Fate, Philosophy, and Peace:

Strength and Insight for Modern Pagans
In a World Where the Gods are Largely Forgotten

A Short Discourse on the Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius, the modern belief in Fate,
And what the Meditations can offer to all Pious Pagans in the Modern Day.

By Kouros
Copyright © 2006


"Our universal Nature is the Nature that pervades all existence, and everything that now exists has a kinship to all other things that will come into existence.
This Universal Nature is called truth and is the original creator of all Truths."

-Marcus Aurelius Antoninus



* * *

I have long considered Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, the great Roman emperor and philosopher, to be a spiritual father and teacher to me in my own search for Truth. He was one of the later Stoic philosophers, and during his amazing life, he wrote a book which I make certain to carry with me everywhere- his book of "Meditations".

I first encountered Marcus in my undergraduate program- I went to a small Liberal Arts college, and the reading list for most of our classes was heavily Classical. At that point in my life, I was not yet ready to understand or hear Marcus and his words- but after many years of my own consideration of Life and Reality, I was pleased to open his book again and discover that my ideas were very much in sympathy with his own.

Most people who read my writing know about my beliefs regarding "Fate". I fully admit that I am a very fatalistic person- though there are some who have called me the same in much nastier terms. To those people, I wish a future of peace and do as Marcus suggested, and leave their anger and vituperation to them, for it truly is outside of my responsibility.

I am a Fatalist, I believe in Fate, the power of Necessity and Providence. My understanding of Fate is a keystone to my own personal philosophy and understanding, just as it was a keystone of Marcus Aurelius' Stoicism.

Among modern Pagan writers, my belief in Fate is actually what goes furthest towards setting me apart from the others. Few people in the modern day are willing to give up the notion of absolute "free will", or even consider that what we experience as "free will" may not be precisely what we think it is. In the modern day, most people have become far too addicted to the passion that surrounds the ego-soothing fiction of "free will", and choose to limit the power of Fate or Destiny to a "side issue", which only has a "partial" effect on their "choice".

For me, Fate is the same as what Marcus calls "Providence", "Universal Law", or "Universal Nature". He discusses it many times, and his every discussion of it is a joy to me, for it not only re-affirms my belief and understanding, but helps me to be more open-minded about it, as Marcus was quite willing to examine both sides of any issue, and point out how peace was possible whatever the case may be.

I see Fate as the interlocked and universal chain of Cause and Effect, wherein what arises must arise, based on the causes or forces that have gone before. There is a "thread of causes", a tapestry, that encompasses the entirety of Reality, and all things (whether rational beings, humans, Gods, plants, animals, rocks, elements, spirits, or anything else) are products of it, as they must be.


Concerning Fate, Marcus writes, in a few of his meditations, the following things:

"Whatever life brings you was prepared from all eternity; and the thread of causes was from the beginning of time spinning the fabric of your existence, and of every incidental fiber that weaves your web."

"Universal Nature felt an impulse to create the universe. And now, everything that comes into being follows as a necessary consequence. If this wasn't so, then even the main purpose that the ruling power of the Universe directs its impulse towards would be lacking in reason. To remember this helps you face uncertainty with tranquility."

"In the unfolding of the sequence of created things, those that follow always fit perfectly with those that have preceded; for this sequence is not just a list of separate events tied together by necessity, but has a rational continuity. Since all created things are joined together in harmony, so all phenomena coming into existence show not just succession but a wonderful organic connection."

"Observe too how everything moves with its impulse, working together to create all events, continuously spinning its delicate thread in the amazing complexity of its web."

"Every single thing in life is fulfilled by following the nature of the Universe."

"As the universe is a body composed of all the bodies that exist, so destiny is formed from all the causes that exist."

"Loss is nothing else but change. In this Universal Nature rejoices and by Her all things come to pass well."


But without a doubt, one of my favorite passages from Marcus' meditations is this:

"Everything that flows from the Gods is full of divine Nature. Our Fate and fortune are not separate from Nature's creations, since they weave and link with the things made by Providence. Providence is the source from which all things flow; and allied to it is Necessity, and the welfare of the entire universe. As a part of the universe, you are also subject to whatever process is good for, and helps to maintain, the well-being of Nature. Paradoxically, the universe is preserved by constant change. Not just by changes in the basic elements, but also by changes in things compounded from these elements. Let these principles be enough for you to live by, and let them always be your guide. Lose your thirst for books so you don't die cursing your life, but cheerfully, truly, and from your heart be thankful to the Gods."


* * *

Marcus sometimes uses the term "God" to refer to Universal Nature, or Providence, and he did see Providence or Nature as a reasonable power, a rational power. What he meant, of course, was that all things expressed by Universal Nature were flowing in a manner that a human mind could understand- Nature didn't operate irrationally.

A way of seeing this would be to understand that effects have to correlate somehow with their causes- an oak tree doesn't grow from a stone or from a wheat grain. Whether or not "Fate" or "Providence" was a great "Mind" that behaved following the same rules of "rationality" set down by humans is not the issue- such a thing is beyond us. But our everyday life can be expressed in reasonable models, due to the thinking power of human beings. If this says something about the great and mysterious origin of things is really a matter of faith and opinion, though Marcus does make it clear that the thinking capacity of human beings, and consciousness and reason, must have an origin in a like cause.

It is, of course, a possibility that if the Universe is "reasonable" or "rational", it is only because it is allowed to become so THROUGH us, through thinking human beings, and that this may be one of the keys to our purpose. Either way, Marcus spends a lot of time discussing the unknowable or obscure nature of the greater mysteries that men and women often wonder at, both in his time and now.


Marcus was a pagan, a polytheist- he discusses the Gods many times in his writings, and he maintains the standards of piety expected of all noble human beings. His notion of "Fate" or "Universal Law/Nature" or "Providence" is precisely where you would expect it- it is the common "mother" of Gods and Men, and of all things. Marcus even refers to "Universal Nature" in feminine terms, in his meditations- I believe this to be a remnant of a distant time, pre-dating the Stoics, when Nature was worshipped for precisely what she was and is- A Goddess, who was also the Spinner of Fate, holding the power of Necessity. The Stoics were a later evolution, away from rustic paganism and mysticism, and towards a more philosophical, abstract view of these notions- but the power of the Goddess Nature, the Magna Mater, is still there, hovering behind his words.

One can see "Providence" or "Nature" as a Goddess, or an abstract force; It can be seen even as the abstract "God of the Philosophers"- and it can be seen probably as Marcus saw it, the "Godhead" that was characterless, but which rationally unfolded towards the true universal Good. Marcus (in common with Epictetus) does often remind us to give thanks to "God" and to the Gods, and he even discusses "He who rules over the Whole"- but this reference, (the God who rules over all, who should be thanked) is not necessarily a reference to Providence, but to Zeus, the Great God who was believed in pagan times to maintain the world order and rule over it.

If Providence can be seen as the mystery of Godhead, then Zeus is a God- a personal, powerful being who has a conscious task to perform, for the Good of All- the maintaining of the world-order. To pray to the Gods is to pray to Godhead; The "Mother Source" of Gods and Men is present in all, to all. But a person has to be cautious to understand these matters.

It seems a common enough feature of human spiritual history to have "Godhead" or the "Ultimate Source" or "Ground of Being", both in its manifest and unmanifest forms confounded with "God", or a personal being; the "God of the Philosophers", in its most abstract sense, "The Good", was confounded by the Christian church with the "God" of Israel, a Storm God who ruled with laws over his own people. The church, of course, believed that the "Truth" or the power of "Providence" or the "Universal Law/Nature/Good" WAS the same as the personal "God of Israel", and they firmly believed that the pagan philosophers before them simply had no ability to understand this.

I, of course, disagree. There is a real and important difference between "Godhead" or Providence and a "God". The Gods act in accord with Providence; through their actions, through their existence, just as with human actions and human existence, "Providence" is fulfilled; one might say that it "comes to be" at every moment because of the actions of all parts of the Whole, including the Gods. So the Gods are not Providence, but they are sprung from it, as we are, and they have a role in fulfilling it, just as we do. There is a Universal Law, Fate, that governs even the Gods, just as it governs mortals- all pagan mythological understandings present this as a fact.

So to pray to the Gods or a God IS to offer a kind of honor to Godhead, to Providence, in a manner of speaking. The Gods are vital to our spiritual health, to our personal quests- they are there to uphold and support the common Good, and it is part of the common Good that human beings come to wisdom, come to understand Providence, and to have peace and understanding. The Gods, as Marcus says, "desire that we be like them", and this is a powerful statement for all modern followers of the Gods of old. The hidden core of pagan spirituality is Providence- the common source of all, and the true Reality, the Hidden Law that governs all perceptions and experiences that we call "our lives".


* * *

True peace, true serenity is only found in consciously aligning ourselves to Universal Law and therefore to Nature- they are truly one and the same- and the Gods, who exist in this condition already, uphold us and help us to this end. They deserve the highest praises and honors, and the love of mortals. But the religious worship of the Gods alone cannot give us peace; they help us to find peace through leading us to the mysteries that bring us face to face with Providence, with Fate, and with our ultimate role and condition within the Whole.

Providence can be seen as a touch impersonal at times, though I still believe that ages ago, She was seen as an independent Goddess who, while distant, could be approached. In later mythology, she is reduced to the triple form of "Fates" or other emblems of weavers and mysteriously powerful women. As we are in the modern day, it makes no difference how you "see" these matters- only that you align yourself to Reality and find peace. That is what the Gods desire, and more importantly, it is what every human desires, at the deepest levels; to be continually at peace with themselves and the world- that is, lasting peace.


The Gods know and love Universal Law; and as all things coming to unfold as they should is "Good"- THE "Good", the Gods are concerned foremost with the common Good of All. The Gods also desire that we mortals should be as they are- free from death and obscurity of wisdom and vision.

Many modern neo-pagans, in their hurry to free themselves from the christian paradigm, react with a sour note to the idea that the Gods could be so involved in human lives. They reject the notion that ancient pagans felt intimately close to the Gods, or that the Gods could actually "love" human beings.

Some people who call themselves followers of the Old Gods mock others for feeling a close personal kinship or friendship with the Gods; they say that it was not possible that Pagans could have seen the Gods as anything other than distant.

Marcus fully refutes and explodes those absurdities. He demonstrates the standard ideas of the relationship of the Gods to human beings, as he and others of his society saw them, with the beautiful passage that I am about to give below- but more than that, he points out how the Gods' central concern is the Common Good, and how they are not malicious towards human beings, or any creature. His true polytheistic wisdom is demonstrated here, but also his understanding of how the Gods relate to human worshippers:


"Does the Sun God claim to do the work of the God of rain, or Aesculapius the work of the Fruit-bearing Goddess? And how is it with each of the Stars? Is not their province different, but they are working together to the same end? ...If it so be that the Gods took counsel about me and what must happen to me, they took counsel for good; it is not easy to conceive a God without a purpose, and on what possible ground would they be likely to desire me harm? What advantage would there be from this either for themselves, or for the common good, which is their principal care? But if they took no counsel about me as an individual, surely they did for the common good, and as the present follows upon that by way of consequence, I am bound to welcome (the present condition) and love it. But suppose they take counsel, if you will, about nothing- a thing it is impious to believe, or else let us cease to sacrifice and pray to them, to swear by them, and to do all else that we do, believing them to be present and living in our midst- yet still, suppose they take counsel about none of our concerns, I am still able to take counsel about myself, and my consideration is about what is advantageous. Now the advantage of each is what is proper to his own constitution and nature, and my nature is reasonable and social. As Antoninus, my city and fatherland is Rome, as a man, the Universe. All then that benefits these cities is alone my Good."


This passage is stunning in its power- notice how Marcus claims that it is impiety to believe that the Gods do not care about humans, or take counsel about human concerns. He also mentions- directly- that if the Gods truly did not care, that he (and his contemporaries) should cease sacrifices and prayers, swearing to the Gods, and all else- because the belief that they all hold is that the Gods are present and living in their midst.

This is the heart of Pagan religion, from antiquity and doubtless beforehand- The Gods are not limited by the rude sense perceptions of mortals, and to the Gods, able to bestow prophecy on mortals, the future and past are just as "present" to them as the present moment. The Gods are in a condition of far less limitation and far more wisdom than mortal beings, and they are concerned about the common Good, and the quest of mortals to be more like them, to be "pure among the pure" as the old maxim goes.

Marcus also makes one of his wisest observations in this passage, regarding what is truly "advantageous" for each individual- what is their individual Good- and he calls it a thing proper to each person's constitution and nature. This is not an invitation to let all people divide themselves from each other in the name of "personal good"- in Marcus' Stoic philosophy, all rational beings, all thinking beings like humans, have a common purpose, and it is moral and right that they should work with each other as brothers and sisters towards the common good of all. Nature or Fate would not have bestowed thinking capacity or reason upon human beings if not for the purposes of the Good of the Whole, so humans actually violate Natural Law by lying, cheating, or acting unjustly to other people.

Of course, humans are still part of Natural Law, and cannot "violate" Reality in the truest sense of the word; they can only violate what is proper for humans to abide by. Marcus even states this, in his meditations- he says that "insofar as you are capable" you will be in violation of Nature, if you turn against your fellow man and the good.

Marcus goes a long way towards answering a question that many have: why do some people seem to be destined to be violators of all that is good and moral to mankind?

Marcus writes:

"We are all working together towards a single end, some consciously and with understanding, some without knowledge, as Heraclitus, I think, says that even "sleepers are workers and fellow workers in what comes to pass in the world." One helps in one way, one in another, and even he who finds fault and tries to resist or destroy what is coming to pass; for the Universe has need even for such a one. Finally, therefore, see with which you will take your post, for in any event He who controls the Whole will employ you aright and will accept you as one part of the fellow-laborers and fellow-workers; only take care that you do not become a cheap and ridiculous verse in the comedy."


How can we make a difference? Marcus gives us hope within the context of the "torrent" of forces and conditions that make up reality, and the Fate of reality- as he writes, in a very moving passage:

"The matter of the Whole is a torrent; it carries all in its stream. What then, man, is your part? Act as Nature at this moment requires, set about it, if it is granted to you, and don't look round to see if anyone will know. Don't hope for Plato's utopia, but be content to make a very small step forward and reflect that the result of this is no trifle."


In other words, no effort is wasted; no progress is too small. I give great honor to the Philosopher-King who set down these words, in accordance with Providence, that they might strengthen us all in the modern day, when traditional piety has become so small a part of our society. As it turns out, even though Marcus admits that humans can violate Natural Law- and the Gods who are eternal parts of it- "insofar as they are able", the extent to which humans can violate it on the level of everyday life is seemingly quite great, at least from a mortal perspective.

The Tyrant of any kind is truly wicked for this reason, and the religious tyranny that swept the ancient world affects us even today, in many ways. But as the Whole is moving towards the Good, and it is our nature as modern Pagans to honor the Gods of old, we can see that they (and our piety) are not truly defeated on any level. We must take heart in the will of Providence towards the Good, and honor the Gods as our Nature calls for us to.


I conclude this short essay in honor of my spiritual mentor by paraphrasing and affirming what he said above, with regard to myself:

"Now the advantage of each is what is proper to his own constitution and nature, and my nature is emotional and introspective. As a person, my city and fatherland is whatever place surrounds my wife and child, and as a man, the Universe. All then that benefits these cities is alone my Good."







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