“Destiny” is probably one of the most versatile words in our language. With several meanings and, therefore, several possible applications, it always appears when we talk about spirituality, philosophy or even when we are using a GPS device. But do you know what the meaning of the word “destiny” is? We have prepared an article to investigate the many meanings and origin of this word. Check out!
What can be understood as destiny?
Destiny, according to the dictionary, is “everything that is determined by providence or natural laws; luck, fado, fortune” or “what is to come, to happen; future". There is the use of the word as a goal or point of arrival – as in “Next week we are going to hit the road to the beach!” or “You've reached your destination!”, common in map and transport applications. But the phrases “It was fate that brought us together in this beautiful love story of ours”, “There was an accident, but fate allowed me not to get hurt”, “I won the lottery: who would have thought that this would be my destiny?” are some ways to exemplify the use of this word within the symbolic and philosophical view.
What is a person's destiny?
A person's fate is an inevitable end and is often interpreted as a mystical force, a supernatural law that determines someone's (or something's) future even before it happens.
The expressions “it was meant to be” and “it wasn't meant to be” are often used by a large part of society, and here the reference is to destiny itself. And if there is destiny, of course, there is no chance, because everything is already predestined, everything is already “written”, and a person's destiny is already and always was what it should be. But would it be possible to change the fate of things?
Where is free will in destiny?
If I have an object, for example, and I can choose what its fate will be, whether I'm going to throw it in the trash, keep it, throw it in the toilet or even set it on fire, its fate was already written or I I chose? How is the issue of free will if something is already predestined?
In some religions, fate is defended as God's plans that cannot be changed by humanity; in others, man is endowed with free will and can control his own actions and define his own decisions.
Freud's psychoanalysis demonstrated that man does not rule over himself and that, only from a work of analysis of the human mind, it is possible to understand what leads us to make a certain decision - in this case, free will, because we do not have awareness of our decisions: they are first made in our unconscious.
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What is chance in philosophy?
In philosophy, chance is defined as an event without objective, finality or motive of force majeure, without relation to the past, without being a consequence, without having something precedent. It is thus opposed to teleology (study of universal ends), predeterminism (supposition of the consequence of a cause) and determinism (different causal relationships).
Determinism posits that human actions are determined by a series of cause and effect. While weak determinism maintains a correlated balance between future and past, influenced by random events, strong determinism reiterates that there are no coincidental or chance events.
Something can be considered chance in one context and not in another. For example, a cell phone that malfunctions for no apparent reason is a fluke, as the cell phone should work. But if it doesn't work because it was accidentally exposed to rain, then its failure to work would not be a fluke, but a consequence of exposure to rain.
As explored in this article, there are a number of possible interpretations for the word “destiny”. It's up to you to study each one and reflect on which one matches the way you see life and manifest your spirituality. Remember: there is no absolute truth in the world, only what you believe!
