Life - What is Fate?

This is the teaching of Tao of Heaven about thedescending, floating or sinking, good or evil, and
deeper meaning of life and fate and how a humanfortunate or ominous. If one is born with little
being can become a Saint, Sage or just ordinaryinfluence from Qi and is mildly pulled by
among humans:materialism, his True Character can develop
'Human beings come from Heaven (Heaven isstrongly. He will follow the role of Saints and
used by Confucianism to represent Tao). SinceSages and in turn, can become a Saint or Sage. If
Heaven consists of Li-tien (Heaven of Truth),one is born with strong influence from Qi and is
Qi-tien (Heaven of Spirit) and Xiang-tien (Heavenstrongly pulled by materialism, his True Self is
of Matter), therefore human beings possess thegreatly inhibited and is difficult to develop. His
Li-xing (True Character), Qi-xing (SpiritualSpiritual Character and Material Character will
Character), and Zhi-xing (Material Character) too.dominate and he will be lost in the pursuit of
Yin and Yang evolve from Tai-ji (Tai-ji is yin andmaterialism and emotional desires, and remains as
yang. Tai-ji Qi-tien means Heaven of Spirit with yinan ordinary person for all his life.
and yang), Yin and Yang then evolve the fourIn summary, he who overcomes emotions and
seasons, eight Solar Periods, twenty-four Seasonaldesires, and restores his True Self becomes a
Periods, seventy-two Proper Periods, and threeSaint or Sage. He who cannot overcome
hundred sixty degrees. Every five degreesemotions and desires will never free his True
constitude a Proper Period, and the fate in eachCharacter from inhibition and becomes the
Proper Period is different, just like the celestialordinary. For example, a mirror itself is clear when
latitude varies with every degree. All lives onit is first made. As the mirror sits, dust is collected
Earth are born to different celestial latitudes andon the mirror. If the dust is not wiped off, the
different seasons, i.e. different fate. So everyonemirror cannot be cleared. A man's True Self is the
is subject to different gravity of materialism. Thusmirror, and the dust is emotions and desires. That
all matters have distinctions of nobility andis why Taoism says, "Cultivate the heart to refine
common, and humans have distinction of longevitythe True Self;" Buddhism says, "Brighten the heart
and short-lived, rich and poor, and wise andto see the True Self;" Confucianism says, "Hold
ordinary.the heart to cultivate the True Self;" Christianity
Our True Selves are from Heaven of Truth, andsays, "Purify the heart to align to the True Self;"
they are all equal. Once the True Self entersand Islam says, "Strengthen the heart to stabilize
Hou-tien (space where all lives live after Heaventhe True Self." Although the emphases are
and Earth were created), it disperses into threedifferent, they all refer to the restoration of the
Characters; True Character, Spiritual CharacterTrue Self.'
and Material Character). Whether one can revealFate can be changed and my Heavenly Master
his True Character depends on his ability toJiGong advised those who were born unlucky:
overcome his Spiritual Character and Material"If Heaven 'thin' my luck (born unlucky), I shall
Character. A person's Spiritual Character and'thicken' my virtue to welcome it."
Material Character are subject to the Heaven ofIn practising Tao, one can change his fate and the
Spirit. The development of each person's Truebest way to change is to do good deeds and be
Character is different because the Qi (Spirituality)virtuous.
in Heaven of Spirit can manifest as ascending orAuthor: T.