Philosophical musings on Quanta & Qualia;  Materialism & Spiritualism; Science & Religion; Pragmatism & Idealism, etc.

Shit happens.
But you don’t have to wallow in it

 Post 48 . August 04, 2018

    Rationalism versus Fatalism

   Freewill Within Determinism

 Human cultures have, from the beginnings of philosophical conjecture, held some concept of a universal principle of natural order that determines the destiny of the world, via some cause & effect system of natural laws or divine commandments. The ancient Greek philosophers thought of Fate as an impersonal implacable force of nature, while ordinary Greeks imagined The Fates as three goddesses spinning out the threads of life, with a preassigned inescapable destiny for each person1. Hence, most Greeks were fatalistic about their future prospects, yet they lived their day-to-day lives with gusto. In their tragic worldview, heroes were destined to act heroically, while villains were com-pelled to be evildoers, so they acted their roles artfully.

 According to Yuval Noah Harari, in Sapiens : A Brief History of Mankind, "most polytheistic and even animist religions recognized such a supreme power that stands behind all the different gods, demons, and holy rocks." In other words, Fate is superior to all other divinities. "The fundamental insight of polytheism, which distinguishes it from monotheism, is that the supreme power governing the world is devoid of interests and biases, therefore it is unconcerned with the mundane desires, cares and worries of humans. . . . The Greeks did not waste any sacrifices on Fate, and Hindus built no temples to Atman." The Fatal Force was assumed to be beyond the control of gods and men2. So resistance to Fate is futile.3

 In the 21st century, one analog to the universal notion of Fatalism, is deterministic Evolution.  A variation on that theory may be found in the religious philosophy of Deism, in which an amorphous supreme being created the universe, established its laws, and then allows it to evolve without any further inter-vention. Hence, prayers to the deity are pointless; yet, the Deus is to be respected as the sovereign power of the world, but not worshiped as a temperamental humanoid overlord. Even the chosen people of Yahweh — Hebrews & Israelites — tended to be fatalistic in their resignation to pre-destination : "The main task of Divine Providence in this world is therefore to set each person in his station in life in order that he may serve God according to his destiny." However, they also believed that they were blessed with some wiggle room within the iron-clad constraints of divine design : "God predetermines a person's basic lifespan, wealth and opportunities -- but leaves ample room for free choice."4

 Likewise, some modern Deists may object that their world-view is not fatalistic, since that attitude is assumed to be pessimistic, depressing and hopeless. Yet, when combined with the concept of “Free Will within Determinism”5, Deism can be more like the Greek philosophical school of Stoicism. The Stoics believed that the world was governed by general laws, not by the arbitrary whims of capricious gods. Hence, although it's fruitless to pray to the gods for special exemptions to the general rules of nature, each person can align his mind to the forces of Nature, in order to minimize the damage from conflicts with the pitiless powers of nature. Harari notes that "some Hindus . . . devote their lives to uniting with Atman, thereby achieving enlightenment. They strive to see the world from the viewpoint of this fundamental principle, to realise that from its eternal perspective all mundane desires and fears are meaningless and ephemeral phenomena." We may be bound by external bonds, but in our minds we can choose to be free.

Post 48 continued . . . click Next

1. The Fates :  
   Three weaving goddesses who assign individual destinies to mortals at birth.
Clotho (spinner), Lachesis (allotter) and Atropos (literally 'unturnable' but metaphorically 'inflexible' or 'inevitable' - i.e. death).

2. Fatalism :
    A philosophical term for what science calls “Deter-minism”, meaning that any notion of freewill choice is illusory. In that case, reason is useful only for revealing the hopelessness of your situation, not for discovering a different path to a better destination.
<<Though the word “fatalism” is commonly used to refer to an attitude of resignation in the face of some future event or events which are thought to be inevitable, philosophers usually use the word to refer to the view that we are powerless to do anything other than what we actually do. This view may be argued for in various ways: by appeal to logical laws and metaphysical necessities; by appeal to the existence and nature of God; by appeal to causal determinism. When argued for in the first way, it is commonly called “Logical fatalism” (or, in some cases, “Metaphysical fatalism”); when argued for in the second way, it is com-monly called “Theological fatalism”.>>
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/fatalism/

3. Genetic determinism :
    A modern version of Fatalism was called Bio-logical or Genetic Determin-ism. For tragic fatalists, “if something is "genetic," then little or nothing can be done about it”. But for more sanguine rationalists, a science of Eugenics could modify the gene pool to force Nature to bend to the will of Man.
http://www.indiana.edu/~p1013447/dictionary/gen_determinism.htm

4. Fate & Destiny :
Divine Providence includes Free Choice.
http://www.aish.com/jl/sp/bas/48939472.html

5. Freewill within Determinism :
   Deists are not bound by their G*D to any particular role in the world. Of course, your genetic inheritance and your initial social status may be preset at birth. But just as people born with talent can choose to develop it or let it wither, we can steer a personally meaningful path through life, despite our limitations.
   A mathematical analogy may be helpful. A graph of any randomized set of actions or values, will conform to the shape of a Bell Curve. But the location of a particular item is unpredictable.

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