A Story about Free Will
Free Jim and Free Will Encounter the Issue of Free Will
Free Jim wants to be free, but his friend Free Will is making it hard for him, making Free Jim question what it really means to be free, and where we have free will.
Free Jim: Listen, you’re not going to believe this, but this time it’s final.
Free Will: What’s final?
Free Jim: I’ve decided I’m going, I’m splitting.
Free Will: What are you talking about? What about your studies? You’ve only got one year left to graduate?
Free Jim: That’s exactly what I’m talking about. I’ve been studying for two years to get this degree so that I can have a successful life, but you know what, I had this sudden realization. All my life I’ve just been a slave to everything I’ve been told, like I’ve been following this program I’ve got no control over. Society says that after high school I should go to university to get a good degree, and then a good job, and then a good wife and family...
The more I’ve thought about it lately, the more dead I feel while doing anything in this life. So I’ve decided to take a trip for a couple of years, to clear my head and just have a good time.
I’ve been playing with this thought for a while, you know, going through it’s fors-and-againsts like “what about my degree?” and “what about what society expects from me?” and just my life in general, and now I’ve finally made a big decision by myself. For the first time in my life I’m finally doing what I want to do. It’s like this big weight’s been taken off my mind. It’s like, now’s the first time I can be free.
Free Will: Well I’m really happy for you. I’m sure it wasn’t an easy choice. But I’m not so sure that it was you who made the choice…
Free Jim: What are you talking about? What do you mean it wasn’t I who made the choice?
Free Will: You didn’t choose anything. Sorry.
Free Jim: What do you mean “I didn’t choose anything”? What do you think, that I just asked my sister to decide for me? Do you know how hard it is to listen to your own heart and follow it? It’s like you’ve gotta go against what everyone tells you. It’s damned hard to do that! But once you’ve done it, it feels so good, like you’re finally free to decide what you want. But in the meantime, it’s hard work.
Free Will: Just let me ask you one little question, what does it mean to be free?
Free Jim: To be free…umm…It means that I decide. I don’t let other people decide for me. I make my own decisions.
Free Will: So now, tell me what “freedom” is.
...To be continued in "What Is Freedom"
Related Material:
- Kabbalah.info - all concepts presented in this story are founded on fundamental principles of Kabbalah taught at the Bnei Baruch Kabbalah Education and Research Institute. Click this link for free Kabbalah introductory courses, live lessons (with live daily Q&A with Rav Michael Laitman, PhD), videos and eBooks. www.kabbalah.info
