Fate

Fate
Japanese Name	運命
Romanized Name	Unmei
Alternate Names	Destiny
Literal Meaning	Bringer of luck
Manga Debut	Chapter 1
Anime Debut	Episode 1

SPOILER WARNING: Part 1-9 spoiler details may follow.

“

There are those who say fate is something one carves out for themselves... But at the same time, there are situations in one's life where, caught between a rock and a hard place, they lack the opportunity to choose the right path!

”

—Narrator, Chapter 517: Bruno Bucciarati's Childhood

Fate (運命, Unmei) is the concept of a predetermined course of events, especially one that serves a greater purpose. In the JoJo's Bizarre Adventure series, fate is taken as a fact, and greatly influences the story as a whole.

Summary

“

Don't you understand? You lost to fate! It's fate to walk the path of justice!

”

—Emporio Alnino to Enrico Pucci, Stone Ocean Chapter 158: What a Wonderful World

The wheel of fate, as depicted in GW Episode 20.

Fate is introduced as early as the first chapter of the series as an overarching force behind all things, and its influence is cited throughout the story. The exact nature and will of fate is never defined; nevertheless, by the end of Stone Ocean, it is understood to be a force that ultimately favors justice, even if it appears otherwise at points. The conflict between fate and human will serves as a major theme throughout the series, most prominently in Diamond is Unbreakable, Vento Aureo, and Stone Ocean.

Fate's existence is tangibly demonstrated several times throughout the series. Rolling Stones is directly stated to draw its energy directly from the power of fate, and Made in Heaven's ultimate purpose relies upon fate's existence and immobility. Cinderella is also said to use its power to affect fate directly. Other Stands such as Tohth and King Crimson, as well as certain talented individuals such as Tonpetty, are able to predict events that will occur in the near future with certainty, but with the caveat that said events cannot be altered in any way, only misunderstood. Even in King Crimson's case, events can only be removed entirely by erasing the period of time in which they occur. However, these and other powers that "reshape fate" are also accounted for by fate in advance, and as such only further play into its goals.

Tohth predicts "Jotaro Kujo" being gravely wounded, but leaves out that it is actually Oingo disguised as Jotaro.

Though fate's grander shape generally remains unknown, certain patterns are identified within the story. The foremost example of these patterns is the idea of "gravity" between certain people that are fated to meet each other. According to Toshikazu Hazamada, such a force acts on all Stand users, guiding them to meet each other either as friends or foes. Enrico Pucci devotes himself to this idea, using it to justify various phenomena that aid him in his goals. Ultimately, though the literal force of gravity is what allows Pucci to complete his Stand ability, Emporio Alnino cites that very same gravity when explaining the priest's defeat.

People are also able to exploit patterns in fate to guess at its resolutions; examples of this range from prophecies such as that of the Red Stone of Aja to the fortune-telling performed by Wang Chan and Muhammad Avdol, among others. Individuals such as Yoshikage Kira and Diavolo may also develop the idea that they have been favored by fate, though such beliefs are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Related Phenomena

Feng Shui

Main article: Dragon's Dream

Narciso Anasui explaining feng shui.

Feng Shui (風水, Fūsui, lit. Wind and Water), also called FENG(フェン) SUI(スウイ), is a force featured in Stone Ocean as the basis behind Kenzou's Stand, Dragon's Dream. Commonly considered a form of fortune-telling, feng shui operates on the idea that energy is shaped by the environment, and the flow of that energy bestows luck or misfortune onto certain areas. For instance, houses built in an unlucky area negatively impact the lives of their tenants, and castles during wartime would commonly have shrines built in unlucky areas to reduce their vulnerability. Feng shui is inevitable, however: lucky areas and those within them cannot be harmed, while unlucky areas and their inhabitants cannot avoid misfortune.

Kenzou survived his cult's mass suicide by unknowingly standing in a lucky area, which was protected from the debris of the collapsing building he was inside. After being sent to prison, Kenzou harnessed the power of feng shui to perform assassinations, taking advantage of the lucky and unlucky areas of the human body to target their weak points while protecting himself from attack. Kenzou's technique eventually manifested as Dragon's Dream, whose form includes both an arrow pointing to unlucky directions and a compass pointing to lucky directions; these allow Kenzou to determine the best course of attack at a glance, but also provide the same information to his opponents.

Happiness

Hot Pants is killed by a window frame drawn toward the Saint's Corpse.

Main article: Saint's Corpse

Happiness (幸福, Kōfuku) is a concept in Steel Ball Run that serves as the basis of the Saint's Corpse's power. Within the world, there is a balance of fortune and misfortune such that the two level out overall. The Saint's Corpse, when fully assembled, is able to manipulate that fortune by repelling misfortune from itself and its owner, leaving only good fortune and a state of "happiness" around both. The only known exception to this principle is the law of gravity; as such, it can be overcome by gravity such as that created by two of the same person from parallel worlds existing in the same world, or bypassed entirely by beings of infinite energy like Ball Breaker and Tusk ACT4.

Upon awakening the corpse's power, Funny Valentine also gains the ability D4C Love Train, which creates a seam of light that Valentine can traverse and manipulate freely. However, Love Train is as much an evolution of his own Stand as it is an ability bestowed by the corpse; as such, the successor to the corpse's power (namely Parallel World Diego) does not gain a similar ability.

Flow

Main article: Wonder of U

A regular leaf slices off Joshu Higashikata's fingers.

Flow (流れ, Nagare) is a concept in JoJolion proposed by Norisuke Higashikata IV. Norisuke believes that there is a "flow" or natural path for everything in life, even a simple fruit parlor, and that determining and accepting it is sure to lead one to their goal. This idea is later expanded by a natural law called Calamity (厄災, Yakusai), which functions as the basis behind Wonder of U, Toru's Stand.

Calamity is an unavoidable negative energy that causes unfortunate events to occur as part of flows. In its natural state, it affects people at random, regardless of morality or circumstance, and regardless of whether they've made any mistakes or accepted the flows of things. The law of calamity can manifest grievous misfortunes via any means necessary. For instance, calamity causes rain drops to pierce Josuke Higashikata, giving him near-lethal wounds, and a falling leaf to slice off Joshu Higashikata's fingers. Calamity can also manifest as an unfortunate chain of events: according to Mitsuba Higashikata, Yasuho Hirose's discovery of the New Locacaca fruit and Norisuke subsequently being incapacitated is also a part of the ongoing calamity targeting her and her family.

To those who can see Stands, calamity is accompanied by a vision of Toru's Stand, Wonder of U, even after Toru's demise. The only known forces capable of averting an occurrence of calamity are those that transcend the flow of logic itself, such as the Spin as applied by Soft & Wet: Go Beyond.

Mechanisms

Mechanisms (仕組み(メカニズム), Mekanizumu) are a concept in The JOJOLands proposed by Jodio Joestar. According to Jodio, mechanisms are natural principles of the world that control the direction in which aspects such as wealth, security, and power are transferred, similarly to flows. Unlike flows, however, Jodio perceives mechanisms as a kind of hierarchy, atop which lies an "apex" that controls the entire "ecosystem." It is this apex mechanism that Jodio hopes to seize for his own gain, especially after discovering a strange Lava Rock and the mechanism that attracts wealth to it.

Creation and Development

Although he does not believe in God, Hirohiko Araki himself harbors a belief in some kind of overarching force, including the concept of fate. By extension, Araki believes that tackling subjects such as fate in his works, through proxies such as bloodlines, is what gives them meaning; Araki thinks similarly of other works as well, praising works from The Book to Spider-Man for addressing the presence of destiny. Nonetheless, he considers such factors to be an inevitability in the realm of manga, being determined by the circumstances of the work.

However, Araki also believes that being unable to escape one's fate is more terrifying than death itself. As such, he greatly admires and aims to write characters who move forward without consideration for fate, indirectly confronting and surpassing it in the process. To Araki, the ability to move forward and carve out one's own fate is the greatness of humanity that he aims to celebrate in his manga.