Bao ying
Bàoyìng is a concept of cosmic and moral reciprocity in the Chinese folk religion. It implies that people dwell in a moral universe, a universe that is kept ordained by mores, good actions, thus moral retribution is in fact a cosmic retribution. It determines fate, as written in the Book of Documents: "on the doer of good, heaven sends down all blessings, and on the doer of evil, he sends down all calamities."
In Buddhism and Daoism, bàoyìng is equated to the concept of dharmic retribution.
The cosmic significance of bào yìng is better understood exploring other two traditional concepts of fate and meaning:
- , the personal destiny, in which is "life" or "right", the given status of life, and defines "circumstance" and "individual choice"; is given and influenced by the transcendent force, that is the same as the "divine right" of ancient rulers as identified by Mencius. Personal destiny is thus perceived as both fixed and flexible, open-ended.
- , "fateful coincidence", describing good and bad chances and potential relationships. Scholars K. S. Yang and D. Ho have analysed the psychological advantages of this belief: assigning causality of negative events to beyond personal control, people tend to maintain good relationships, avoid conflict, and promote social harmony; meanwhile, when positive events are seen as result of, personal credit is not directly assigned, and this reduces pride on one side of the relationship and envy and resentment on the other.