The question is serious. People have different answers to this question. All the answers can be right. . You have to select an answer which works for you.
1) Man is not the master of the Circumstances. The Circumstances are the masters of Man.
I heard this sentence in school days. I was sitting outside a Shiva Temple. An elderly person told me.
2) Man has as much choices as a Dog with a string on its neck. If the string is 2 mtr. long, the dog has choice to move freely within radius of two meters.
Next, I hear above sentence, attributed to have been said by great Jurist Nani Palkhiwala.
3) Duryodhan asked Lord Krishna, "Though a man knows that what he is doing is wrong, why is he compelled to do what is wrong? Why is he forced to make wrong choices which ultimately can destroy his life?"
Lord Krishna replied, " A man is compelled to make wrong choices by his Five Senses of Temptations, by his intelligence (Satvik, Rajas, Tamas)", by his conscience (Satvik,Rajas,Tamas), by his Habitual Attitudes (Satvik, Rajas,Tamas).
As per my above understanding of GITA, I am just like a dog, who has eight strings tied around its neck. I can move freely and have choices, within radius of length of these eight strings.
GITA, then goes to show how we can cut these eight strings by constant efforts and pranayam.
4) According to Chanakya, a great Political Guru, a man should constantly think about
a) In which country he is living? b) Who is the King of this country? c) Through what kind of times he is passing? 4) Who are his enemies? Who are his friends? d) How much resources he has to meet with unexpected adversities?
According to Chanakya, our Choices are Controlled by above factors.
WHAT DOES ALL THESE MEAN TO YOU?
There may be thousands of such philosophical statements. How to decide on which to act? All the statements may be true!
The Software engineer, who was leading the team which developed "Microsoft Word", has written a book.(I will upload name of book and author as soon as I find book in my library)
He tried to reconcile conflicting statements about life. He said you have to find which philosophy works for you to pursue your present objectives in life.
So as per his view, First, you should be clear about your TODAY'S OBJECTIVES. Then you should apply a philosophy that advances your objectives.
It boils down to this: If it helps your objectives to believe that "Man is master of his circumstances", OK, go by it.
If it helps your objectives to believe that,"Circumstances are the Master of Man", OK, go by it.
Tomorrow, you can always change your views.
Haresh Raichura
22/4/2012