20 DESTINY, FATE 



wife extraneous ritual seems to be more important than 

 character and a fortunate day for marriage than beauty. 

 Likewise in business ventures, in the ordeal of examinations 

 men have sought eagerly, in every possible way, for indica- 

 tions of what destiny holds in store, and for the results locked 

 up for them in the womb of fate. Elaborate ritual has been 

 created for the comfort of the human mind : and monarchs 

 contemplating the removal of capitals have consulted the 

 auguries as to the purpose of fate in the matter. Visions in 

 the clouds, strange voices in the night, unusual appearances 

 of the heavenly bodies have conduced to the organization of 

 ideas and the solution of difficulties. The Roman augur with 

 his birds and entrails was a leading factor in the social life of 

 ancient Rome : and the tortoise and the milfoil have become 

 no less sacred in China. The chart thrown up by the rivers 

 and Sibylline books have equally influenced the thought of 

 continents. 



The sacred I Ching itself is of the essence of this same 

 idea. The Chinese are convinced that the dark mysteries of 

 life are enshrined within, and were it only understood, 

 destiny would be clear. It is the cream of all books. It is 

 almost pathetic how some of these courteous old scholars 

 turn with wistful and longing eyes to' it now. They think, too, 

 it contains what Europeans should know in spite of the old 

 saying "that the I Ching does not cross the seas." 



Astrology has been a great pseudo-science amongst every 

 people and the crystal, the horoscope, and star-gazing have 

 revealed the dark future. The fluid of the stars control a 

 person's destiny as well as that of a nation. 



In the time of Duke Ching of Sung the planet Mars was 

 in the Heart Constellation which alarmed the duke. Tzu 

 Wei, the astrologer, was summoned to explain the portent. 

 He affirmed that it indicated an oncoming judgment of 

 Heaven, since the Heart Constellation was in that celestial 

 arc that governed the territory of Sung. The King's destiny 

 must bear the judgment unless he was willing to have it 

 shifted on to his ministers or people : which suggestion he 

 refused, as a good king should. 



The notion of destiny and fate has given rise to' the 

 occult sciences. The great cult of Divination is one of the 

 most profound rituals that have operated in human affairs. 

 In Chinese literature alone there are a great number of books 

 dealing with this subject. Most of these w T orks claim to 

 have, and with good reason, a hereditary descent from the 

 I Ching. The art has been worked out in detail under the 

 3£ ft five elements. The list of these works given in Wylie 

 indicates the extent of the subject in Chinese thought. But 



