Do we make our own happiness or does fate really exist?

Question

Do we make our own happiness or does fate really exist?

Answer 1

"I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so you can learn to let go. Things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right. You believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together." - Marilyn Monroe.

That is what I believe. :)

Answer 2

What "Fate" does to us, doesn't define us. We are defined by how we react.

The Greek Tragedy "Oedipus Rex" changed Man's relationship to Fate by showing a way of resolving Tragic Conflict other than by suicide.

Traditionally, the story goes like this;

Tragic Heros messed with by Fate

Tragic Hero kills himself as the only way out.

Fate messes with Oedipus by having kill his father, and sleep with his mother.

Interestingly, he chose to blind himself and live.

Re: Happiness, there are seven ways to organise your internal landscape;

Intrinsically unhappy; and nothing can change you happy.

Intrinsically unhappy; but things can change you happy.

Intrinsically neutral; but things can make you unhappy.

Intrinsically neutral; and nothing can change you.

Intrinsically neutral; but things can make you happy.

Intrinsically happy; but things can make you unhappy.

Intrinsically happy; and nothing can make you unhappy.

You get to choose which level you live on, and nobody else cares.

Answer 3

You have to make your own happy, inquiring reading of "The Path of the Higher Self," Mark Prophet, "Man, Master of His Destiny," O. M. Aivanhov, "The Reincarnation of Edgar Cayce?", Free and Wilcock, "The Great Divorce," C. S. Lewis, "Testimony of Light," Helen Greaves, "Babies Remember Birth," David Chamberlain, Ph.D., "Life before Life," Jim Tucker, M.D., and "Expecting Adam," Martha Beck.  If you elect not so to read, is that fate or simply you making your own destiny?

Answer 4

Whether fate exists or not, you cannot live by the hope that 'things will turn out all right in the end'. And surely if fate does exist it will reward those who do all they can for themselves. We make our own happiness in the world, and if we set ambitions for ourselves (they don't have to be huge ones) we can go further and further into knowing who we are and to being happy in our lives.

Answer 5

We make our own happiness.

Answer 6

Gosh how to start to answer a question such as this is a toughie. Maybe if fate does exist then surely we would all go about our daily lives leaving everything to chance. Would we cross the road without looking and leave whether or not we get hit by a car to chance ? Would we have indiscriminate unprotected s*x and leave to chance whether or not we get pregnant or catch a disease?

Would people follow their religion if they weren't just leaving things to chance?

Would we apply for jobs that we like or just let fate take its course and expect the job we want to come to us?

Maybe fate does exist but if we were to believe in its power 100% we would not make any desicions about anything in our lives and expect everything to be decided for us. Therefore maybe free will is what we have.                                    However maybe fate pushes our hand and the choices we make although seeming to come from our own minds are already decided, has fate prompted me to find and answer this question or did I come across it by chance and find it interesting enough to want to have a go at answering it ?

Answer 7

the former

Answer 8

no such thing as fate, how could there be when we all have free will to make whatever choices we want. could choose to do something to make you happy or the opposite.

no fate, just right and wrong choices

Answer 9

What you do today, becomes your fate tomorrow.

Answer 10

I believe not so much in fate but in providence - God knows where you're going to end up and even though you have free will, you will end up there.  But we can also make our own happiness too, by achieving things we want and learning from things we didn't want to happen.

Answer 11

we make our own happiness. if ur nice to others, others will be nice to you. and if you want something u have to go for it, you cant just expect it to come to you.

Answer 12

I think it is a bit of both. Fate acts in such a way that it presents us with a choice us to make. This choice allows us to make our own happiness if we wish so. I think fate does exist in a way to influence us making our own happiness in life.

Answer 13

putting yourself in situations that make you happy helps

and learning from situations that make you unhappy helps

Answer 14

I reckon both to be honest.

Answer 15

It is a bit of both,, we can make our own happiness, however, fate sometimes intervenes to make life a bit harder. If we always had happiness and no sadness or problems then we woudn't appreciate true happiness.

Answer 16

i don't think you can MAKE happiness i personally feel that you have the choice to be happy or not!

i made the choice to be happy! :)

Answer 17

There is no fate, in the traditional sense. However, one could look at fate as being the product of chance.