"I was born," replied the old man, "upon dry land, and accommodated myself to dry land. That was my original condition. Growing up on the water, I accommodated myself to the water. That was what I meant by nature.
Habit is second nature.
And doing as I did without being conscious of any effort so to do, that was what I meant by destiny."
Objective existences cannot injure him who puts his trust in God.
[This episode occurs twice, with textual differences, in the works of Lieh Tzŭ, chs. ii. and viii.]
Ch'ing, the chief carpenter,
Of the Lu State.
was carving wood into a stand for hanging musical instruments. When finished, the work appeared to those who saw it as though of supernatural execution. And the prince of Lu asked him, saying, "What mystery is there in your art?"