Key Difference – Destiny vs Luck
Destiny and luck are two concepts which are often used to describe events and incidents that are out of our control. Destiny is a predetermined course of events that is often considered to be an irresistible power or agency. Luck is success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one’s own actions. The key difference between destiny and luck is that destiny affects our whole life whereas luck affects a single incident or event in our lives.
What is Destiny?
Destiny is a predetermined course of events that is often considered to be an irresistible power or agency. It is based on the belief that there is a fixed natural order to the universe. Destiny is also known as fate and is usually considered to be inevitable or unavoidable. However, some people believe that one’s destiny can be changed by qualities such as hard work, effort, patience, and courage.
Destiny or fate also plays an important role in some religions. Many religions believe that the fate of human beings is in the hands of the god. They believe human decisions and actions ultimately go according to a divine plan devised by a god. Destiny or fate also plays a major role in several famous literary works such as Oedipus Rex, the Iliad, the Odyssey, Romeo and Juliet, and Macbeth.
In Greek mythology, the Moirai were the white-robed incarnations of destiny
What is Luck?
Luck can be defined as success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one’s own actions. Thus, luck is the accidental way things happen without being planned. When luck brings us success, we call it good luck, and when it brings failures, we call it bad luck.
Examples of Good luck:
Finding a valuable object
Avoiding an accident at the last moment
Guessing the correct answer without any knowledge
Winning a lottery
Examples of Bad luck:
Winning a lottery, but losing the ticket
Missing all other work to attend a meeting, but the meeting being canceled at the last minute
A freak accident
We also associate some specific objects and events with good luck and bad luck. For example, horseshoes, four-leaved clover, jade, dream catchers, bamboo, white elephants, etc. are considered to be lucky symbols in some cultures. Spilling salt, breaking a mirror, a black crossing one’s path, opening an umbrella indoors, certain numbers such as 13, etc. are considered to be signs and symbols of bad luck according to superstition.
Four-leaved clover
What is the difference between Destiny and Luck?
Definition:
Destiny is a predetermined course of events that is often considered to be an irresistible power or agency.
Luck is success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one’s own actions.
Life:
Destiny affects the whole life of an individual.
Luck is often associated with a single event or incident.
Control:
Destiny is based on the belief that there is a fixed natural order to the universe.
Luck implies that human beings usually have control over their actions.
Image Courtesy:“Schadow Grabmal Alexander 2” By Johann Gottfried Schadow – Own work (own photograph)- (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia“Luck is… (explored)” By Umberto Salvagnin – originally posted to Flickr as Luck is… (explored) (CC BY 2.0) via Commons Wikimedia