life/fate/destiny is a joke?

Question

how come life/fate/destiny is like a joke we don't understand,is it suppose to be funny?(not funny haha but funny "how scarcastic/ironic")

choose: to act like a laughing idiot or be a pessimistic know-it-all everyday, how come?
plz explain ans thx u all :o)

Answer 1

If you believe in a supreme good force in the Universe, then there are no bad endings. We often see death as an end, but it is just the beginning. Often death and suffering make humanity better...

Now to actually apply that notion to life is hard, and I have trouble doing it, because there is so much pain and suffering in the world.
I am an optimist, jaded yes, but an optimist, and I believe life does have meaning, that every action causes a reaction, Karma, etc... Life is just too complex to dismiss it as random.

I believe that there is purpose to life and whether God intervenes or steps back and lets us figure life out on our own we may only know until we die.

Until then, support and nurture goodness as much as possible, purge evil as much as possible, and ultimately live by the laws of humanity.

Answer 2

Why can't one laugh like an idiot and be wise at the same time? Only in your mind is it different. Life/fate/destiny is only like a joke to you because you are a joker.

Answer 3

It is a joke or ironic when we don't think about the decisions we make from little decisions to the big ones. If you don't think about the descision then fate has a "funny" way of teaching you a lesson so you learn not to make the same mistake.

To answer your other question :

I would rather be a pessimistic know-it-all everyday , because if I knew it all then perhaps I would know how to change my state of mind, so I would learn to enjoy life and become a laughing know-it-all enjoying life.

Answer 4

Sometimes it does seem like a cruel joke, but that is mostly our atitude. Life is what it is. It is too complex for us to know from whence it comes and whence it goes. We are assailed by forces beyond our knowing or control. We can only stumble along blindly, hoping to find a gracious ending.

Answer 5

when did fate and destiny come in to play?

Answer 6

Life is like a bolt of lightning in many respects.. they both have a "reason"... but that is much ado about.. not too much really..

Also.. a bolt of lightning is a good analogy for our lifetimes too.. it seems impressive.. but.. ?? And they both are about comparable on the cosmic time scale.. :)

Answer 7

Says Krishna to Arjuna: (2:39-2:41)
esa te 'bhihita sankhye
buddhir yoge tv imam srnu
buddhya yukto yaya partha
karma-bandham prahasyasi

Thus far I have declared to you the analytical knowledge of sankhya philosophy. Now listen to the knowledge of Budhi yoga whereby one works without expecting the fruit of the action. O son of Partha, when you act by such intelligence, you can free yourself from the bondage of works. ||2:39||

nehabhikrama-naso 'sti
pratyavayo na vidyate
svalpam apy asya dharmasya
trayate mahato bhayat

In this endeavour there is no loss or diminution, and a little advancement on this path can protect one from the most dangerous type of fear. ||2:40||

vyavasayatmika buddhir
ekeha kuru-nandana
bahu-sakha hy anantas ca
buddhayo 'vyavasayinam

Those who are on this path are resolute in purpose, and their aim is one ( eka-budhi ). O beloved child of the Kurus , the intelligence of those who are irresolute is many-branched. ||2:41||

We recently went to Panama in Central America for a vacation. It was early morning and we went for a walk along a path in the Gamboa rainforest area. It was fairly quiet; very few people were there. It was simply wonderful. We could distinctly hear the sounds made by insects and various animals. Butterflies were flying all around us and the little ants were carrying loads three times their size from one end of the path to the other. They were all working; and have been doing so for several generations; doing the same thing over and over. But, they have not built a Panama Canal or an aeroplane. They have built neither guns not nuclear bombs.

What is the difference? The little ants perform their karma and so do we. We progress but the ants do not. The difference is Buddhi , the intellect. With the advent of buddhi we can build on what we have learned from our ancestors. Buddhi and karma are closely related. And then there is a difference in our karma and the karma of a Krishna or a Buddha. The difference is almost as large as that between the ants and us. But this difference is qualitative. On the surface Krishna and Duryodhana may appear to be eating or walking the same way. But there will be a vast difference in the states of their being inside.

Let us now examine the role of mun-indriya-vasana complex in performing karma. The desires which originate in mun bring in the concept of sakam karma . Sakam Karma means karma for a desired result. A result is expected in doing that karma. Duryodhana is also doing his karma and wants to fight. He expects to win the war. That is what he wants. In fact, he wants to win and that is why he wants to fight. His desire to win and rule without any opposition is the reason for the Mahabharata war. He is using his buddhi to rationalize what he is doing.

Similarly, in the beginning of Gita Arjuna wants his friends and loved ones to live. His love for them is causing him to decide not to fight. He is using his buddhi and is coming out with all the right reasons for not fighting the war. There is a desire, however subtle, which is guiding Arjuna to take the stand of not fighting.

On the surface it looks straightforward. It seems that both Duryodhana and Arjuna know what they want. But Krishna will argue that whenever there is desire and whenever there is mun , the buddhi is divided. A person living at the level of mun and desires by default will have a confused buddhi . Only a person who is centered will have the clarity of ek-buddhi. And this has to be understood. Krishna is not telling Arjuna to do this or that. He is not saying to Arjuna that he should fight because it is the right thing to do. Krishna is very clear in all his statements while asking Arjuna to arise and fight. And every time Krishna asks Arjuna to arise and fight, he adds some condition of centering. He asks Arjuna to fight with either sum-bhava or with sum-buddhi or with sam-arpana . Krishna’s whole emphasis is on centering a de-centered Arjuna, and once Arjuna is centered the right decision will happen.

We are all born with a center. As we grow in society, we go off our centers. And then we get used to living off center and keep living off center. Some of us start missing this center especially when we come across a Bhagavadgita or a Dhammapada and start realizing that we may be missing something. Since the buddhi and mun-indriya-vasana complex can work happily forever at the periphery we do not miss much of what we need. Again, sometimes we meet someone like Maharshi Ramana or Guru Govind Singh and see the calmness on their faces and start wondering: can anyone be so silent and still do karma ?

Krishnamurthi has talked about conditioning. As we grow we are conditioned in one type of personality or the other. If you are born in the USA you think differently than if you were to be born in Burma or Indonesia. A de-conditioning is then needed to get to the center. Krishna or Buddha will say that we are not only conditioned in this life but there is the conditioning from several lives. A deep cleansing is required, for which several techniques have been devised over time, which help in this de-conditioning process. Although J Krishnamurthi says that nothing needs to be done, he also mentions the process of focusing attention. Buddha developed the technique of vipassana. And there are many others. Many layers have to be traveled till we come to the center, and there may be several detours on the way. And that is one reason Krishna talks about the importance of practice ( abhyas ) yoga .

And now let us examine the shlokas . Krishna says that he has talked about the sankhya yoga so far and is now going to talk about buddhiyoga . Once Arjuna understands this buddhiyoga he would be able to go beyond the bondage (effects) of karmas. Krishna goes on to say that even an attempt at this karmayoga (implying nishkam karmayoga ) allays any fear and that it brings in the clarity of ek-buddhi .

What is nishkam karma , what are these bondages and how this nishkam karma can allay all fear and bring clarity will be discussed in our next column.

Answer 8

everything that happens will happen for a reason trust me. and something good will always come out of bad. no matter how much time it takes

Answer 9

Absolutely brilliant. Never expected it to end like that. Well done.

Answer 10

you hav e to Believe