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XXXI. Destinies

200---The Meaning of the Three Destinies (III B. 12a-13a).

a. What does ming¹ 'destiny' mean? [It means] man's old age, what Heaven has destined to constitute his span of life.

b. There are three kinds of destinies, indicating [man's] vicissitudes. There is the 'Old-age Destiny' shou-ming, [to denote] those who observe the rules; there is the 'Accident Destiny' tsao-ming, [to denote] those who meet a violent [death]; there is the 'Merit Destiny' sui-ming, [to denote] those who receive according to their deserts ².

c. The 'Old-age Destiny' is the best. It applies for instance to "King Wên, who received his mandate in the middle of his life and enjoyed the state['s throne] for fifty years" ³.

d. The 'Merit Destiny' is the destiny as a consequence of one's behaviour. It applies for instance to [the prince of Hu,] "who idly abandoned the Three Rectifications, so that on that account Heaven cut off his life" ⁴. For [Heaven] desires that the people apply themselves to consideration for others and abide by the sense of the correct principles, not despising Heaven; when [there is one who] despises Heaven, then the Overseer of Destinies ⁵ will expose his guilt, that is, he will use it as a reason to destroy him.

e. The 'Accident Destiny' [applies to] those who encounter the depravities of his time, as when above [there happens to be] an unruly Lord, so that below there will be calamities and extraordinary events. Disasters occur and the life of men is cut short. Such was the case when the town of Sha-lu fell crushingly from the river-bank ⁶ [or] when Jan Po-niu, [Confucius' disciple and a man of] bold speech and upright conduct, was visited by a loathesome disease. Confucius said [of him]: "It is destiny! That such a man should have this disease!" ⁷

f. The Master, when passing through Chêng, found himself separated from his disciples, and alone took his stand outside the gate of the city-wall. Someone told Tzŭ-kung: "At the eastern gate there is a man, whose head resembles that of Yao; his neck resembles that of Kao-yao, and his shoulders resemble those of Tzŭ-ch'an; only from his waist down he lacks [the height of] Shun by three inches. He looks wearied like a homeless dog". Tzŭ-kung related it to Confucius, who with a sigh and a smile replied: "[The description of my] appearance is inadequate, but as to the homeless dog, how true it is, how true it is" ⁸.

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Published by The Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, © Copyright 2003 by Anne Kinney and the University of Virginia