As explained in the September 16 article, "Virtue: The Western View", there are essentially two world views of human virtue – the Western view, developed by the ancient Greek Sophists (or wise men) and philosophers such as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle – and the Eastern view, developed by the ancient sages (or wise men) such as Confucius, Buddha and Lao-tzu, according to Douglas J. Soccio's book, The Archetypes of Wisdom.
Confucius' Virtues
Virtue was an important quality for Confucius, the ancient Chinese teacher. He called it Te, which traditionally meant potency, the power to affect others without using physical force. In this sense, Te is morally neutral.
Confucius expanded Te to mean the capacity to act according to Tao, which means “the way” or “the path” or the source of all existence, the principle of all things or the way or path to the Universe. It is a key concept in Confucian philosophy and Taoism philosophy.
He taught that Tao and Te cannot be separated.
According to Confucius, producing a harmonious society needs good government and virtuous human relationships, and that can only be achieved by mastering and honoring li – which means “ceremony” that includes rites, customs and conventions ranging from ritual sacrifices honoring one’s ancestors to everyday etiquette and good manners. According to Douglas Soccio's interpretation of Confucius' view of virtue, if we don’t master li, we stray from Tao and Te and turn into disorder and imbalance.
Soccio adds that by following li, we become gracious and well-mannered in all aspects of life, treating others with dignity and respect. Li transforms human relationships from barbaric, not-truly human interactions to fully civilized, human ones. Without mastering good manners and li, even good acts won’t be good enough, because we’ll behave dishonestly, only doing the right thing out of obedience rather than with sincerity and harmony. Without li, even great knowledge lacks virtue, potency and Te.
Another Eastern virtue was Jen, or the general human virtue rooted in empathy and genuineness. Jen is expressed by conscientiousness (Chung) and altruism (shu) or the concern for the well-being of others.
To use Jen means to reach what Soccio describes as “full humanness” which only can be learned by balancing the need of self and others, the individual and society.
Complete humanness is the nobility of the soul and harmony are the goals of Confucian morality. To be a full human, a real person, one has to start out by being a good person in relation to another person or to society.
There are 3 universal ways, according to Confucius:
- Wisdom
- Humanity
- Courage
According to Soccio, some are born with the knowledge of these virtues. Some learn it through study. Some learn it through hard work. Whatever way it is learned, it all leads to the same thing.
Confucius said “Love of learning is akin to wisdom. To practice with vigor is akin to humanity. To know to be shameful is akin to courage. He who knows these 3 things knows how to cultivate his personal life.
Buddha's Virtues
The East Indian sage, Siddhartha Gautama, who later called himself “The Buddha” ("Enlightened One”), taught that the key virtues are tranquility, non-attachment, compassion, truthful speech and thought, right livelihood (or finding a way to live that doesn’t increase your own suffering or the suffering of others).
In Buddhist thought, “To forget the self is to be enlightened by all things,” Japanese Zen Master Dugen wrote. The way to do that is to remove the barrier between the Self and others.
Lao-Tsu's Virtues
Lao-Tsu, the founder of the Taoist religion in China, compares human nature to earthly nature. Taoist virtues follow the same comparison. According to Lao-Tsu, to be virtuous is to be like water, or to be flexible and responsive or “going with the flow”, or a life of spontaneity, tranquility, unselfishness and humility. It may be gentle virtues but not weak. The Tao book Tao Te Ching says that water is soft and yielding but it can overcome the hard and the strong as well.
According to Tao theory, we don’t have to resist the world. In fact, we can’t. Resistance will only drown us, actually or metaphorically. To avoid getting hit, don’t attack the offender if you don’t have to, but step aside and avoid the hit.
Tao means the “way” or the “path”. Te means “virtue” in both personal character and inner potency. Ching originally meant “norm” but came to mean “scripture” “canon” or “classic”.
So, Tao Te Ching means something like, “The Scripture/ Classic/Canon of the Way/Path and the Power/ Virtue" according to Anthony Weston in his book, A 21st Century Ethical Toolbox.
Summary
So, referring to either the Eastern or Western viewpoint, when something is lacking in virtue, that something fails to function in some way, according to Soccio. Without virtue, things are incomplete, dysfunctional, not up to their potential; not up to their purpose.
References:
Cunningham, Daniel. "Virtue: The Western View". Suite 101.com. 2010, September 16.
Reader's Digest Association, Inc. Reader's Digest Great Encyclopedic Dictionary.1966. [Virtue].
Soccio, Douglas J. Archetypes of Wisdom, An Introduction to Philosophy, 6th Edition. 2007 Pages 21, 24-25, 39, 41-42
Weston, Anthony. A 21st Century Ethical Toolbox, Second Edition. 2008. Pages 179-182.
Daniel Cunningham - Daniel Cunningham graduated from Hudson Valley Community College in 2006 with an Associate in Arts degree in Individual Studies. His ...
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