A faith that flourished in the 5th century BCE, the Ajivika tradition centered on absolute determinism. Every event—birth, death, joy, suffering—was thought to be pre-scripted by an unbreakable cosmic order called niyati. Free will didn’t stand a chance; life was seen as a film already shot.

Key teachings included: • Niyati (Destiny): A rigid blueprint governing all phenomena.
• Denial of Karma’s Moral Power: Actions didn’t ripple outward to shape future lives. Cause and effect might exist in nature, but human choices couldn’t bend destiny.
• Soul as Inert Entity: The self was a passenger, not a pilot—no inner spark of agency.
• Extreme Asceticism: Rigorous penance, fasting, and silent wandering were embraced as reflections of life’s unalterable path. Endurance of suffering was viewed as simply playing one’s part.
• Rituals and Reflection: Meditation focused on accepting the cosmic script, while mendicant practices underscored detachment from any illusion of control.

In contrast to early Buddhism’s middle way and Jainism’s karma-driven ethics, Ajivikas argued that moral effort was like rowing upstream in a river that never changes its course. It’s an idea that rings oddly familiar today, echoing debates over genetic determinism or AI algorithms that predict consumer choices before they even know what they want.

Although this tradition faded into history, its stubborn belief in fate’s iron grip still sparks fascination. Questions about destiny versus choice have never gone out of style—and the Ajivika school reminds that humanity has wrestled with these puzzles since the days when history itself was just getting written.