0 a sudden wish or idea, especially one that cannot be reasonably explained:
Those living in remote areas were considered to be at particular risk of persecution at the whim of local officials.
If law practices did not determine legal content, there could still be moral requirements and officials' whims, but there would be no legal requirements.
Prosecution or regulation without a rational basis is insulting and demeaning, as would be subjection to the whims of a tyrant.
However, the assessment and collection of revenue was arbitrary and subject to the whims of the ruling feudal elite.
This does not mean that it is rationally defensible for any person to adopt any religion at whim.
What happens is that you may, on a whim, pronounce the noun distress with stress on the first syllable.
Being black or white is morally arbitrary because it is determined by the whims of nature, randomly and capriciously.
Extra-curricular work, however, can very much depend on the traditions of individual schools or the whims of head teachers.