Man & Destiny

There are two kinds of people. The first dare to meander the river of destiny. They think they can bend fate to their will. They try to control everything. Hence, they become completely controlled. The second allow it to take them wherever it is going. They lay helpless, like an indeterminate log on a boat. They live in fear.

A skilled rower is different. He does not violate the river by trying to bend her course, nor does he float along. He knows when to exercise control and when to allow himself to be floated away. He engages in a relationship with her. The river returns his grace by carrying him exactly where he wants to go, often via paths he is clueless of. In fact, he kind of trusts that she knows quite well how his goals can be best attained, how his destiny can be best destined. He acknowledges that she harbors in her belly deep secrets known to no man. As a result of his dynamic union with her, it becomes hard to tell whether he is leading her or being lead by her. And he does not care to find out. Such is a great voyage.

This relationship is understood by skilled skateboarders, surfers, and athletes, too. They know when to pull and when to release. They are never rigid in their balance but stay fluid, like the ever-flowing and ever-changing great Dao.