Human Free Will, Fate and God’s Action

Human lives in Aeined’s Book II

Human lives in Aeined’s Book II are formed in certain ways by three forces: human acts, fate, and divine intervention. Destiny is the force that causes death to occur in the midst of life. Every human being will eventually come to an end. Because the gods are said to be all-powerful, not even they can save a man from death; fate takes control and makes death the ultimate conclusion for all humans. While fate can be viewed as determining the destined destination that everyone must reach, the experiences that humans face throughout their life whether easy or difficult, full of shame or glory, it all depends on the action of God and human being. Sometimes, when human beings are facing a certain epidemic, it is viewed as the work of God against them that in some way can be as a result of them having angered God. An instance is when Aeneas lost his wife Creusa and him having to exile his homeland after attempting Helen’s life (Sowell et al., 311). In such instances like that, the wrath of God tends to affect a man like family disputes, natural disaster, the alter humans’ life but does not stop them from doing what they what they choose as being best for themselves.

Sometimes human beings can be favored by the work of God

Sometimes human beings can be favored by the work of God as when Creusa tells Aeneas that he will receive great richness in his foreign land. In some cases, the free will of humans and God’s intervention can at times result in unpleasing events or circumstances. In the case of Aeneas, Venus made him free his home as an act of saving his life while it would have been seen as being more appropriate for Aeneas to punish Helen for being part of Troy’s accomplice.

Human beings as the link between earth and heaven

In many spiritual traditions, human beings are described as being the link between earth and heaven. This issue has created a controversy on how an individual is supposed to integrate that divine consciousness and great awareness to being a habitual or karmas pattern or as fate or destiny that has been brought out of oneself unconscious experience (Dilman and Ilham 230). To explain such an occasion, one can consider the capacity in each human being to understand one’s conditioned experience, and the capacity of an individual to bring an experience to a greater awareness. As an individual developed the ability to observe and decipher the conditioned experience, one develops a better awareness that contains and embraces that aspect of one that is determined by karma, conditioning and what can be described as fate.

The question of free will and destiny

The term free implies that one has the freedom of doing whatever one desires or deems to be right. As in the case of Aeneas, he found it being fair to kill Helen as a way of making her pay for her deeds. What human beings do is influenced by their surrounding environment or experience hence indicating that one is not free. One lives in a universe that is created by different conditions and causes. However, there is an aspect of one consciousness that is free, and that can make a choice and maintain a sense of direction in all kind of situations (Kaku and Michio 78). The question of free will and destiny creates a great controversy when one believes in fate; one limits his or herself by creating an illusion that what has been decided by a being of higher authority or by an experience leads to his or her future experiences in life, hence, limiting oneself. From a different perspective rather than that of fate, when people believe in free will, they deny the fact that they cannot do whatever they wish. There are conditions that one cannot escape in life, and that one has to take account of in the world and oneself.

Control over destiny

On the issue of destiny, it sounds more logical to say that human beings make and does not control their destiny. Events that happen in humans’ life may not be pre-ordained but comes with a power that results in a good destiny. This can be viewed in the cause and effects with which the life events work. Every human being experiences rough and smooth events throughout the lifetime. While one is young till youth, it may not be felt since one does not have responsibilities or are less but with time and age, this changes and one starts experiencing pressure and pain which is so obvious (Dilman and Ilham 144). Human beings can control their destiny; they have the power to create the life that they want and work extra hard to achieve what looked as dreams only.

Ultimate choice over life

Jewish tradition assumes that humans have ultimate choice over their life, mostly when it comes to the relationship with God. God might curse or punish, but humans have the ultimate choice of determining their fate. At times people take the initiatives of negotiating with God. An instance is the case of Abraham in the Bible; Abraham negotiates for the conditions under which Sodom and Gomorrah are to be saved (Dilman and Ilham 321). The modern societal structure is grounded on the concept that human beings have the choice and ability to make a choice and that we suffer the consequences and rewards of choices we make in our lives.

The power and will of God

The question whether it is fate, free will or God that controls human life can also be viewed from another perspective. According to some scholars, issue of fate and free will controlling the life of human being can be viewed as being theoretical. They also consider them as being mere philosophical formulation and view God’s will being the only reality in the view of what controls human life. God’s power on human life is viewed as being infallible, the only truth and power in that control human lives. They argue that it is through God’s power and will that nature is balanced and behind everything that takes place God’s power and will is absolute (Sowell et al., 309). They view God’s will and power being in every life and creation, as the living force and the reason for its existence of the universe. Fate and free will are viewed as being human ego. It is considered as being mere vanity which makes man claim a credit of his success. It is through human being vanity that makes him disclaim all responsibility for his failure and blame supernatural forces. Both the success and failure of can be viewed as a result of God. The success or failure of man is as a result of God’s will. They view the will of God being supreme and the power that upholds the universe.

Conclusion

According to the discussion, humans are controlled by a combination of fate, free will and the actions of God. While fate can be viewed as determining the destined destination that everyone must reach, the experiences that humans face throughout their life whether easy or difficult, full of shame or glory, it all depends on the action of God and human being.

Work Cited

Dilman, Ilham. Free will: An historical and philosophical introduction. Routledge, 2013.

Kaku, Michio. Physics of the future: How science will shape human destiny and our daily lives by the year 2100. Anchor, 2012.

Sowell, Elizabeth R., et al. “Mapping cortical change across the human life span.” Nature neuroscience 6.3 (2003): 309.