achieving the unachieved...what if great things are in store for us, but we have just found a work around from preventing ourselves from experiencing the thrill of it all? Madhavi added a new thought to this topic..she said that for her, destiny is, along with the destination, the choice of paths offered to her to reach the end....the paths are all there...all leading to the same end...however, which one she chooses is under her control..and that is the unpredictable aspect of life.

Finally, I am YET to find an answer to this...what did Nehru mean when he said that India had its tryst with destiny? What did Martin Luther King mean when he said that the black americans must stop accepting the injustice as their fate? What did Lance Armstrong mean, that take destiny by its horn, not by its tail?.....