I find this week's challenge from ecoTrain very interesting and thought-provoking. Indeed, since the time I discovered this community, I have found the weekly challenges thought-stimulating.
In a way, each challenge has helped me to consider critically some of my personal opinions pertaining to the questions that was raised.
When you consider the belief in destiny and the belief in the law of Karma, it appears at the surface that these two beliefs are conflicting but they are not.
For my readers to understand my point of view properly, I will consider this week's challenge under three subheadings:
The Creator's conferment on us all
Nature teaches us that birds are destined or endowed with the ability to fly, fishes with the ability to swim, seeds with the ability to produce after their kinds and human beings with the ability to be happy.
This natural endowment or conferment by the creator or God is what we call destiny. The best way to illustrate this concept for everyone to understand is to use the example of a seed.
The seed of corn is destined or endowed with the ability to produce corn, the seed of apple to produce apple and so on and so forth.
A seed of corn cannot produce yam no matter how much it tries. Why? its lacks the ability to do so or to put it in the context of the topic we are considering, it is not destined to do so.
Every human being, like every seed, is unique and has distinctive ability or innate potential to become a certain type of useful person in the course of his or her lifetime by the ordination of the creator. In other words, God or the creator of all things has destined every individual person on earth to be useful in a unique way.
Spiritual people know the importance of discovering their destinies as early as possible so they can fulfill it. Of a truth, there are certain parameters that are indicators of what destiny an individual is to fulfill in life.
Here are just two examples of such indicators:
A person's gifts and graces: Some things comes easily to some people. They have a knack for doing such things. Other people may have difficulty doing the said things or struggle to do it, but a person that have been destined by God to accomplished such useful task find it much easier and enjoyable to do.
To be specific, teaching, singing, writing, speaking, selling, buying, meeting people, constructing, to name just a few, are gifts and graces that God bestowed or conferred on people at varying degrees depending on each individual's destiny.
All things being equal, a fish does not struggle to swim, a bird does not struggle to fly, a seed of corn does not struggle to produce corn nor a seed of wheat to produce wheat because they have been destined by God the creator to do these things.
I personally believe that I have been destined by God to teach people to be godly and useful in life. I have been privileged to receive unsolicited comments from both my acquaintances and complete strangers as to my usefulness in teaching people on a number of occasions.
Personally, teaching comes naturally to me. I enjoy it, especially if it relates to spirituality and usefulness.
A person's heart music and personality: An individual heart desire, their greatest passion and personality may be a strong indicator of his or her destiny.
A bird is given its wings to fly, a fish has features that enable it to swim almost effortlessly.
I think I have written enough on this first point, let's consider the second point now viz:
Our choice of our character
The law of Karma is also known as the law of sowing and reaping. Whatever a person sows, he or she will definitely reap. Nobody cheats on nature, ultimately.
The question is, if we are destined by God, how do we explain the law of Karma or the law of sowing and reaping?
The answer for me is rather simple. God does not destine our character, it is purely our choice. The analogy of a seed will help us in understanding this point clearly.
Though a seed of corn has the ability, the natural endowment or destiny of producing corn when planted, it is not guaranteed that the seed will produce corn when planted.
Why? Oh! because of several other factors such as the condition of the soil it is planted, the possibility of attack by pathogen and birds, the effect of weeds and the likes. All these factors can stop or limit a seed of corn from reaching its potential or destiny.
In like manner, a person's choice of character- habits, attitude and way of life, which is absolutely the individual's responsibility, can aid or limit and even truncate his or her destiny.
Destiny therefore is not something that is absolutely unalterable or fixed as many people think.
To be more personal and specific, I stated earlier that, I am destined by God to teach people to be godly and useful in life. Now, supposing that I became irresponsible with my character, and I defiled a minor, which may lead me to jail, where I may be unable to fulfill my destiny or my ability to do so may become limited.
That wouldn't mean that God destined me to go to the prison but that by my act of indiscipline, I landed myself in jail.
Or suppose that I decided not to develop myself by going to school or learning, that wouldn't mean that God destined me to be uneducated or limited but I have to reap the consequence of my bad decision.
Finally, let me summarize this discourse with this last thought:
The consequence of our choices
Destiny relates to our potential, endowment, innate ability and their corresponding possibilities. It is a matter wherein we have no choice as it is ordained by God.
Our character, attitude however are our choices and responsibility over which we exercise absolute control. This is the realm where the law of Karma or sowing and reaping work. The law of Karma is ineffectual with respect to our innate ability which the creator confer on us at birth.
I think I have been able to reconcile the seeming conflict between the law of Karma and destiny in this blog.
Thank you for stopping by.