One of O V Vijayan’s characters narrates a parable to show how we may not be able to alter our destiny, not much at least. A bullock, one of a pair used for drawing a cart, prayed, “Oh God, why did you give me this destiny? You have not only made me a cart-bullock but also fixed my place on the right side of the cart. The driver uses his whip relentlessly and it is on my back it falls all the time. If you can’t alter my destiny of being a cart-bullock, at least change my place from the right to the left side.” God decided to grant the wish. The bullocks and the cart were sold on the same day. The new owner placed the bullock on the left side. And the new driver was left-handed. Well, I really don’t think that our destiny is entirely out of our control. Some things are beyond our control, but some are certainly within control. For example, Mark Antony’s meeting with Cleopatra might have been beyond his control, but choosing to let Rome melt in the Tiber of his
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