On Fate, Faith, and Freedom

I. God

I don't believe in any particular religion, even though I was born Hindu. I don't believe in Hindu mythology, Christianity, Sikhism, or Islam as literal accounts of how the world works. I believe in science, creation, and evolution. Maybe we are all here because of a coincidence. Maybe there is a divine force behind everything. I don't know, and I don't pretend to have the answers.

One of the reasons I struggle to believe in God is history. I've studied history in detail, and I've seen the violence, cruelty, and suffering that human beings have inflicted on one another throughout the ages. If God exists and is just, why do so many people get away with doing terrible things? Why do people commit crimes, steal from others, and cause suffering without ever facing the consequences? I find it difficult to believe in a God who is morally just when so much injustice goes unanswered.

That doesn't necessarily mean I reject the idea of something divine. I simply don't know what that might be.

At the same time, I respect other people's faith. Growing up, I've come to understand how important religion can be to people, especially during difficult times. Faith gives people hope and comfort when life becomes too much to handle. I understand why people turn to God when they are afraid, lost, or struggling.

If I'm being honest with myself, I sometimes do the same. When I'm afraid to face a problem, I turn to religion and hope that something outside of me will make things better. But as I've grown older, I've started to question this habit. How many of my problems can I solve myself instead of asking God to solve them for me? If I want something, shouldn't I work towards it rather than simply pray for it?

I want to take responsibility for my own life instead of leaving things to fate or divine intervention.

Today, I think of spirituality less in terms of religion and more in terms of how I choose to live. I want to be a good person, to do right by others, to be kind, and to help when I can. I want to strive for greater things without being ashamed of who I am. I want to be as fair and morally just as I can, even when doing the right thing is difficult.

Perhaps I don't need to know whether God exists to live a good life. Perhaps what matters more is how I choose to live the life I have.

II. The Problem of Suffering

I think there are two kinds of suffering in life.

The first is the suffering that comes from trying to achieve something. When your basic needs are taken care of, you have the freedom to pursue your dreams, work towards your goals, and build the life you want. That kind of suffering is a part of life, and I think it can be meaningful.

The second kind is much harder to accept. It is the suffering of people who are simply trying to survive. People who don't have a roof over their heads, who struggle to afford food or healthcare, or who don't even have the basic necessities of life. They don't have the same starting point as others, and they often don't have the freedom to think about their dreams or passions because they are too busy trying to get by.

It breaks my heart to see so many people living this way. And this is where I struggle with the idea of God the most. If God exists and is just, why should anyone have to suffer like this? Why should some people have to fight for the most basic things while others have more than enough? I find it difficult to reconcile this kind of suffering with the idea of a just and good God.

If there is no God, then I think we have to create our own meaning in life. We can choose how we want to live, what we want to believe in, and what kind of life we want to build. We can find people who share our values, passions, and goals and build something meaningful with them.

Some people want to get married and have children. Others don't. Some want a particular kind of relationship, while others want something entirely different. I don't think there is one right answer to these questions, and I don't believe we should force our choices on others.

What bothers me is when people think their way of living is superior to everyone else's. We can disagree with each other without expecting others to live according to our beliefs. I don't believe anyone owes us their agreement, and I don't think we have the right to dictate how someone else should live their life.

Of course, I have my own political beliefs, and I do think some political ideologies are better than others. But I see a difference between political ideas and personal choices about how to live. When it comes to things like marriage, children, relationships, and personal values, I think people should have the freedom to make their own choices.

At the end of the day, I think we should let people live the way they want to, as long as they don't harm others. We don't all need to agree on what makes life meaningful. We just need to respect each other's freedom to find that meaning for ourselves.

III. Morality

I think morality is subjective. It changes depending on the civilization you are born into and the time in which you live.

Take the Vikings, for example. Raiding other tribes, taking their resources, killing their men, and taking their women and children was a part of their way of life. These actions were normal within their society. They didn't necessarily see them through the same moral lens that we use today. Perhaps it was about survival, power, or simply the way their world worked.

The Romans were similar. They expanded their empire by conquering lands and people. Julius Caesar was a brilliant military and political mind who understood how to build systems and govern a state. Yet he was also responsible for the deaths of countless people in pursuit of his territorial ambitions. He didn't seem to have a problem with killing entire tribes and civilizations to expand Rome.

Maybe these actions were considered normal at the time. Perhaps the people who lived in those civilizations had a completely different understanding of right and wrong. And perhaps I am judging them through the lens of the society I was born into.

This is why I struggle to believe that morality is objective. What one civilization considers acceptable, another might consider wrong. What was normal centuries ago might be unacceptable today. Our understanding of right and wrong changes with time, culture, and the circumstances in which we live.

I also find it difficult to reconcile the idea of objective morality with my doubts about God. If God existed and had established a universal moral order, I would expect there to be some clear rules governing right and wrong, along with some form of justice in which our actions had consequences. But when I look at history, I don't see that kind of consistent justice.

Perhaps morality is something humans developed to live together, build societies, and establish rules for how we should treat one another. Perhaps there is no single, universal answer to what is right and wrong.

IV. Free Will

I think free will is a complicated question, and I don't have a definite answer.

Take Napoleon, for example. He came from Corsica and went on to become the Emperor of France. His ambition, work ethic, and willingness to act on his goals played a huge role in getting him there. I believe he made choices that changed the course of his life.

But what if his parents had never sent him to French military school? Would he still have become the military leader we know today? Perhaps not. His circumstances gave him opportunities that helped shape his future. So how much of his success came from his own choices, and how much came from things outside his control? I don't know.

I think free will is about what you choose to do with the circumstances you are given. You might not control where you start in life, but you can choose how you respond to it.

I've personally come to realize that we often have more control over our lives than we think. If your basic needs are taken care of and you have access to resources like the internet, you have opportunities to learn, improve, and change your circumstances. That doesn't mean everyone has the same opportunities or faces the same challenges, but I believe we often underestimate what we can do with what we have.

One thing I've learned is to focus on the integrity of my actions rather than the outcome. Do what you believe is right, put in the work, and let go of what you cannot control.

I don't know how much of our lives is determined by circumstances and how much is shaped by free will. But I believe we should focus on the choices that are within our control rather than spend our lives blaming the things that aren't.

V. Human Nature

I think human beings are fundamentally selfish. But I don't necessarily think that is a bad thing.

Our desire to protect ourselves, our families, and the people close to us is what led us to form tribes, villages, and eventually states and nations. Our desire to build things, achieve more, and improve our lives is also what has driven the development of technology and science.

I think a lot of what humans do comes from their own needs and ambitions. We want to survive, protect the people we love, and build better lives for ourselves.

I also believe that humans are capable of compassion, but I don't think compassion is always our natural response to everyone. We tend to care most about the people closest to us: our families, friends, and communities. We are often willing to make sacrifices for them, but that doesn't mean we feel the same responsibility towards everyone else.

Perhaps this is simply human nature. We are selfish, territorial, and capable of compassion at the same time. I don't think we need to pretend otherwise. Understanding human nature for what it is might be a better starting point for understanding ourselves and the societies we build.

VI. Death

I think death is what gives life meaning.

The fact that we are going to die is precisely why we should try to live the life we want. We don't know how much time we have. We could die from an illness, an accident, or any number of things we cannot predict.

And yet, here we are. Maybe we are here by chance, maybe through science, or maybe through God. Whatever the answer is, we have been given the opportunity to experience life, and I think that is meaningful in itself.

I believe we should live with the awareness that our time is limited. We spend so much time thinking about five, ten, or twenty years from now that we forget to live the day in front of us.

For me, the goal is to live each day as well as I can. To be present, to do the things that matter to me, and to stop wasting my time on things that don't. That doesn't mean we shouldn't plan for the future. It means we shouldn't sacrifice the present entirely for a future that isn't guaranteed.

I think we should live as though we are aware of our own mortality, not because we should be afraid of death, but because we should understand the value of the time we have.

We are here now, in this moment, and we don't know how many more moments we will get. Our responsibility is to make the most of the one in front of us.

VII. Love

I think love is an emotion, a form of attachment, and something we get to experience rather than something we consciously choose.

I don't believe we can always choose who we fall in love with. It can happen unexpectedly, with someone we never imagined ourselves loving. We don't always understand why we feel the way we do, when those feelings develop, or why they happen with one person and not another.

I think that is part of what makes love so beautiful. It isn't always something we can control or explain.

I don't judge people for whom they love. I think love is a deeply personal experience, and I don't believe people should have to justify their feelings to others simply because those feelings don't fit someone else's expectations.

At the same time, I think love is something we should be mindful of. Even if we cannot always choose whom we love, we can choose how we treat that person and what we do with those feelings.

I don't have all the answers about love. I just think it is one of those things we are fortunate enough to experience, even if we don't fully understand it.

IX. Society

I think humans create hierarchies, governments, corporations, nations, and institutions because we need order.

Human beings are flawed. If there were no rules, no consequences for wrongdoing, and no rewards for doing good work, I think society would struggle to function. We need systems that encourage people to contribute, discourage harmful behaviour, and allow us to live and work together.

I believe hierarchies have a role to play in this. They establish responsibilities, create structure, and give people incentives to improve. In a capitalist society, competition encourages people to work harder, develop their skills, and create things that others find valuable. When people succeed, they can build wealth for themselves and their families while also contributing to society.

I believe this drive to improve our circumstances is one of the things that allows society to progress. Without incentives, accountability, and some form of structure, I don't think we would have developed the kind of society we live in today.

Religion is another example of something humans have created to meet a need. As I mentioned earlier, I think people often turn to religion for comfort, hope, and relief from the stresses of life. Others turn to different things, whether that is alcohol, cigarettes, personal ambitions, or their passions. People find different ways to deal with the difficulties of being human.

I don't think any society can function without some form of order. But I also think we should question the systems we create and recognize that they are there to serve people, not the other way around.

X. Wealth and Ambition

I think wealth and ambition are fundamentally good things. I believe there is nothing wrong with wanting more from life, building something meaningful, and trying to become better than you were yesterday.

Napoleon is a good example of both the power and the danger of ambition. His ambition took him from Corsica to the throne of France. He built an empire and changed the course of European history. He had an extraordinary ability to learn, adapt, and achieve things that most people could only dream of.

But his ambition also became his weakness. As he grew more powerful, his ego and belief in his own abilities grew with him. He began to lose sight of his limitations and failed to recognize his own mistakes. His invasion of Russia became one of the greatest disasters of his career.

I think there is a lesson in that. Ambition can take you far, but it can also destroy you if you lose the ability to question yourself.

I believe we should strive for more, build wealth, pursue our goals, and create better lives for ourselves and the people we care about. But we should never become so attached to our success that we stop learning, listening, or recognizing when we are wrong.

I don't think the problem is wanting more. The problem is losing yourself in the pursuit of more.

We should be ambitious enough to build something meaningful, but humble enough to recognize that there is always more to learn.

XI. The Good Life

I think a good life is one in which you get to live the way you want to, without being bound by money, status, career, or society's expectations.

I think it means being able to experience love and romance, both emotional and physical, with the people you want to be with. It means being able to pursue your interests and passions without constantly worrying about what others think of you.

If you want to study history, create music, play a sport, or pursue any other interest, you should be able to do so freely. You shouldn't have to justify your interests to anyone or feel ashamed of the things that make you happy.

Maybe your idea of a good life is to retire on a beach, move to the mountains, take your dog, and spend the rest of your days camping and enjoying nature. Maybe it is something completely different.

I don't think there is one definition of a good life. For some people, it might mean building a business, raising a family, and achieving great things. For others, it might mean living quietly, away from the noise of the world.

I think the good life is simply having the freedom to choose how you spend your days, who you spend them with, and where you want to be. It is about living according to your own values and interests rather than someone else's expectations.

If you can do that, I think you have lived a good life.

XII. My Philosophy

After questioning all these things, I think my philosophy is fairly simple.

I believe in free will more than destiny. I believe that our choices and actions have a greater role in shaping our lives than some predetermined fate. To me, destiny is often just a word we use to describe the outcomes of our choices, even though we cannot control everything that happens to us.

I believe capitalism works. It is built around self-interest and competition, and those who create the most value can reap the greatest rewards. It isn't perfect, but I believe it is one of the most effective ways of getting things done and encouraging people to build, create, and improve.

I believe people should be free to live their lives however they want, as long as they don't harm others or force their beliefs on them. You can express your opinions and disagree with someone, but you shouldn't expect everyone to accept your way of thinking or live according to your beliefs.

I also believe that institutions, laws, punishments, and order are necessary for society to function. Human beings are flawed, and we need systems that hold us accountable for our actions.

When it comes to religion, I struggle to believe in specific religions, rituals, and forms of worship. I think people sometimes use religion to avoid facing the problems in their own lives. Instead of taking responsibility for their circumstances, they look for answers outside themselves. But I understand that religion gives people comfort, and I don't believe in forcing my views on anyone.

For myself, I want to focus on being humble, doing good, treating people fairly, and taking responsibility for my actions. I want to be kind, help others when I can, and live in a way that I can be proud of.

I don't know whether God exists, whether morality is objective, or whether there is a greater purpose to life. I may never know the answers to these questions.

But I don't think I need to have all the answers to decide how I want to live.

I want to pursue my ambitions, experience love, explore the things that interest me, and build a life that feels meaningful to me. I want to be free to make my own choices while respecting the freedom of others to make theirs.

And above all, I want to live without constantly worrying about what the world expects of me.

That, for now, is what I choose to believe.