文质彬彬·每日好词语 | 制天命而用之

　　制天命而用之

　　掌握上天所赋予的事物及其运作法则并加以利用。出自《荀子》。荀子认为，天与人有各自的职分，天地与人事的运行也有各自的法则，不应将人世的治乱祸福归结于天的赏罚，因此荀子反对通过赞颂、逢迎上天来求取福报。同时荀子也指出，天在自然运行中化育万物，并赋予人以形体、情感和欲望。人们需要掌握上天所赋予的事物，因循其中的法则而加以利用。

　　Grasp and Utilize the Endowments of Heaven

　　This saying comes from the book Xunzi, which is named after the philosopher Xunzi. He believed that heaven and mankind each have their own duties and that the operations of heaven, earth and human affairs follow their respective laws. In this sense, we should not consider either societal peace and turbulence or fortune and misfortune as the reward or punishment of heaven.Hence Xunzi opposed extolling or even ingratiating oneself with heaven in exchange for benefit. He also pointed out that in the course of natural evolution heaven nourishes all things and endows humans with their body, emotion, and desire. Therefore, one needs to grasp the endowments of heaven and make use of them in accordance with the laws.

　　引例

　　从天而颂之，孰与制天命而用之。（《荀子·天论》）（与其顺从天而赞颂它，不如掌握上天所赋予的事物及其运行法则并加以利用。）

　　To obey and extol heaven is not as good as to grasp the endowments of heaven and make use of them in accordance with the laws. (Xunzi)