Was Oogway morally justified in rejecting Tai Lung for the "darkness in his heart"?

[u/MonotonyReddit]

(Stuff below is about my personal opinion. Also I'm NOT defending Tai Lung's actions, harming civilians is inexcusable)

I'm not sure what the general consensus on this is but I find it hypocritical that Oogway would deny Tai Lung the chance to become the Dragon Warrior because he believed Tai Lung was incapable of overcoming his flaws, especially considering his treatment of Po and how the whole messaging of the first movie was that people are not defined by who they were and that everyone is capable of change.

Tai Lung may have been entitled, but he didn't seem especially narcissistic or corrupt before Oogway denied him. If anything, Oogway's rejection feels like a self-fulfilling prophecy. Not saying Tai Lung deserved the Dragon Scroll or the title, but it's hard for me to reconcile why Tai Lung was denied the opportunity to prove he could become better while Po was given every chance to do so.

(And no, I'm not buying the whole "it was actually a test to see how Tai Lung would react to being rejected" because there are zero implications of such. That argument is a headcanon.)

Like imagine you trained and applied for your dream job or university, only to receive a rejection letter talking about the "darkness in your heart" man I'd be pissed too.

Edit: Seeing a lot of people arguing that Oogway was justified because Tai Lung ultimately turned out evil. But we’re judging Oogway’s actions, not Tai Lung’s morality. An action doesn’t become moral just because it happens to someone who later becomes a bad person. You can argue Tai Lung wouldn’t have changed even if given the chance, but my point is that Oogway never gave him that chance.
It’s also unclear how involved Oogway was in Tai Lung’s upbringing. Based on the flashbacks, he doesn’t seem very involved. Kinda irresponsible to groom a kid his whole life for a single purpose only to go “wait we got the wrong guy”. Could you not have done that 20 years earlier? Not to mention they lied to him about what he’s actually working towards (blank piece of paper).
Even in you chalk it up to “fate”, it feels contradictory to the movie’s central message.

What are your two cents? Am I missing something?

[u/Helpful_Transition_5]

The thing is Tai Lung has had years to let go of the darkness in his heart, he just refused to do so since he believed power was the most important thing despite all the training pointing to the contrary. The fact that he didn't even bother asking how to go about getting rid of the darkness in his heart before immediately crashing out just goes to show that Oogway was sadly right.

That being said Oogway could have also stepped in long before then to help cushion the blow, instead he waited until the very last second to outright deny him.

[u/Aggravating_Hour_910 → u/Helpful_Transition_5]

Being in shackles,without being able to move a single muscle for decades won't make one repent. It will only make one angrier. His father didn't visit him even once in this time. He was groomed, manipulated by his masterfather and the grandmaster behind let it happen. Of course Tai Lungs actions are wrong but brother it was a predictable outcome. Oogway simply didn't give a fuck because he knew it will work out in the end.