Destiny? Interpreting the Boundary Between Fate and Free Will
"Destiny" — a word that has haunted human thoughts for thousands of years. Sometimes it seems like an invisible giant hand, plucking the strings of our lives in the dark; other times it appears as a net already woven, where we struggle yet can never seem to escape its bounds. Are we truly helmsmen of free will, able to choose our life's direction? Or are we merely characters already scripted in fate's drama, playing out an involuntary tragicomedy?
This article attempts to explore one perspective: destiny may truly exist, but its ultimate meaning remains in our own hands, waiting for us to interpret and rewrite.
"Fatalism" Under Traditional Shackles
Traditional "fatalism" often carries strong deterministic undertones. It implies that a person's entire life — from birth to death, from meeting to parting, from success to failure — has its trajectory already laid out. Under this view, personal effort seems insignificant; any attempt to deviate from the "predetermined path" will eventually be forcibly pulled back by destiny's power.
This thinking, in certain cultural and historical contexts, may offer solace for people's misfortunes, attributing responsibility to irresistible "heaven's will." However, it easily leads to passivity and powerlessness, abandoning exploration of life's possibilities.
Reclaiming Interpretation Rights Over Destiny: When "Heaven's Will" Meets "Human Action"
But what if we consider a different angle? What if "destiny" isn't an absolute path precise to every detail, but more like a general framework, or certain key "nodes" that life inevitably encounters? Within this framework, might we still possess space for choice, to decide how to fill in the colors, how to perform our posture when passing through those nodes?
This leads to our core argument: destiny may set certain "events" to occur, but how we face these events, what lessons we draw from them, what meaning we assign them — this interpretation right remains in our own hands. Just as facing the same storm, some choose to cower and flee, others choose to face the challenge head-on. The storm itself is a "destined" objective existence, but individual reactions and subsequent life trajectories differ vastly due to "human" choices.
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Rolling Stones Arc: Foreknowing Death and the Dignity of Choice
The "Rolling Stones" arc from the Japanese manga JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 5: Golden Wind provides a profoundly meaningful illustration. The story features a Stand called "Rolling Stones" that automatically tracks anyone facing a "peaceful death" destiny, showing that person's appearance at death. When someone touches Rolling Stones, they meet death exactly as the stone foretold — an inescapable "destiny."
The Rolling Stones' user, sculptor Scolippi, interpreted this ability not as a curse but as "mercy." He believed the death Rolling Stones foretold was the "happiest death" that individual could achieve within their fate. Forcibly avoiding Rolling Stones, attempting to defy this "better" destiny, might instead lead to more miserable, painful endings.
The story's core conflict centers on protagonist team member Bucciarati. Rolling Stones revealed that Bucciarati would peacefully die soon. Facing this clear "death notice," team member Mista chose to destroy Rolling Stones, attempting to forcibly change Bucciarati's destiny. However, Scolippi revealed a deeper cruelty: what Rolling Stones foretold was the already-decided "result," not the "cause." Even with the stone destroyed, fate's gears would still turn.
Bucciarati's own reaction proved crucial. In subsequent story developments, he did meet death. Yet before his "destined" death arrived, he neither became depressed nor gave up due to foreknowledge. Instead, to uphold his justice and beliefs, to protect companions and innocents, he fought a series of heart-stopping battles. He walked toward that seemingly cold conclusion with a heroic, dignified bearing.
Rolling Stones revealed that Bucciarati "would die" — this result. But it couldn't foretell "how" Bucciarati would meet this death, much less define his death's "meaning." Through his actions, Bucciarati transformed what seemed like a cold "destined death" into a heroic anthem. His choice didn't change "death" as the endpoint, but completely transformed the journey toward that endpoint, and the impression this journey left in others' hearts.
Destiny's Framework and Freedom's Dance
The "Rolling Stones" arc reminds us that even if life contains certain unavoidable "destined matters," this doesn't mean we've completely lost freedom. Destiny may set the stage's boundaries and script's outline, but how actors interpret their roles, deliver each line, interact with other characters — this still brims with improvisation and creative space.
We can view destiny as a river. The river's flow direction (life's macro trend) may have been determined by terrain long ago, but whether we drift with the current, row vigorously, enjoy the scenery along the way, or even explore tributaries — this all depends on us. Even if all eventually flows into the ocean (life's end), the journey's value differs vastly based on our choices.
Conclusion: Destiny's Compass Rests in the Interpreter's Hands
"Destiny?" — this question may never have a black-and-white standard answer. But we can choose to believe: even if the universe's operation has its inherent laws, even if life's script has its underlying patterns, we remain the ultimate interpreters and creators of our own life's meaning.
The great wheel of fate may be rolling, but what drives us forward shouldn't be destiny's chains, but love for life, pursuit of ideals, and determination to make meaningful choices in every "present moment." "Rolling Stones" may reveal the finale, but it cannot strip us of the dignity of choice and freedom of creation in our journey toward that finale. Ultimately, we don't passively "encounter" fate — we live out our unique "selves" in the journey of dancing with destiny.
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