There seems to be a lot of debate on whether there’s a free will. There are all types of views, some in support of free will, some deny free will altogether.
Free will whether exists or not is still debatable or yet not proved scientifically. But one thing is for sure, it opens a new dimension called moral responsibility. If there’s no free will, there won’t be any moral responsibility that can be attributed to a man for his act.
If there’s free will, there won’t be determinism as nothing can be predictable or determinable as free will is free from any constraints.
If there’s no determinism, then every event would have to be random thus denying the ‘control of man over his actions’ needed for responsibility. And if there’s determinism, then again a man cannot have free will and hence ‘control over his actions’!
Our basic assumption or belief is that this grand scheme of things called Universe and hence every matter, energy and spirit on that Universe, irrespective of it being sentient, must have a Meaning, a deep sense of Purpose.
There are now three things which connote meaningfulness.
There are now three things which connote meaningfulness.
First is moral responsibility which follows the belief that humans or conscious beings are morally responsible beings. If there is no morality, the world would be fully meaningless. There would then be no meaning whatsoever to anything anybody does. There wouldn’t be terms like fear, law, justice, truth, sense, dharma, etc.
Morality strongly qualifies to be having the most meaningful purpose.
Morality strongly qualifies to be having the most meaningful purpose.
Second is determinism or principle of causality. We see our universe bound by Laws of Nature, the law of cause and effect. If there’s no causality, every being would be free and hence can do anything. There would not be any sense in this world if nothing is bound by anything. Everything would be random, a chance. There would not be terms like planning, management, science, etc.
Principle of causality too strongly qualifies to be having the most meaningful purpose.
Principle of causality too strongly qualifies to be having the most meaningful purpose.
The third, to me, is the most important amongst all. The control! If everything is predestined, then again everything is out of man’s (or for that matter agent’s) control and hence meaningless. Why to bother if absolutely nothing is in our control? We then cannot even be the observers as to be one of them, one needs control. Just having free will doesn’t mean we can actually control our behavior or rather we can be the source of our behavior for we would not then be able to select a path or trace a path of our actions.
This control in deterministic environment, coupled with moral responsibility would then impart a true meaningfulness to Life, to the Universe. Don’t you think so?
But unfortunately enough, all of them don’t go hand in hand as we have seen in the beginning! At least by any of the latest ontology available so far, we cannot prove this.
But unfortunately enough, all of them don’t go hand in hand as we have seen in the beginning! At least by any of the latest ontology available so far, we cannot prove this.
If the sole purpose of our life is liberation, is it possible without self-control, without laws of karma and without morality?
Does that mean we are yet to acquire deep knowledge?
Reinvent The Self! 