when things are 'meant to be'
in times of uncertainty, i have oft found myself to voice the phrase "if it is meant to be...". what really does it mean? is it something quite as abstract as magic or is there more to it? i propose, hereby, a definition: when the varied forces involved in the "meant to be" situation act independently and with their intended purpose on earth, they follow their own path. when these paths intersect, the combination is "meant to be".
this sounds a little too abstract (read poorly phrased) to me, so i shall attempt to expound: there was a time when berkeley and i had been put into that box of "if it is meant to be...". but was it solely about ordinances? i think not. in this case, my path met with berkeley's (or so i believe) because there was an intersection between my chosen path and berkeley's chosen path - independently of each other's, but in harmony. perhaps this is an oversimplification of the situation, but it makes a little more sense to me. it also involves a certain channeling of a certain energy in a certain direction. ultimately, all that is in our control is that we continue to move forward, channeling our energies with a loyalty to our purpose, to our existence on this earth. this path of our movement must be defined by ourselves alone, based on our inner compass, our morals, beliefs and ideals. once we are on this path and in touch with ourselves, i believe we can be fairly confident that what is meant to be, for us, will indeed be.
this sounds a little too abstract (read poorly phrased) to me, so i shall attempt to expound: there was a time when berkeley and i had been put into that box of "if it is meant to be...". but was it solely about ordinances? i think not. in this case, my path met with berkeley's (or so i believe) because there was an intersection between my chosen path and berkeley's chosen path - independently of each other's, but in harmony. perhaps this is an oversimplification of the situation, but it makes a little more sense to me. it also involves a certain channeling of a certain energy in a certain direction. ultimately, all that is in our control is that we continue to move forward, channeling our energies with a loyalty to our purpose, to our existence on this earth. this path of our movement must be defined by ourselves alone, based on our inner compass, our morals, beliefs and ideals. once we are on this path and in touch with ourselves, i believe we can be fairly confident that what is meant to be, for us, will indeed be.
6 comments:
Hmm...not sure of this...e.g., berkeley wuz in your chosen path to begin with, so they weren't independent paths. Also, what does it mean for paths to intersect? Paths are constantly intersecting, whether or not people or things are actively pursuing (or even aware of) their purpose...by this definition then everything would be meant to be, no?
oh i see...only those paths that intersect when people/things are actively pursuing their purpose correspond to events that are meant to be?
in my perhaps limited definition, yes. also, this applies across the time continuum, not just temporal.
but i'm still thinking about this, and if i need to hone it better (and how).
Yes, adu, i think what you said about purpose is the key to this notion of "meant to be". I believe that everything in this world has a fundamental purpose to its existence. Most beings - inanimate and animate - though, have neither the knowledge of their purpose nor the ability to go against that. So the purpose of the seed is to grow into a plant, blossom into beautiful flowers and bear fruit. And if provided the right set of circumstances and conditions - soil, water, sunlight - it cannot but fulfill that purpose, that destiny.
Humans, on the other hand, have free will and the choice to go against that for which they are destined. If we did not have this free will, we would just do what we were naturally intended to do, like all of nature out there. However, because we have choices, we sometimes do things that were not "meant to be". And that becomes abundantly clear eventually in the consequences. As long as we make decisions that align us with our fundamental nature (which, i believe, is a spiritual nature) and purpose (which, I believe relates to our relationship with God and service to Him and others), they will lead us to that which was "meant to be".
Anyway, I stress all the above because too often people assume that when we say something was "meant to be", that we have no choice in the matter, and that everything is completely predestined - and it takes away human free will. However I think destiny has little to do with free will, and more with purpose.
n: this comment is a beautiful post in itself. well said.
This is a question I've been thinking about in recent months as well, so thanks for posting your latest thinking on it here.
Two additional aspect of this "meant to be", in my opinion, which are related to this idea of choice and purpose, are openness and purpose. This relates to what we were talking about this weekend, Neha, re: setting intentions for what is "meant to be" (which I understand to mean that which leads to our highest spiritual growth in the long run), making our best effort, and then being open to seeing what is for our highest good, which often only becomes apparent in hindsight after a period of contemplation.
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