The threads of destiny are spun, measured, and severed.
In short: From the mythological weavers of Greek antiquity to the high-fantasy wars of modern Japanese literature, the concept of 'Fate' remains a constant obsession. Whether depicted as three goddesses with shears or a magical war for the soul of humanity, the narrative of destiny explores our deepest fears about agency and mortality.
In classical mythology, the Fates represent the ultimate arbiters of human existence. Elihu Vedder's 1887 oil work, 'The Fates Gathering in the Stars,' illustrates a methodical sequence: Clotho creates the life thread, Lachesis decides its span, and Atropos severs it during the designated moment of dying. This imagery, rooted in Greek tradition, highlights the transition from life to death as a physical, mechanical process of weaving and shearing.
Modern fantasy literature, such as the 'Fate/Apocrypha' series by Yūichirō Higashide, reinterprets these metaphysical themes through a 'Holy Grail War.' In this narrative, the 'Fate' is not just a predetermined thread but a contested struggle for the future of humanity. The story follows a conflict between the Red and Black factions, where various 'Servants'—heroic spirits from history and myth—fight to fulfill specific desires, ranging from personal redemption to the radical transformation of the human soul.
A central conflict in 'Fate/Apocrypha' involves the character Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, a Japanese Christian who led the Shimabara Rebellion. He seeks to use the 'Third Magic' to turn all human souls into immortal beings of bliss. This represents a literal attempt to 'fix the length' of the thread of life, seeking to bypass the natural end dictated by the Fates. The narrative concludes with a protagonist, Sieg, choosing to carry the Grail to a 'reverse side of the world' to prevent this forced evolution, illustrating the eternal tension between accepting one's destiny and trying to rewrite it.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Fate/Apocrypha
- Also: The Fates Gathering in the Stars
- Also: Art Institute of Chicago — The Three Fates · CC0 (data); description CC BY 4.0
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