Several parts combine into one character.

Compound character: a covering (亼) above a kneeling person (卩) and a mouth (口). The encoded scene: "a superior issues an order from above; a subordinate kneels below to receive it". The original meaning was "command / order". From "command" the meaning expanded to "the command of Heaven" → fate / destiny → the duration of life itself. Three meanings stack: command, fate, life. Identical across 繁體 / 新字体 / 简体.

The character anchors a profound philosophical concept: 天命 (Mandate of Heaven, tiānmìng / tenmei), the foundational political theory of imperial East Asia — rulers govern by divine right. Lose the moral authority to rule, lose the Mandate, and the dynasty falls.

Mandarin: mìng, falling 4th tone. 生命 (shēngmìng, life), 命运 (mìngyùn, fate), 命令 (mìnglìng, order / command), 使命 (shǐmìng, mission), 革命 (gémìng, revolution — "changing the Mandate"), 拼命 (pīnmìng, "stake one's life" → desperately), 救命 (jiùmìng, save a life — "Help!" in emergencies). 革命 is one of the most politically loaded words in modern Chinese, referring to the 1911 Revolution, Cultural Revolution, etc.

Japanese: TWO on-readings. メイ (mei) is dominant — 生命 (seimei, life), 運命 (unmei, fate / destiny), 命令 (meirei, command), 使命 (shimei, mission), 命中 (meichū, hitting the target — used in archery/sports). ミョウ (myō) appears in 寿命 (jumyō, lifespan — see 寿 entry). Kun-reading いのち (inochi) is the everyday and poetic word for "life / one's precious life" — emotionally weighted: 命を救う (inochi o sukuu, save a life), 命がけ (inochigake, life-risking / utmost effort).

The Japanese いのち (inochi) carries enormous emotional and spiritual weight — it refers to the precious singular gift of one's existence, distinct from mere biological life (生).

Memory aid: a covered figure receiving orders from above — fate as "what is commanded".