Do we create our own destiny, or does the Universe guide us?

By Sunil Saxena

Is life a series of random events? Or is there some hidden order to existence?

All of us have been through situations that we cannot explain. We call them coincidences. We try to rationalise them.

But is there a larger intelligence at play that we cannot see or understand? Does creation have a plan for each one of us?

More than that, does creation, that we also call universe, guide us without our realising the pointers or the indicators that it throws at us but which our logical minds dismiss as mere coincidences?

I have definitely been mystified by these coincidences. Some of them have had a deep and lasting effect on my life. Others have helped me navigate difficult situations.

At times, I wonder whether we create our own destinies or does the Universe guide us?

Here, I describe five events or “coincidences” that convince me that we are following a path that an external force has charted:

1. Who created the chance meeting: I was returning from the market one evening when I was hailed by a classmate. With him was a stranger. I got down from my cycle and walked across to the two.

My classmate, after introducing his friend, disclosed: “My friend’s brother is the Chief Reporter of the local newspaper. They are looking for Trainee Journalists. Why don’t you go and meet him?”

I thanked my friend, who was doing a Master’s in Economics with me, and who knew that my dream was to become a journalist.

The very next day, I went to the newspaper’s office and met the Chief Reporter. I was given a written test. By evening, I had a job: I had become a Trainee Journalist.

My dream was fulfilled by a chance meeting.

Who had sent the stranger? How did it happen that the two of us were on the same road, though going in opposite directions?

*****

2. Who helped me with my interview preparation: Five years later, a national newspaper was being launched from the same city, and like every journalist in town I also applied.

I was not sure what would happen in the interview. What kind of questions would be asked? It was an important opportunity, and I did not want to miss it.

The night before the interview, I sat down in the library and went through half a dozen major stories published over the last three months.

You won’t believe it, but my interviewers asked me questions only on these six-odd stories. No other question was asked. I was selected.

Was this a coincidence? Or did the Universe point those stories to me. I will never know.

But my career took a great leap forward.

*****

3. Who showed me the ad that changed my career path: There came a time in my career when I wanted a change. Working in a newsroom had worn me out physically and mentally.

However, I was clueless about change. Then, one day, I spotted a small advertisement in a newspaper. In fact, it would not be wrong to say that it was the advertisement that found me, buried as it was in columns of grey text.

The media school was looking for a journalist who could teach editing. I applied and I was selected. From a journalist, I became an academician.

Was this a coincidence? Or was someone showing me a new path?

*****

4. Who sent the boy to help me when I was limping: Sometimes, help can arrive in unforeseen ways. One such incident happened when I was hurrying to catch a train.

The train was to leave from Platform 8, which was a good distance from the station entrance. I ignored the licensed porters standing at the entrance and joined the underground rush moving towards Platform 8.

After walking about 100 metres, I realised my mistake. My suitcase lacked wheels and was difficult to carry with a sprained ankle. Frequent stops were necessary to rest my foot. I desperately searched for a porter, but none could be found.

Suddenly, there was a light tap on my hand. “Sir, carry your bag,” a young boy offered in broken English.

He appeared to be in his early teens, with a dishevelled appearance.

I was not sure if I could trust the boy. What if I gave him the suitcase, and he walked away with it?

The boy persisted. “What’s your train number,” he asked. “That’s Platform 8. Come. Hurry, Sir.”

Reluctantly, I decided to take the boy’s help. The boy picked up the suitcase and started walking rapidly towards Platform 8. I tried to keep pace with him but failed. “That’s the last I am going to see of the suitcase,” I groaned.

But I was wrong. The boy awaited me on Platform 8. He checked my coach and berth number, picked up the suitcase and started walking rapidly once again.

My limp had gone worse, and even without the suitcase, walking was a struggle. On reaching the coach, the boy slid the suitcase under the berth.

I gave him a 100-rupee note, which was at least twice as much as I would have paid a licensed porter.

The boy thanked me, jumped the tracks and disappeared into the night. To this day, I don’t know why that boy came out of nowhere and helped me.

But he was surely a godsend. You can call it a coincidence, my luck or unexpected assistance from an unknown source.

*****

5. Who sent the tanker driver when we were stuck: This was not the only time that assistance arrived in an unexpected manner. Once, we were on an expressway, and my daughter-in-law was driving. The afternoon sun was hot, and the concrete crunched ominously as she drove.

Suddenly, on a long, bumpy stretch the car wobbled and came to a stop. The rear left tyre had burst. I unscrewed three bolts. But the fourth would not budge. I even stood on the four-wheel spanner to apply greater pressure, but nothing worked.

Cars whizzed past us, but nobody stopped. The sun had started going down, and we were getting worried. There had been incidents in the past, and this stretch of the expressway was considered unsafe.

After some time, I noticed a large water tanker on the other side of the median. It was moving slowly and would stop repeatedly to water the plants along the expressway.

To our surprise, the tanker stopped next to us. The driver got out; he had a rod in his hand. He jumped the median and approached us. I looked anxiously at him, worried about his intentions.

He asked for the four-wheel spanner and deftly fixed it on the bolt head. Next, he pushed the rod in the spanner socket and heaved. The bolt moved. The rest was easy.

I was hugely relieved and offered a tip to the driver. The driver shook his head, walked back to the tanker and continued his journey.

You can call him a good Samaritan. Probably, he had helped other stranded drivers too in the past. I do not know.

But to me, he was a godsend, a stranger who, in some mysterious way, was connected with me, and arrived at the right moment.

Was this also a coincidence? Or was this in some way connected to me in this life or in my past lives?

Once again, I don’t have any answer.

*****

Have you also had similar experiences? Did you also dismiss them as nothing more than mere coincidences? If yes, please share them in the comments below.

First published on Medium.com

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