Free Will & Responsibility

 

Fate & Free Will

When using any form of divination, it is not long before the age-old question of 'Is it Fate or Free Will?' rears its head. The immediate answer is 'Both', for very little is entirely fated, and free will is invariably conditioned by forces beyond one's control. No means of divination can state that such and such will definitely happen or will not happen.

The whole issue of fate and free will is perfectly demonstrated with our Nautical Analogy. Your free will is a sail boat that has as its main equipment a compass, rudder, sails and a chart. Fate is the open sea with its tides and currents, the occasional landmass, and the wind and weather. The boat itself is your personality, with its talents, intelligence, mobility and sensitivity. Its equipment is your sense of direction and purpose (compass), the ability to steer yourself (rudder), some idea of where you are, where you came from and where it is you are bound (chart), and the means of getting there (sails, oars). The open sea, weather, other boats and any landfalls are what bring you the events, encounters and conditions of your life.

The Astrological Oracle, Divining your future, securing your present, resolving your past - by Lyn Birkbeck

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Q: Is there such a thing as free will?

A: Whose will is it? So long as there is a sense of doership (ego), there is a sense of enjoyment and of individual will. But if this sense is lost through the practice of vichara, the divine will will act and guide the course of events. Fate is overcome by jnana, Self-knowledge, which is beyond will and fate.

Q: What becomes of a man's freedom and responsibility for his actions?

A: The only freedom man has is to strive for and acquire the jnana which will enable him not to identify himself with the body. The body will go through the actions rendered inevitable by prarabdha (past karma) and a man is free either to identify with the body and be attached to the fruits of its actions, or to be detached from it and be a mere witness of it's activities.

Q: So free will is a myth?

A: Free will holds the field in association with individuality. As long as individuality lasts there is free will. All the scriptures are based on this fact and they advise on directing the free will in the right channel.

Find out to whom free will or destiny matters. Find out where they come from, abide in their source. If you do this, both of them are transcended. That is the only purpose of discussing these questions. To whom do these questions arise? Find out and be at peace.

Q: If what is destined to happen will happen, is there any use in prayer or efffort or should we just remain idle?

A: There are only two ways to conquer destiny or be independent of it. One is to enquire for whom is this destiny and discover that only the ego is bound by destiny and not the Self, and that the ego is non-existant.

The other way is to kill the ego by completely surrendering to the Lord, by realizing one's helplessness and saying all the time, 'Not I but thou, O Lord' giving up all sense of 'I' and 'mine' and leaving it to the Lord to do what he likes with you. Surrender can never be regarded as complete so long as a devotee wants this or that from the Lord. True surrender is the Love of God for the sake of love and nothing else, not even for the sake of liberation. In other words, complete effacement of the ego is necessary to conquer destiny, whether you achieve this effacement through self enquiry or through bhakti marga.

....Destiny is the result of past action. It concerns the body. Let the body act as may suit it. Why are you concerned with it? Why do you pay attention to it? Should anything happen, it happens as a result of past actions, of divine will and other factors.

Above excerpted from 'Be as You Are - The Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi' edited by David Godman.

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"Know what you can change in life, know what you can't, and have the wisdom to know the difference in between the two." (AA)

"Your full understanding of responsibility is required, much depends on it"

1. Responsibility is an ego trip
2. Responsibility is necessary to develop the creative aspect of ego. It is positive
3. Ultimately God, the beyond is responsible for every detail of everything, even your ego
4. Enlightenment can only happen in let go
5. Response-ability is the ability to respond not react.
6. Responsibility is not duty
7. Responsibility is not being good
8. Responsibility is not fulfilling the needs of others
9. Responsibility is the ability to respond appropriately"

Responsibility is essential up to the third body. From the fourth to the fifth body, the jump only happens in surrender.

You have to believe in free will, you have no choice. Free will is part of ego, good for creating and manifesting but existentially incorrect.

"Practically, you are responsible for living in harmony with your neighbours.

Spiritually, you understand that nothing is in your hands. You allow the energy of the moment to guide you in all things, with the awareness that this is a gift from Source."

Above excerpted from 'The New Dawn', by Maitreya Ishwara

 

Divine Will

Many of our own wills are too demanding and need to grow up.

'Deep inside us there exists a spark of divine will, God's will. Many people experience divine will as outside of themselves. This means must always find someone else to tell them what to do. This leads to worthlessness. I have found that the spark of Divine Will exists within every human being. it is essential that you allow time to search for it inside until you find it. It is there you are not the exception.'

What are Laws of Nature?

"I would here remind you that a law is, in reality, the effect of the life of a greater entity as it encloses a lesser within its living processes. It embodies that formulated purpose or organized will of an enfolding life, against which the expressed purpose or determined will of that which is enfolded is entirely helpless. You might argue, brother of mine, that this statement negates the free will of the individual unit thus enclosed or enfolded. It assuredly does militate against the form aspect of manifestation - that aspect, for instance, of which a human being is pre-eminently conscious. Therefore, this relationship of the higher or greater and the lower or lesser, will equally and assuredly dominate and eventually render futile the lesser laws of the form nature, those which today are called the laws of nature."

Djwhal Khul

Conclusion

this is a difficult paradox - on one hand - create own reality - on other hand surrender to higher will

Do both! Pick a mutual goal! Be spiritually selfish! Always aim for Win-Win

If your creative gifts need discipline then go and learn - that's your end of the bargain

Emmanuel said,"Your will and God's will are the same .......when something brings you joy and fulfillment, it is the will of God speaking through your own heart."

Source: Hands of Light, B. A. Brennan

Whatsoever you do - always check your motivations! - are you acting for self ( greed, desire, hate, fear etc.) , for others or for both.

Whatever you do Live in accordance with spiritual laws - have faith, trust, integretity & honesty, endurance & patience, compassion, acceptance, understanding etc.

Even dedicate everything you do to God - karma yoga (service to others)

Bhatki Yoga - devotion

 

related pages:

• fate
• ego
• karma
• service to others
• developing virtues
• G-D
• True Purpose
• Intuition