Quote:
Originally posted by
Bignuf
Some cultures and religions believe everyone has a "soul mate" that is their destiny, and that you should wait until you feel the "divine spark" and know you are with THAT person.
Do you think your long term love was
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Some cultures and religions believe everyone has a "soul mate" that is their destiny, and that you should wait until you feel the "divine spark" and know you are with THAT person.
Do you think your long term love was "destined" for you?
Are THEY the one piece that completes the puzzle of your soul, or is it "luck or chance" that brought you together, and if it were not "them" it would probably be "some-one else, different, but maybe just as good a match for me"?
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I don't believe in soul mates or destiny. They are pretty ideas, but the concept of some higher power deciding our futures and removing aspects of our free will seems rather unlikely to me.
I've been with my partner for nearly 9 years now. We met via mutual interests at a college far away from both of our homes and have shaped each other's lives significantly since getting together. I want him to be part of my life until one of us dies. We each know how the other works, and we share so many interests and preferences that I find it highly unlikely that I am ever going to find someone I would rather spend the rest of my life with than this guy. Sure, I meet other guys I would be able to fall in love with or sleep with or fantasize about, but there's always something about them that would keep me from dating them (can't cook, smoker, doesn't know a thing about various interests that are very important to me, etc.). I dated a guy before my current partner for several years, and I absolutely felt like I could have spent the rest of my life with him, too, until I met someone better suited to me. That "divine spark" was there, but it faded over time, particularly when I met someone else.
We are going through a lot of pain to stay together in a variety of difficult situations involving careers and physical distance between us, which shows how much we love and trust one another. That being said, I am absolutely positive that both of us could also be happy with other people. So, I don't believe we're soul mates or destined to be together, and I'm sure that we could be happy with other people if the two of us hadn't met and fallen in love. We choose to keep each other in our lives because we're a good pair, but that choice is all ours, without any higher power telling us who to love.
I find the idea of a partnership much more romantic without involving destiny. Would you rather someone love you because they are destined to do so and have no say in the matter, or have them CHOOSE to stick with you year after year?