Do you believe in fate?

neutralizer

Lifer
Oct 4, 2001
11,552
1
0
I've been leaning on believing on fate because some coincidences are so WTF that I find a hard time believing them otherwise.
 

PeeluckyDuckee

Diamond Member
Feb 21, 2001
4,464
0
0
Fate does work in odd ways and not always in your favour. In my case, there's been numerous signs. Such as me driving to one city and she having just left. Or her giving me a call and my friggin battery just died. You know, tell tale signs that things sometimes just aren't working out or simply not meant to be.

Sometimes the more you hope for something to happen, it seems only a miracle can bring things to life. When faced with difficulties, how often does perseverance pay off in the end? Can perseverance really touch someone into thinking any differently and positively about you ,and offer you a chance to share a life with that special someone? Or is that stubborn thinking and not facing reality? Any hopeful stories anybody wish to share and how far it got them?

One thing I realise is how hard it is to change yourself, and how much harder it is to change how someone sees and thinks of you.

heh, maybe I should've prefaced it with YAGT :p


 

SmoochyTX

Lifer
Apr 19, 2003
13,618
0
0
Originally posted by: PeeluckyDuckee
Fate does work in odd ways and not always in your favour. In my case, there's been numerous signs. Such as me driving to one city and she having just left. Or her giving me a call and my friggin battery just died. You know, tell tale signs that things sometimes just aren't working out or simply not meant to be.

Sometimes the more you hope for something to happen, it seems only a miracle can bring things to life. When faced with difficulties, how often does perseverance pay off in the end? Can perseverance really touch someone into thinking any differently and positively about you ,and offer you a chance to share a life with that special someone? Or is that stubborn thinking and not facing reality? Any hopeful stories anybody wish to share and how far it got them?

One thing I realise is how hard it is to change yourself, and how much harder it is to change how someone sees and thinks of you.

heh, maybe I should've prefaced it with YAGT :p

Obviously.....

Just change the thread title and post already to reflect this so you can get more responses and more input to this thread.
 

imported_Zeke

Senior member
Sep 18, 2004
956
0
0
Coincidences and fate are different ways of describing a technique our brain uses to help rationalize the world around us.
 

chambersc

Diamond Member
Feb 11, 2005
6,247
0
0
since I believe in the relativity of all things, every occurance is a coincidence. However, I believe that everything that is happening/will hapen has already begun so.....
 

PeeluckyDuckee

Diamond Member
Feb 21, 2001
4,464
0
0
Originally posted by: chambersc
since I believe in the relativity of all things, every occurance is a coincidence. However, I believe that everything that is happening/will hapen has already begun so.....

If you also believe in parallel universes, please transport me to the universe where all my dreams do indeed come true.

 

Jeff7

Lifer
Jan 4, 2001
41,599
19
81
Fate requires some external watching force, which I do not believe in.
And humans lack the ability to accurately predict the future with any degree of accuracy.

Coincidences. They just seem amazing to you. It could also be an amazing coincidence that you happened to trip over something, which slowed you up a bit, and kept you from being hit by a drunk driver later in the day. Fate that you tripped over that small object? Or lucky coincidence? I vote coincidence. They happen all the time. We simply have minds which try to assign some meaning to these happenings.
 

SmoochyTX

Lifer
Apr 19, 2003
13,618
0
0
Originally posted by: PeeluckyDuckee
Originally posted by: chambersc
since I believe in the relativity of all things, every occurance is a coincidence. However, I believe that everything that is happening/will hapen has already begun so.....

If you also believe in parallel universes, please transport me to the universe where all my dreams do indeed come true.

*barf*
 

chambersc

Diamond Member
Feb 11, 2005
6,247
0
0
Originally posted by: PeeluckyDuckee
Originally posted by: chambersc
since I believe in the relativity of all things, every occurance is a coincidence. However, I believe that everything that is happening/will hapen has already begun so.....

If you also believe in parallel universes, please transport me to the universe where all my dreams do indeed come true.

I believe in a parallel universe? Isn't it the case that all that ever is or will be originated from one single event?
Originally posted by: Jeff7
Fate requires some external watching force, which I do not believe in.
And humans lack the ability to accurately predict the future with any degree of accuracy.

That's a rather simplistic argument. Just because we "lack the ability to accurately predict the future" doesn't mean it's happening it just means that we don't know it's happening.

ALso, how does it require en "external watching force?" If you argue my point, that everything that was is or ever will be originated from a single instance (ie big bang), then once one has mastered what was won't they also know what will be?
 
Aug 25, 2004
11,166
1
81
Ok, I'll share a story with ATOT.

Back in the 8th grade, there was this girl I really really liked. We were good friends, but I never had the guts to tell her and she moved out of town the next year.

Fast forward to senior year of high school. It's the Christmas holidays, I'm flying to Singapore via a bunch of random cities, the last of them being Bombay. I was waiting at the gate, reading some book when somebody tapped my shoulders and said "idiot". I turned around and it was her. She was on the same flight! For a long time, I just stared at her with my mouth gaping open :)

It was the only time I actually enjoyed an international flight. We switched seats so we would sit together and ended up chatting through the entire flight. I told her that I had this huge crush on her back in 8th grade, and I'd have asked her out, had she not moved away. If I had asked her, she said, she would have replied yes. Rest of the flight was memorable :)

I could never understand how two people who were never supposed to meet again, happened to meet up at a random obscure city at the other end of the planet. I'm the kind of guy who rarely believes in fate. Yet, it's impossible for me to totally rule it out.

I guess it's like poker. Sometimes it's fate when you get good cards, sometimes you make your own fate when you get crappy cards and play them right.

But once in a while, it wouldn't hurt if real life was like this. YMMV
 

OrganizedChaos

Diamond Member
Apr 21, 2002
4,525
0
0
i beleive everyhing has been on a set course since the big bang. the entire universe is nothing but one really big and relativly slow chemical reaction taking place in a vacuum.
 

Jeff7

Lifer
Jan 4, 2001
41,599
19
81
Originally posted by: chambersc
Originally posted by: Jeff7
Fate requires some external watching force, which I do not believe in.
And humans lack the ability to accurately predict the future with any degree of accuracy.

That's a rather simplistic argument. Just because we "lack the ability to accurately predict the future" doesn't mean it's happening it just means that we don't know it's happening.

ALso, how does it require en "external watching force?" If you argue my point, that everything that was is or ever will be originated from a single instance (ie big bang), then once one has mastered what was won't they also know what will be?
Originally posted by: OrganizedChaos
i beleive everyhing has been on a set course since the big bang. the entire universe is nothing but one really big and relativly slow chemical reaction taking place in a vacuum.

These two go together nicely. Fate sort of requires some degree of foresight by some party. You can say it's fate that I'm going to perform some certain act in the future on a specific date. But you don't know that it's going to happen for sure. You're guessing. Guessing has a good degree of randomness to it, as do coincidences.

We discussed this in a philosophy class I took. On one hand, sure, everything that ever would happen was "determined" at the Big Bang. (Though who knows, chaos theory may not agree with that, unless chaos was part of the predetermination.) But no one was around then to predict what that outcome would be, and indeed, even now no one knows what the outcome of this Universe will be.
The point of that discussion was that fate requires foreknowledge of future events. Otherwise it's just unprovable that it was fate and not a mere coincidence. It's like biblical prophecies that conveniently come to light after the event has taken place. It isn't really a prophecy then, because you had to fit the biblical evidence to match the event, curiously, in much the same way that astrologers make their predictions. "Today you will have good luck." Yup, I might find a dime on the ground somewhere. Good luck. Unfortunately, that might be all the good luck I get, but at least the astrologer was right. But, I digress...

 

yhelothar

Lifer
Dec 11, 2002
18,408
39
91
Coincidence..
Fate is BS. Fate would imply that a higher being controls everything that happens, thus you have no control in it. This often causes people to become passive in dealing with their daily lives, as they believe a higher being would guide them through their way. Just take the vast majority of the drivers in india for example. They seldomly wear seatbelts as they believe that if they were destined to die by their gods, they would have died regardless if they wore the seatbelt or not. Thus, the belief in fate is clearly a disorder.
 

phisrow

Golden Member
Sep 6, 2004
1,399
0
0
I'm not sufficiently familiar with modern physics to say whether the universe is, at its base, fully deterministic or somewhat random; but either way it's just impersonal forces grinding away. Not free in any useful sense; but nothing like fate as conventionally conceived.
 

chambersc

Diamond Member
Feb 11, 2005
6,247
0
0
Originally posted by: Jeff7
<snip>

These two go together nicely. Fate sort of requires some degree of foresight by some party. You can say it's fate that I'm going to perform some certain act in the future on a specific date. But you don't know that it's going to happen for sure. You're guessing. Guessing has a good degree of randomness to it, as do coincidences.

We discussed this in a philosophy class I took. On one hand, sure, everything that ever would happen was "determined" at the Big Bang. (Though who knows, chaos theory may not agree with that, unless chaos was part of the predetermination.) But no one was around then to predict what that outcome would be, and indeed, even now no one knows what the outcome of this Universe will be.
The point of that discussion was that fate requires foreknowledge of future events. Otherwise it's just unprovable that it was fate and not a mere coincidence. It's like biblical prophecies that conveniently come to light after the event has taken place. It isn't really a prophecy then, because you had to fit the biblical evidence to match the event, curiously, in much the same way that astrologers make their predictions. "Today you will have good luck." Yup, I might find a dime on the ground somewhere. Good luck. Unfortunately, that might be all the good luck I get, but at least the astrologer was right. But, I digress...
I guess it basically goes to what your definition of "fate" is. I do see your point but I would argue that fate doesn't necessarily need to be something one has any knowledge of. Something that is shouldn't be any less of itself just because of humans limited mental capacities. It diminishes that which is and only makes us look foolish because since we cannot comprehend that which is at this point in our evolution, we are forced to change the definition ito exclude that which is and forever will be.
 
Oct 4, 2004
10,521
6
81
Originally posted by: virtualgames0
Coincidence..
Fate is BS. Fate would imply that a higher being controls everything that happens, thus you have no control in it. This often causes people to become passive in dealing with their daily lives, as they believe a higher being would guide them through their way. Just take the vast majority of the drivers in india for example. They seldomly wear seatbelts as they believe that if they were destined to die by their gods, they would have died regardless if they wore the seatbelt or not. Thus, the belief in fate is clearly a disorder.

Uh, destiny has nothing to do with us Indians not wearing seat-belts or having a sense of decency on the road. Most of us are just too lazy/ignorant to Road Safety Rules & Regulations - or probably just retarded. And like all Americans, we all believe we are the best drivers in the world and nothing bad can happen to us. Which might be true - drive a car for two hours in a major Indian city and you will hate your life!

I believe in fate (sort of). I believe major turning-points in our lives are all premeditated and we just handle the daily grind. Don't ask me why - it's just a feeling.
 

Andy22

Golden Member
Jun 8, 2001
1,425
0
71
Originally posted by: George P Burdell
Ok, I'll share a story with ATOT.

Back in the 8th grade, there was this girl I really really liked. We were good friends, but I never had the guts to tell her and she moved out of town the next year.

Fast forward to senior year of high school. It's the Christmas holidays, I'm flying to Singapore via a bunch of random cities, the last of them being Bombay. I was waiting at the gate, reading some book when somebody tapped my shoulders and said "idiot". I turned around and it was her. She was on the same flight! For a long time, I just stared at her with my mouth gaping open :)

It was the only time I actually enjoyed an international flight. We switched seats so we would sit together and ended up chatting through the entire flight. I told her that I had this huge crush on her back in 8th grade, and I'd have asked her out, had she not moved away. If I had asked her, she said, she would have replied yes. Rest of the flight was memorable :)

I could never understand how two people who were never supposed to meet again, happened to meet up at a random obscure city at the other end of the planet. I'm the kind of guy who rarely believes in fate. Yet, it's impossible for me to totally rule it out.

I guess it's like poker. Sometimes it's fate when you get good cards, sometimes you make your own fate when you get crappy cards and play them right.

But once in a while, it wouldn't hurt if real life was like this. YMMV

C'mon man...don't go all Paul Harvey on us. What's the rest of the story? Are you telling us you let her go a second time??
 
Aug 25, 2004
11,166
1
81
Originally posted by: Andy22
Originally posted by: George P Burdell
Ok, I'll share a story with ATOT.

Back in the 8th grade, there was this girl I really really liked. We were good friends, but I never had the guts to tell her and she moved out of town the next year.

Fast forward to senior year of high school. It's the Christmas holidays, I'm flying to Singapore via a bunch of random cities, the last of them being Bombay. I was waiting at the gate, reading some book when somebody tapped my shoulders and said "idiot". I turned around and it was her. She was on the same flight! For a long time, I just stared at her with my mouth gaping open :)

It was the only time I actually enjoyed an international flight. We switched seats so we would sit together and ended up chatting through the entire flight. I told her that I had this huge crush on her back in 8th grade, and I'd have asked her out, had she not moved away. If I had asked her, she said, she would have replied yes. Rest of the flight was memorable :)

I could never understand how two people who were never supposed to meet again, happened to meet up at a random obscure city at the other end of the planet. I'm the kind of guy who rarely believes in fate. Yet, it's impossible for me to totally rule it out.

I guess it's like poker. Sometimes it's fate when you get good cards, sometimes you make your own fate when you get crappy cards and play them right.

But once in a while, it wouldn't hurt if real life was like this. YMMV

C'mon man...don't go all Paul Harvey on us. What's the rest of the story? Are you telling us you let her go a second time??

I did. She was moving to Australia along with her family. I was sad but I knew there was no way we could make it work. :(