Inevitability No. 1: Birth, Aging, Illness and Death

According to the first caveat of the Four Noble Truths in Buddhism, Dukkha, birth is suffering, aging is suffering, illness is suffering and death is suffering. This is the cycle of life that we all go through over and over again as after death, there will be birth again. Even the mighty Qin Shih Huang, in his conquest to find the elixir of life as he neared his death failed to avert this invetability. I echoed the sentiments of Stephen Hawking in A Brief History of Time that since the Universe has its beginning, it will have its end too. But birth, aging, illness and death would continue in other universe and other dimensions. I am a believer that there is life outside Earth, and when there is life, there is aging, illness and death. If there is only one constant across the universe, it inevitable that it should be this.

Inevitability No. 2: Chastity, Temperance, Charity, Diligence, Kindness, Patience and Humility

The Seven Virtues, the better sibling of the Seven Deadly Sins, first made known by Aurelis Clemens Prudentius circa 410 AD (source: wikipedia). These virtues defines humanity, and it is inevitable that all of us possess them.

Inevitability No. 3: Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Envy and Pride

The Seven Deadly Sins. I believe we are all at one point of our lives guilty of one of these sins. When we are driven by personal gains and desires, it is  not hard for us to be consumed by them. It is only inevitable because of our cravings and desires, these seven deadly sins are present in our lives.    

  Inevitability No. 4: Inflation

Oil prices rise to US$142 a couple of days ago, which made me realise that there is one thing inevitable in economics, inflation, which simply means the increase in prices of goods and services. Unfortunately for us, this inevitability is not substantiated by the rise in wages.

Inevitability No. 5: Once is happenstance, twice is coincidence and thrice is enemy action

Quote courtesy of Ian Fleming’s Goldfinger. Random events happen everyday in our lives, and those random events normally happen only once. When it happens twice, we call it coincidence. But when it happens thrice, almost invariably, someone or something is behind it.

Inevitability No. 6: The Passage of Time

Perhaps the greatest inevitability of all, parallel to the Invetability No. 1. There is no avoiding the passage of time, unless of course, we find a way to time travel.

Inevitability No. 7: Every physical object will remain at rest or in motion at a constant velocity unless acted upon by an external force

The law of inertia, as proposed in Newton’s first law of motion. While Sir Isaac Newton in formulating this theory was explaining the law of motion in the context of physics, I am quoting him in the context of how we live our lives.  We will inevitably remain idle, or constant in our lives unless affected by an external force. Everytime when we make a decision to move, or stop moving or change direction, it is due to an external force. External force comes in the form of the people around us and events occuring in our lives, that provoke and encourage us to change the way we move and act. Whatever changes our internal force, is influenced by external forces.

Inevitability No. 8: Evolution

Changes in our genetic and physical traits or our species are invetiable we go through the process of life and death. Whether it is by natural selection, mutation, adpatation or genetic drift, the process of evolution is something that is destined, and it is this process that created a diverse world we are living in now.

Inevitability No. 9: The advancement of science, and the misuse of science

I was once told that the advancement of science runs parallel with the moral decay of community as knowledge and technologies developed through science allow people commit unsavoury deeds. I beg to differ. To quote for Gil Grissom from CSI:Crime Scene Investigation;

“Everybody learns from science. It is how you use it that matters.”

Unfortunately however, the advancement in science is often and almost inevitably associated with misuse of scientifc knowledge and technologies. Power corrupts, and to us, science can often be the ultimate power as the world of science is without boundary.

Inevitability No. 10: Manchester United is still the best team in the world, with or without Cristiano Ronaldo

lolx. Aww… Can’t I take a little space off this post to take a swipe at Ronnie??