04_(87-105) Confucian Ethics.pmd

CONFUCIAN ETHICS IN MODERN SOCIETY:

APPROPRIATING CONFUCIANISM IN CONTEMPORARY

DISCOURSES

Manuel B. Dy, Jr.

Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines

Abstract

The task of this paper is to show the relevance of Confucian eth-

ics to modern society. We now live in a global society, characterized by

the development of technology, market economy, the rise of democratic

forms of society, and instant communication overcoming the limitations

of space and time. Yet the same globalization has brought forth a widen-

ing gap of the rich and the poor, the degradation of nature, the migration

of peoples away from their families, a consumerist society, and the subju-

gation of the individual and the state to the world order. While we cannot

avoid the globalization process, we can address specific issues arising

from the process. This paper will limit itself then to issues pertaining to

the family, the state, nature, and to the cosmos (cosmopolitanism).

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Prajna Vihara, Volume 13, Number 1-2, January-December, 2012, 87-105 87

c 2000 by Assumption University Press

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The task of this paper is to show the relevance of Confucian eth-

ics to modern society. We now live in a global society, in a borderless

world engineered and propelled by advances in technology such as the

internet and the cellular phone, resulting in a freer but interdependent

market economy, homogenization of cultures aptly called

“mcdonaldlization or cocacolalization of cultures”, the rise of democratic

forms of society such as civil society, and instant communication over-

coming the limitations of space and time. Yet the same globalization has

brought forth a widening gap of the rich and the poor, the degradation of

nature, the migration of peoples away from their families, a consumerist

society, and the subjugation of the individual and the state to the world

order, to becoming a citizen of the world. While we cannot avoid the

globalization process, we can address specific issues arising from the pro-

cess. This paper will limit itself then to issues pertaining to the family, the

state, nature, and to the cosmos (cosmopolitanism).

The sources of Confucian ethics are basically the Four Books: the

Analects of Confucius, the Book of Mencius, the Doctrine of the Mean,

and the Great Learning. From each of these sources I intend to appropri-

ate a Confucian ethics applicable to the family, the state, the environment,

and the world at large.

Analects and Filial Piety

Ren ( ) is the primary virtue in Analects. Without ren, the

other virtues of wisdom, righteousness and propriety would make no sense.

Ren is translated as benevolence, human-heartedness, humanity, and when

Confucius was asked for the meaning of ren, he said, “It is to love human

beings”.1 Etymologically, the character is made up of two characters: ren

( ), meaning “human being”, and erh ( ), meaning “two”. Thus, ren

pertains to interpersonal relationships, to the love that should unite them.

88 Prajna Vihara
__ __

Ren, however, has two aspects, chung ( ) translated as conscientious-

ness, and shu ( ) translated as the Golden Rule.2 The two cannot be

separated; the first is our duty to oneself (being true to oneself) and the

latter, our duty to others. Chung and Shu cannot be separated just as

genuine love for oneself cannot be separated from love for others.3

Ren, however, begins in the family. “Filial piety and brotherly

respect are the root of humanity (ren).4 The family plays a pivotal role in

Confucian ethics such that when

The Duke of She told Confucius, “In my country there is

an upright man named Kung. When his father stole a sheep,

he bore witness against him”. Confucius said, “The up-

right men in my community are different from this. The

father conceals the misconduct of the son and the son con-

ceals the misconduct of the father. Uprightness is to be

found in this”.5

This Analect has been misinterpreted to mean that for the sake of

the family, one may break law. What Confucius simply wanted to empha-

size is that the family is the basic unit of society. “Few of those who are

filial sons and respectful brothers will show disrespect to superiors, and

there has never been a man who is not disrespectful to superiors and yet

creates disorder”.6 By all means, the love in the family should be ex-

tended to the community, to the non-kin members of society. Mencius

said, “Treat with respect the elders in my family, and then extend that

respect to include the elders in other families. Treat with tenderness the

young in my own family, and then extend that tenderness to include the

young in other families”.7 Thus, with regards to brotherly respect, in

most oriental societies, we address the non-kin superior as “elder brother”

or “kuya” in Filipino.

It is in the practice of filial piety that is problematic in our modern

society today. Filial piety consists in taking care of elderly parents, which

for Confucius is not just providing material support and comfort to one’s

parents, for “we support even dogs and horses. If there is no feeling of

reverence, wherein lies the difference?”8 What matters is the attitude of

love.9 This is why we Asians are reluctant to commit our elderly parents

Manuel B. Dy, Jr. 89

to institutions. But how can we do this when both husband and wife have

each their own work, and likewise the children are preoccupied with school

or their jobs? The solution is to hire domestic workers who may be trusted

to care for the elderly parents with reverence and love. This trust, how-

ever, necessitates the treatment of the domestic worker as valued mem-

bers of the family. Here the Golden Rule clearly applies for both the

couple and the domestic worker. More than respect and fairness, there is

mutual concern and caring between the couple and the domestic worker.10

Mencius and Governance

Mencius is known for his theory of the original goodness of human

nature. The whole of Book Six, part I, argues for this innate goodness of

human nature. But Mencius is also known as the “outer king” in contrast

to Confucius as the “inner sage”. Mencius applied his theory of innate

goodness of human nature to the state in the notion of the compassionate

government. What counts as the most important element of the state is

the people. The Mandate of Heaven given to the ruler is also the voice of

the people. Mencius may also be the first philosopher to justify a revolu-

tion. When the people overthrows a tyrannical ruler, the people are not

committing murder for, following the rectification of names of Confucius

(the ruler must act as a ruler, the father as a father, etc.), the people are

not killing a human being but an animal. By considering the people as the

most important element of the state, Mencius may be considered as the

first democratic philosopher in the history of philosophy. What is impor-

tant in governing a state is what benefits the people rather than one’s own

profit, for the ruler has a compassionate heart-mind that cannot bear to

see his people suffer.

[Mencius replied to King Hui of Liang], “Why must

Your Majesty use the term profit? What I have to offer

are nothing but humanity and righteousness. If Your Maj-

esty ask what is profitable to your country, if the great

officers ask what is profitable to their families, and if the

inferior officers and the common people ask what is prof-

90 Prajna Vihara
__ __

itable to themselves, then both the superiors and the sub-

ordinates will try to snatch the profit from each other and

the country will crumble.11

Governance in our modern times does not pertain only to the

state but also to business and civil society. What Confucian ethics pre-

scribes to us in governing any society is service to the people, not self-

interest. Again, the Golden Rule applies in governing a people.

King Hsuan of Ch’i said, “I have a weakness. I love

wealth”. Mencius replied, “…If Your Majesty love wealth,

let your people enjoy the same, and what difficulty will

there be for you to become the true king of the empire?”

The King said, “I have a weakness, I love sex”. Mencius

replied, “…If Your Majesty love sex, let your people en-

joy the same, and what difficulty will there be for you to

become the true king of the empire?”12

This of course is easier said than done. In our complex globalized

world today, the leader is beset with problems of corruption and poverty.

Will it suffice the leader of any society to lead by example?

Mencius said, “Humanity subdues inhumanity as wa-

ter subdues fire. Nowadays those who practice humanity

do so as if with one cup of water they could save a whole

wagonload of fuel on fire. When the flames were not ex-

tinguished, they would say that water cannot subdue fire.

This is as bad as those who are inhumane. At the end they

will surely lose [what little humanity they have.]”.13

Clearly, the way to combat structural injustice is structural re-

forms. One must harness the efforts of others as well. The leader in

today’s globalized world must learn to empower the people to combat

poverty and corruption.

Manuel B. Dy, Jr. 91

The Doctrine of the Mean and Environmental Protection

A major cause of the social injustice today is the mindless over-

exploitation of mother earth’s common resources (minerals, farmlands,

petroleum, trees, the air we breathe and the water we drink) to satisfy our

wants and not taking into consideration the needs of others too for their

survival in the present and future generation. Wasteful consumerism has

brought problems of pollution, garbage disposal, floods, loss of bio-di-

versity, the endangering of many species, and climate change.

While it is true that it is in the Tao Te Ching that we can find an

environmental ethics, the Confucian classic Chung Yung or The Doctrine

of the Mean also prescribes our proper attitude and treatment of Mother

Nature.

Chung-ni (Confucius) said, “The superior man [ex-

emplifies] the Mean (chung-yung). The inferior man acts

contrary to the Mean. The superior man [exemplifies] the

Mean because, as a superior man, he can maintain the Mean

at any time. The inferior man [acts contrary to] the Mean

because, as an inferior man, he has no caution”.14

Chung literally means “centrality” and yung literally means “uni-

versal and harmonious”. What is central refers to human nature, and

what is universal and harmonious refers to human nature’s relation with

the universe. Together, chung-yung means there is harmony in human

nature and this harmony grounds our moral being and is the foundation of

the cosmic order, sustaining the regenerative processes of all the myriad

creatures in nature. The human being and Nature form a unity. To main-

tain this harmony, the human being must act and live in moderation in his

ordinary day-to-day affairs Yung, after all, also means “ordinary”.

The quality that unites the human being and Nature is cheng, trans-

lated as sincerity or integral wholeness.

It is due to our nature that enlightenment results from

sincerity. It is due to education that sincerity results from

enlightenment. Given sincerity, there will be enlighten-

92 Prajna Vihara
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ment, and given enlightenment, there will be sincerity.15

Only those who are absolutely sincere can fully de-

velop their nature. If they can fully develop their nature,

they can then fully develop the nature of others. If they

can fully develop the nature of others, they can then fully

develop the nature of things. If they can fully develop the

nature of things, they can then assist in the transforming

and nourishing process of Heaven and Earth. If they can

assist in the transforming and nourishing process of Heaven

and Earth, they can thus form a trinity with Heaven and

Earth.16

In order to live a life of moderation, we need the virtue of sincer-

ity. Sincerity involves strenuous learning and practice, tested in ordinary

words and deeds. It is the spiritual foundation of our mundane dealings

with Nature. Our dealings with Nature for the most part of our ordinary

life assume the mediation of technology. It is also through technology

that we relate to others. Technology in itself is neither good nor evil; its

morality depends on how we make use of it. We can use it to dominate

and kill others. We can use it excessively such that we become enslaved

to it. We can use it as a fa?ade to hide or manipulate the truth. Or we can

use it to develop our nature, the nature of others, the nature of things, and

assist in the transformation and nourishing process of Mother Nature.

The Great Learning and Cosmopolitanism

The globalization process in our world today entails forming a

world community living in peace amidst diversity of cultures. This is the

issue of cosmopolitanism. Cosmopolitanism, derived from the Greek word

‘kosmopolites’ meaning ‘citizen of the world’, has many different ver-

sions, covering the fields of politics, economics and ethics. Nonetheless,

the core idea remains that all beings belong to a single community, re-

gardless of political affiliations, and that this world community should be

cultivated.17 That all beings belong to a single community would make all

human beings “global citizens” and this global citizenship carries an eth-

ics of responsibility in order to cultivate this world community.

Manuel B. Dy, Jr. 93

The Ta Hsueh or The Great Learning or The Highest Order of

Cultivation18 contains such a cosmopolitan ethics, uniquely different from

the Western global ethical theories that present conflicts between duties

to the family and compatriots or the state, on one hand, and duties to all

human beings, regardless of affections and political identities, on the other.

What qualifies it to be a cosmopolitan ethics is that it speaks of values or

virtues that are universal and it explicitly advocates peace in the world,

although ‘world’ in the historical context of the text refers to the whole of

China, at this time, made up of different states.

But first a word about the title. Ta Hsueh ( ). ‘Hsueh’

literally means ‘learning’ and ‘Ta’ means ‘big’, ‘great’. ‘Ta Hsueh’ can

mean then three things: 1) higher learning, 2) adult education, and 3)

education for the great man. Although all three are acceptable, it is the

third that is preferred in accordance with the content of the text.

The Way of learning to be great (or adult education)

consists in manifesting the clear character, loving the

people, and abiding in the highest good.

Only after knowing what to abide in can one be calm.

Only after having been calm can one be tranquil. Only

after having achieved tranquility can one have peaceful

repose. Only after having peaceful repose can one begin

to deliberate. Only after deliberation can the end be at-

tained. Things have their roots and branches. Affairs have

their beginnings and their ends. To know what is first and

what is last will lead one near the Way.

The ancients who wished to manifest their clear char-

acter to the world would first bring order to their states.

Those who wished to bring order to their states would

first regulate their families. Those who wished to regu-

late their families would first cultivate their personal lives.

Those who wished to cultivate their personal lives would

first rectify their minds. Those who wished to rectify their

minds would first make their wills sincere. Those who

wished to make their wills sincere would first extend their

knowledge. The extension of knowledge consists in the

94 Prajna Vihara
__ __

investigation of things. When things are investigated

knowledge is extended; when knowledge is extended, the

will becomes sincere; when the will is sincere, the mind is

rectified; when the mind is rectified, the personal life is

cultivated; when the personal life is cultivated, the family

will be regulated; when the family is regulated, the state

will be in order; and when the state is in order, there will

be peace throughout the world. From the Son of Heaven

down to the common people, all must regard cultivation

of the personal life as the root or foundation. There is

never a case when the root is in disorder and yet the

branches are in order. There has never been a case when

what is treated with great importance becomes a matter

of slight importance or what is treated with slight impor-

tance becomes a matter of great importance.19

“The Way of self-cultivation, at its highest level, is a three-fold

path: it lies in causing the light of one’s inner moral force to shine forth,

in bringing the people to a state of renewal, and in coming to rest in the

fullest attainment of the good”.20 The three cardinal principles of the Ta

Hsueh are “to illustrate illustrious virtue; to renovate the people; and to

rest in the highest excellence”.21 “To renovate the people” (hsin min )

is replaced at times by “loving the people” (ch’in min , literally

meaning “to be intimate” or to “to treat as kin”), as in the original version

of the Ta Hsueh in the Li Chi (Book of Rites) and in the later versions that

claimed to be the original. In any case, whether renewing the people or

loving the people, the point is to do good to the people. Doing good to

the people may seem at first glance to be addressed only to rulers, but the

way of learning or self-cultivation is for everyone.

The three cardinal principles are in reality one, which is to illus-

trate one’s illustrious virtue or to let one’s inner moral force to shine forth

or to manifest the clear character. The way to do this is to love the people

or to renovate the people. And to abide in the highest good is none other

than to manifest one’s illustrious virtue in the highest perfection.

When asked why the learning of the great man should consist in

manifesting the clear character, the Neo-Confucian philosopher Wang

Manuel B. Dy, Jr. 95

Yang-ming said,

The great man regards Heaven, Earth, and the myriad

things as one body. He regards the world as one family

and the country as one person. As to those who make a

cleavage between objects and distinguish between the self

and others, they are small men. That the great man can

regard Heaven, Earth, and the myriad things as one body

is not because he deliberately wants to do so, but because

it is natural to the human nature of his mind that he do so.

Forming one body with Heaven, Earth, and the myriad

things is not only true of the great man. Even the mind of

the small man is no different. Only he himself makes it

small.22

The cosmopolitan ethics of the Ta Hsueh is based on the Mencian

insight of the innate goodness of human nature because it is endowed by

Heaven, and this includes not only a responsibility to humankind but also

to all beings in the world, sentient beings like the animals, living beings

like the plants, and non-living things like tiles and stones. Thus, a person

would feel alarmed and commiseration when he sees a child about to fall

into a well,23 feel an “inability to bear” when he observes the pitiful cries

and frightened appearance of birds and animals about to be slaughtered,

feel pity when he sees plants broken and destroyed, and feel regret when

he sees tiles and stones shattered and crushed.24

The way to manifest the clear character is to love or renovate the

people. This is because human nature is originally good and clear, our

mind-heart (hsin ) being rooted in Heaven-endowed nature before it is

obscured by selfishness and greed. Getting rid of the obscuration of self-

ish desires is to restore the condition of forming one body with Heaven,

Earth, and the myriad things, and loving the people is “to put into univer-

sal operation the function of the state of forming one body”.25

Therefore, only when I love my father, the father of

others, and the father of all men can my humanity really

form one body with my father, the father of others, and

96 Prajna Vihara
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the fathers of all men….Only when I love my brother, the

brothers of others, and the brothers of all men can my

humanity really form one body with my brother, the broth-

ers of others, and the brothers of all men….Everything

from ruler, minister, husband, wife, and friends to moun-

tains, rivers, spiritual beings, birds, animals, and plants

should be truly loved in order to realize my humanity that

forms one body with them, and then my clear character

will be completely manifested, and I will really form one

body with Heaven, Earth, and the myriad things. This is

what is meant by ‘manifesting the clear character through-

out the world’. This is what is meant by ‘regulation of the

family’, ‘ordering the state’, and ‘bringing peace to the

world’.26

Loving or renovating the people must be brought to its highest

fulfillment, reaching a point of dynamic equilibrium. Abiding in the high-

est good is “to manifesting character and loving people as the carpenter’s

square and compass are to the square and the circle, or rule and measure

to length, or balances and scales to weight”.27 The highest good is the

moral standard that is inherent in our mind-heart, termed by Wang Yang-

ming as the Principle of Nature.28

“Only when one comes to understand this point of rest can one

reach a state of unwavering stability. Having reached this unwavering

stability, one can then enjoy an unruffled quietude; having attained this

state of quietude, one can then achieve an inner calm; once one has

achieved this inner calm, one is then in a position to exercise one’s ca-

pacity to deliberate clearly. And it is the capacity for deliberation that

provides the basis for all moral attainment”.29 This stability, quietude,

calmness necessary for moral deliberation is particularly relevant for the

cosmopolitan person living in our technological world today. The cos-

mopolitan person is so constantly within reach by information, messages,

calls, twenty four hours a day, through the internet, cellular phones, and

the mass media, that he needs this peaceful repose to deliberate on what

is in accord with the highest good. Quieting down has become a neces-

sity for one to remain sane amidst the fast pace of the virtual world.

Manuel B. Dy, Jr. 97

“From the Son of Heaven down to the simplest commoner, all are

guided by a single principle: that the cultivation of one’s individual char-

acter constitutes the core of all attainment”.30 For everyone, from the

emperor to the common man, the root is the cultivation of the personal

life. For the Ta Hsueh, global citizenship begins with the cultivation of

the self. World peace, order of the state, and regulation of the family are

the branches. As what the lyrics of the popular song says, “let there be

peace on earth, let it begin with me”. But why is the cultivation of the

personal life the root of the regulation of the family, the order of the state

and world peace? The commentary of Tseng Tzu offers us an enigmatic

explanation:

The Master has stated: “As a judge hearing litigation, one

should put oneself in the place of others. As a matter of

categorical principle, however, one should act so as to

eliminate litigation altogether”. In this way, men who are

bereft of the truth will be in no position to present argu-

ments interminably and one can, accordingly, instill awe

for justice in the hearts of the people. This is what is

called: ‘understanding the fundamental core of moral cul-

tivation’.31

The original source (Analects 12:13) has the Master saying, “in

hearing litigations, I am as good as anyone. What is necessary is to en-

able people not to have litigations at all”.32 At first glance what is meant

here is something like a preventive medicine, that to prevent any litiga-

tion from happening at all, one should cultivate oneself. Further reflec-

tion, however, requires us to put this statement into a positive general

principle of “one should put oneself in the place of others”. Again based

on the Mencian faith of the innate goodness of human nature, cultivating

this innate goodness entails a commitment to the various spheres of the

other, the family, the state, and the rest of the world. “What the true

seeker of cultivation finds within himself is his own inalienable integra-

tion into the universal patterns of men and things”.33

The cultivation of the personal life consists in rectifying the mind-

heart, making the will sincere, extending one’s knowledge and investigat-

98 Prajna Vihara
__ __

ing things.34 Although each has its own function, they are really one

affair.35

That the cultivation of the personal life consists first in rectifying

the mind-heart means that one’s personal relations must not be governed

by animosity and resentment nor must he harbor feelings of fear and trepi-

dation, anxiety and grief. Otherwise, “one looks but does not see, listens

but does not hear, eats but is not aware of the flavour of his food”.36 For

Wang Yang-ming, the mind-heart is the “clear and intelligent master of

the person” and to cultivate the personal life means for the body to do

good and get rid of evil, but this, the body by itself cannot do without the

mind-heart, the master, desiring to do good and get rid of evil.37 Thus, to

cultivate one’s personal life one must first rectify one’s mind-heart.

To rectify the mind-heart, one must make the will sincere or achieve

“a state of integral wholeness within one’s innermost consciousness”.38

This means allowing no self-deception to occur and always be “watchful

over oneself when alone”.39

When the inferior man is alone and leisurely, there is

no limit to which he does not go in his evil deeds. Only

when he sees a superior man does he then try to disguise

himself, concealing the evil and showing off the good in

him. But what is the use? For other people see him as if

they see his very heart. This is what is meant by saying

that what is true in a man’s heart will be shown in his

outward appearance. Therefore the superior man will al-

ways be watchful over himself when alone.40

For Wang Yang-ming, the reason the mind-heart, though origi-

nally good, needs to be rectified by making the will sincere is because

“incorrectness enters when one’s thoughts and will are in operation.

Now in order to make the will sincere, one must extend his knowl-

edge. This is because “what arises from the will may be good or evil, and

unless there is a way to make clear the distinction between good and evil,

there will be a confusion of truth and untruth”.41 To extend one’s knowl-

edge is to extend one’s innate knowledge of the good to the utmost. The

innate knowledge of the good does not permit any self-deception. And

Manuel B. Dy, Jr. 99

so, “the only way to distinguish good and evil in order to make the will

sincere is to extend to the utmost the knowledge of the innate faculty”.42

Extending one’s innate knowledge of the good to the utmost, how-

ever, consists in the investigation of things. Extending one’s innate knowl-

edge does not take place in a vacuum but is an event directed to a thing.

“To investigate is to rectify. It is to rectify that which is incorrect so it can

return to its original correctness”.43

“Only once one’s moral character has been cultivated can one’s

family be put into proper balance”.44 The commentary briefly explains

this by our tendency to be partial towards those we love and partial to-

wards those we despise. Thus, “there are few people in the world who

know what is bad in those whom they love and what is good in those

whom they dislike. Hence it is said, ‘People do not know the faults of

their sons and do not know (are not satisfied with) the bigness of their

seedlings’”.45

“Only once one’s family has been put into proper balance can

one’s kingdom be brought to a state of orderly rule”.46 The Commentary

simply but lengthily explains this by referring to the fact that one cannot

teach others to be good if one’s own family is in disorder. Thus, “the man

of noble character accomplishes the moral instruction of his entire coun-

try without so much as stepping out of his own house”.47 This is because

filial piety is the basis for serving the ruler, brotherly respect the basis for

serving one’s superiors, and deep love the basis for treating the multi-

tude.48 Referring to the ruler and officials,”one watches over a newborn

babe”, like a mother who does not have to learn how to nurture children

before getting married.49 To individual families, the teaching also applies.

“When the individual families have become humane, then the whole country

will be aroused toward humanity. When the individual families have be-

come compliant, then the whole country will be aroused toward compli-

ance”.50 “And, conversely, should the members of a single family be greedy

and recalcitrant, this will give rise to a state of anarchy throughout the

entire kingdom”.51 Clearly, the basic unit of society is the family.

The global person must take care of his family first in order to

serve better the country. This is because

the man of noble character must first possess a quality

100 Prajna Vihara
__ __

within himself before he can demand it of other men, and

he must himself be free of certain undesirable trait before

he can censure it in others. For it is inconceivable that one

can be able to give edifying instructions to others, when

within one’s own breast one harbours a glaring lack of

mindfulness for the concerns of one’s fellow man52

By being a good father, son, elder or younger brother, one can be

a moral exemplar to one’s countrymen.53

“Only once one’s own kingdom is in a state or orderly rule is it

possible for the entire world to enjoy enduring peace”.54 The long Com-

mentary explains the meaning of this statement in four strokes or terms:

1) the measuring square, 2) the Mandate of Heaven, 3) inner moral force

as the root, and 4) sense of honor.

1) The man of noble character “possesses the way of ‘measuring

by the carpenter’s square’”.55 He respects the aged and the elders with

respect and shows compassion towards the helpless, and thereby the people

at large practice filial respect, respect for elders and compliance. The

way of “measuring by the carpenter’s square” means that what one does

not like in one’s superiors he does not practice it towards his subordi-

nates; what one does not like in one’s subordinates, he does not practice

it towards his superiors; what he does not like in front of him, he does not

practice it to those behind him; and what he does not like in those behind

him, he does not practice it to those in front of him. “Behavior that one

finds abhorrent when observed in others, on one’s right or on one’s left,

ought not be practised in one’s dealings with those on the other side”.56

Clearly, this is another way of formulating the Golden Rule in a negative

manner, do not do unto others what you do not want them to do unto

you.

2) Practising the Golden Rule is for those who holds sway in a

kingdom to keep the Mandate of Heaven. To keep the Mandate of Heaven

is tantamount to gaining the confidence of the people, acting as ‘father

and mother of the people’, loving what they love and despising what they

despise.57

3) To gain the confidence of the people is to hold inner moral

force as the root, as the only true treasure or wealth. And this holds true

Manuel B. Dy, Jr. 101

for the man of noble character, whose first concern is his inner moral

force. Possessing the requisite moral force, he will have sway over the

people, will be in control of the land and the wealth it produces, and will

have command of its use.58 This wealth will be dispersed widely instead

of being concentrated in the hands of the few, and people will thus be

brought together.59 With the inner moral force as the root, qualities of

human kindness and tolerance adhere to those in governance. Tolerance

here means rejoicing in the talent of others and loving it as if it were one’s

own, thereby showing his capacity to safeguard the descendants for all

their generations and the common people. Kindness here means the ca-

pability of “both loving men and of hating men”, employing the worthy

and removing from office and banishing the wicked.60 Such a person pos-

sesses a path of single-minded devotion and good faith toward others. In

the production of wealth, “a man motivated by human kindness uses his

wealth to develop his personal character, whereas a man who lacks hu-

man kindness will expend his personal capacities in amassing wealth”.61

4) The person who holds dear the virtue of human kindness will

have subordinates having a sense of honor (righteousness). With people

having a sense of honor, the affairs of the state will reach its completion.

“A proper kingdom does not hold material benefit to be its primary ad-

vantage, but rather holds a sense of honour as its true advantage”.62

Following the above four strokes does not seem to clarify how

the peace throughout the entire world is dependent on the regulation of

the state, unless we take into consideration that the entire world at the

time of the Ta Hsueh is the middle kingdom of China. By extrapolation,

if the whole of China with its states is the entire world, then world peace

is dependent on the states practicing the Golden Rule, the virtues of car-

ing, kindness, tolerance and sense of honor.

What we can gather from the Ta Hsueh is a cosmopolitan ethics

that is developmental in character, starting from the cultivation of the

personal life and ending in the promoting enduring peace in the entire

world. The writer of the text does not see any conflict arising from one’s

commitment to the family, the state, and the entire world. In fact, every-

thing starts from the cultivation of the personal life which involves an

engagement with the other, starting from what is near to the farthest in

the horizon of one’s relationships.

102 Prajna Vihara
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The writer of the Ta Hsueh specifically addresses the person in

authority in the family, the state and the kingdom but insists that the way

to lead is by first cultivating one’s personal character. It is obviously a

leadership by example.

But what makes the Ta Hsueh a cosmopolitan ethic is that it is

addressed to everyone who belongs or wants to belong to the whole hu-

mankind, and even to the whole of nature. Such a person must first

cultivate the innate goodness of his nature in order to be of service to

humankind and to the rest of nature. But for those in authority, it makes

sense to remind them that leadership is servant-leadership, that the Man-

date of Heaven is not a divine right but mandate of the people, a respon-

sibility to be of service to the people. The goal of governance, whether

familial, national or global, is ultimately to make its subjects happy and

good, that those in positions of authority are there to love the people, not

to gratify themselves.63

The distinguishing mark of the cosmopolitan ethics of the Ta Hsueh

is the emphasis of the cultivation of the personal life as the foundation.

This is based on the Mencian doctrine of the innate goodness of the mind-

heart. But on second thought this is not uniquely Asian for it is also the

wisdom of Solomon, “as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he”.

Finally, the Ta Hsueh speaks of universal values of the Golden

Rule, compassion and generosity, tolerance and sense of honor. These

are values that make one a citizen of the world.

A great man is one who feels that he belongs to a

unity which includes the universe and the different kinds

of beings.

Wang Yang-ming64

Endnotes

1Analects, 12:22.
2Analects 4:15.
3If they are separated from each other, one is bound to misinterpreting one

or the other as in the case of Kant. “It (GR) cannot be a universal law since it con-

Manuel B. Dy, Jr. 103

tains the ground neither of duties of oneself nor of duties of kindness to others (for

many a man would readily agree that others should not help him if only he could be

dispensed from affording help to them), nor finally of strict duties towards others; for

on this basis the criminal would be able to dispute with the judges who punish him,

and so on”. Groundwork of a Metaphysics of Morals.
4Analects 1:2. Wing-tsit Chan translation.
5Analects 13:18. Wing-tsit Chan translation.
6Analects 1:2. Wing-tsit Chan translation.
7Mencius, 1A:7. Wing-tsit Chan translation.
8Analects, 2:7.
9Analects, 2:8.
10Daniel A. Bell contrasts the treatment of Western employers and ideal

Chinese employers (English speaking). Western employers treat their domestic work-

ers with respect, allow more personal space, treat them on equal terms. Chinese

employers treat their domestic workers as valued members of the family, Daniel A.

Bell, China’s New Confucianism (Princeton University Press, 2009), p. 78.
11Mencius, 1A:1. Wing-tsit Chan translation.
12Mencius, 1B:5. Wing-tsit Chan translation.
13Mencius, 6:18. Wing-tsit Chan translation.
14The Doctrine of the Mean, 2. Wing-tsit Chan translation.
15The Doctrine of the Mean, 21. Wing-tsit Chan translation.
16The Doctrine of the Mean, 22. Wing-tsit Chan translation.

17http://standford encyclopedia of philosophy. Accessed September 21, 2009.
18This is the translation of Andrew Plaks, Ta Hsueh and Chung Yung (The

Highest Order of Cultivation and On the Practice of the Mean) (Penguin Books,

2003).
19Wing-tsit Chan, A Source Book of Chinese Philosophy (Princeton Univer-

sity Press, 1963), pp. 86-87.
20Translation by Andrew Plaks, op. cit., p. 5.
21Translation by James Legge, Confucius, Confucian Analects, The Great

Learning and The Doctrine of the Mean (New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1971),

p.
22Wang Yang-ming, “Inquiry on the Great Learning” in Instruction for Prac-

tical Living and other Neo-Confucian Writings, translated with notes by Wing-tsit

Chan (New York: Columbia University Press, 1963), p. 272.
23Book of Mencius, 2A:6.
24Wang Yang-ming, op. cit., p. 272.
25Ibid., p. 273.
26Ibid., pp. 273-274.
27Ibid., p. 275.
28Ibid., p. 274.
29Translation by Andrew Plaks, op. cit., p. 5.
30Translation by Andrew Plaks, op. cit., p. 6.

104 Prajna Vihara
__ __

31Translation by Andrew Plaks, op. cit., p. 9.
32Translation by Wing-tsit Chan, op. cit., p. 88.
33Andrew Plaks, “Notes on the Ta Hsueh” op. cit., p. 61.
34Here I follow the sequence of Wang Yang Ming rather than that of Chu

Hsi.
35Wang Yang-ming, op. cit., p. 277.
36Ta Hsueh, chapter 7, translation by Andrew Plaks, op. cit., p. 12.
37Wang Yang-ming, op. cit., p. 277.
38Ta Hsueh, chapter 6, translation by Andrew Plaks, op. cit., p. 11.
39Ta Hsueh, chapter 6, translation by Wing-tsit Chan, op. cit., p. 89.
40Ibid., p. 89-90.
41Ibid., p. 278.
42Ibid., pp. 278-279.
43Ibid., p. 279.
44Ta Hsueh translation by Andrew Plaks, op. cit., p. 6.
45Ta Hsueh, translation by Wing-tsit Chan, p. 90.
46Ta Hsueh, translation by Andrew Plaks, op. cit., p. 6.
47Ibid., p. 13.
48Ta Hsueh, chapter 9, translation by Wing-tsit Chan, p. 91.
49Ta Hsueh, chapter 9, translation by Andrew Plaks, op. cit., p. 13.
50Ta Hsueh, chapter 9, translation by Wing-tsit Chan, op. cit., p. 91.
51Ta Hsueh, chapter 9, translation by Andrew Plaks, op. cit., p. 14.
52Ibid., p. 14.
53Ibid., p. 15.
54Ibid., p. 6.
55Ibid., p. 15.
56Ibid., p. 16.
57Ibid., p. 16.
58Ibid. p. 17.
59Ibid., p. 17.
60Ibid., p. 18.
61Ibid., p. 19.
62Ibid., p. 19.
63James Legge, op. cit., p. 33.
64Wang Yang-ming, Answers to Questions Concerning the Book Ta-hsueh

quoted in Carson Chang, Wang Yang-ming (New York: St. John’s University Press,

1970), p. 34.

Manuel B. Dy, Jr. 105