A man leading a mediocre life went to visit the Zen master with doubts about destiny.

He asked the master, "Can you tell me if there really exists a destiny?”

"Yes," answered the master.

"Am I doomed to be poverty-stricken all my life?" he asked. 

The master asked him to extend his left hand and pointing out to him, said, "Do you see clearly? This horizontal line is called the Love line. The oblique line is the Career Line and another line is the Life Line." 

Then the master also asked him to make a gesture following him to clench the hand slowly, and then, tightly. 

The master asked, "Now tell me where these lines are."

"In my hand!" said the man, puzzled.

"Then your destiny?"

The man came to take a tumble. 

mediocre 普通的；质量中等偏下的

Zen Master 禅师

doomed 命中注定的

poverty-striken 被贫穷困扰的

horizontal 水平的

oblique 倾斜的

take a tumble 恍然大悟

一个过着庸庸碌碌生活的人带着对命运的疑问去拜访禅师。

他问禅师。“你说真的有命运吗?

"有的。"禅师回答。

"我是不是注定会穷困一生呢?”他问

禅师就让他伸出左手,指给他看说:“你看清楚了吗?这条横线叫爱情线,这条斜线叫事业线,另一条线就是生命线。"

然后禅师又让他跟自己做一个动作,把手慢慢地握起来,握得紧紧的。

禅师问:“你说这几根线在哪里?”

那人迷惑地说“在我的手里啊！”

“命运呢?”

那人终于恍然大悟。