Virtue
A virtue (
Other examples of this notion include the concept of merit in Asian traditions as well as De (Chinese 德). Buddhism's four brahmavihara (lit. 'Divine States') can be regarded as virtues in the European sense.[1]
Etymology
The ancient Romans used the Latin word
History
Ancient Egypt
Greco-Roman antiquity
Platonic virtue
The four classic cardinal virtues are:[5]
- , sapientia), the ability to discern the appropriate course of action to be taken in a given situation at the appropriate time.
- Latin: fortitudo): also termed courage, forbearance, strength, endurance, and the ability to confront fear, uncertainty, and intimidation.
- appetition. Plato considered sōphrosynē, which may also be translated as sound-mindedness, to be the most important virtue.
- Latin: iustitia): also considered as fairness;[6]the Greek word also having the meaning of righteousness.
This enumeration is traced to Greek philosophy and was listed by Plato who also added piety (ὁσιότης, hosiotēs) and replaced prudence with wisdom.[7] Some scholars consider either of the above four virtue combinations as mutually reducible and therefore not cardinal.[8]
It is unclear whether Plato subscribed to a unified view of virtues.[9] In Protagoras and Meno he states that the separate virtues cannot exist independently and offers as evidence the contradictions of acting with wisdom, yet in an unjust way; or acting with bravery (fortitude), yet without wisdom.
Aristotelian virtue
In his Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle defined a virtue as a point between a deficiency and an excess of a trait.[10] The point of greatest virtue lies not in the exact middle, but at a golden mean sometimes closer to one extreme than the other. However, the virtuous action is not simply the "mean" (mathematically speaking) between two opposite extremes. As Aristotle says in the Nicomachean Ethics: "at the right times, and on the right occasions, and towards the right persons, and with the right object, and in the right fashion, is the mean course and the best course, and these are characteristics of virtue."[10] For example, generosity is a virtue between the two extremes of miserliness and being profligate. Further examples include courage between cowardice and foolhardiness and confidence between self-deprecation and conceit. In Aristotle's sense, a virtue is an excellence at being human.
Intellectual virtues
Aristotle also identifies the "intellectual virtues" of knowledge, art, practical judgement, intuition, and wisdom.
Roman Virtues
The term virtue itself is derived from the Latin "
Most Roman concepts of virtue were also personified as a
Latin | English | Description |
Abundantia | Abundance or Prosperity | The ideal of there being enough food and prosperity for all segments of society, personified by Abundantia. A public virtue. |
Auctoritas | Spiritual Authority | The sense of one's social standing, built up through experience, Pietas, and Industria. This was considered to be essential for a magistrate's ability to enforce law and order. |
Comitas | Humour | Ease of manner, courtesy, openness, and friendliness. |
Constantia | Perseverance or Courage | Military stamina, as well as general mental and physical endurance in the face of hardship. |
Clementia | Mercy | Mildness and gentleness, and the ability to set aside previous transgressions, personified by Clementia. |
Dignitas | Dignity | A sense of self-worth, personal self-respect, and self-esteem. |
Disciplina | Discipline | Considered essential to military excellence; also connotes adherence to the legal system, and upholding the duties of citizenship, personified by Disciplina. |
Fides | Good Faith | Mutual trust and reciprocal dealings in both government and commerce (public affairs), a breach meant legal and religious consequences, personified by Fides. |
Firmitas | Tenacity | Strength of mind, and the ability to stick to one's purpose at hand without wavering. |
Frugalitas | Frugality | Economy and simplicity in lifestyle. |
Gravitas | Gravity | A sense of the importance of the matter at hand; responsibility, and being earnest. |
Honestas | Respectibility | The image and honor that one presents as a respectable member of society. |
Humanitas | Humanity | Refinement, civilization, learning, and generally being cultured. |
Industria | Industriousness or Diligence | Hard work. |
Innocencia | Selflessness | Giving without anticipating recognition or personal gain. Central to this concept was an unwavering commitment to incorruptibility, avoiding the misuse of public office for personal benefit, as that was considered a grave affront to Roman values, detrimental to both individual and communal well-being. |
Laetitia | Joy or Gladness | The celebration of thanksgiving, often of the resolution of crisis, a public virtue. |
Nobilitas
|
Nobility | Man of fine appearance, deserving of honor, highly esteemed social rank, and, or, nobility of birth, a public virtue. |
Justitia | Justice | Sense of moral worth to an action; personified by the goddess Iustitia, the Roman counterpart to the Greek Themis. |
Pietas | Dutifulness | More than religious piety; a respect for the natural order: socially, politically, and religiously. Includes ideas of patriotism, fulfillment of pious obligation to the gods, and honoring other human beings, especially in terms of the patron and client relationship considered essential to an orderly society. |
Prudentia | Prudence | Foresight, wisdom, and personal discretion. |
Salubritas | Wholesomeness | General health and cleanliness, personified in the deity Salus. |
Severitas | Sternness | Self-control, considered to be tied directly to the virtue of gravitas. |
Veritas | Truthfulness | Honesty in dealing with others, personified by the goddess Veritas. Veritas, being the mother of Virtus, was considered the root of all virtue; a person living an honest life was bound to be virtuous. |
Virtus
|
Manliness | Valor, excellence, courage, character, and worth. Vir is Latin for "man". |
Ancient India
While religious scriptures generally consider
Chivalric virtues in medieval Europe
In the 8th century CE, upon the occasion of his coronation as
- Love God
- Love your neighbor
- Give alms to the poor
- Entertain strangers
- Visit the sick
- Be merciful to prisoners
- Do ill to no man, nor consent unto such
- Forgive as ye hope to be forgiven
- Redeem the captive
- Help the oppressed
- Defend the cause of the widow and orphan
- Render righteous judgement
- Do not consent to any wrong
- Persevere not in wrath
- Shun excess in eating and drinking
- Be humble and kind
- Serve your liege lord faithfully
- Do not steal
- Do not perjure yourself, nor let others do so
- Envy, hatred, and violence separate men from the Kingdom of God
- Defend the Church and promote her cause.better source needed]
Religious traditions
Abrahamic religions
Bahá'í Faith
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (September 2020) |
The
Christianity
In
Christian scholars frequently add the four classic
The Bible mentions additional virtues, such as in the "Fruit of the Holy Spirit," found in Galatians 5:22–23: "By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things."
In 410 CE, Aurelius Prudentius Clemens listed seven "heavenly virtues" in his book Psychomachia (Battle of Souls) which is an allegorical story of conflict between vices and virtues. Among the virtues were fides (faith), pudicitia (chastity), paciencia (endurance), mens humilis (humility), spes (hope), sobrietas (sobriety), ratio (reason), operatio (devotion), pax (peace), concordia (harmony), and sapientia (wisdom).[17]
The medieval and renaissance periods saw a number of models of sin, listing the
Vice | Latin | Virtue | Latin |
---|---|---|---|
Pride | Superbia | Humility | Humilitas |
Envy | Invidia | Kindness | Benevolentia |
Gluttony | Gula | Temperance | Temperantia |
Lust | Luxuria | Chastity | Castitas |
Wrath
|
Ira | Patience | Patientia |
Greed | Avaritia | Charity
|
Caritas |
Sloth | Acedia | Diligence | Industria |
Islam
In Islam, the Quran is believed to be the literal word of God, and the definitive description of virtue, and Muhammad is considered an ideal example of virtue in human form. The foundation of Islamic understanding of virtue was the understanding and interpretation of the Quran and the practices of Muhammad. Virtue is seen in the context of active submission to God performed by the community in unison.
Believers are to "
Later
In the Hadith (Islamic traditions), it is reported by An-Nawwas bin Sam'an:
"The Prophet Muhammad said, 'Virtue is good manner, and sin is that which creates doubt and you do not like people to know it.'"
Wabisah bin Ma'bad reported:
"I went to Messenger of God and he asked me: 'Have you come to inquire about virtue?' I replied in the affirmative. Then he said: 'Ask your heart regarding it. Virtue is that which contents the soul and comforts the heart, and sin is that which causes doubts and perturbs the heart, even if people pronounce it lawful and give you verdicts on such matters again and again.'"
— Sunan al-Darimi, 2533
Virtue, as seen in opposition to sin, is termed thawāb (spiritual merit or reward) but there are other Islamic terms to describe virtue such as faḍl ("bounty"), taqwa ("piety"), and ṣalāḥ ("righteousness"). According to Muslim beliefs, God will forgive individual sins but the bad treatment of people and injustice toward others can only be pardoned by the victims and not by God.
Judaism
Loving God and obeying his laws, in particular the Ten Commandments, are central to Jewish conceptions of virtue. Wisdom is personified in the first eight chapters of the Book of Proverbs and is not only the source of virtue but is depicted as the first and best creation of God (Proverbs 8:12–31).
A classic articulation of the Golden Rule came from the first century Rabbi Hillel the Elder. Renowned in the Jewish tradition as a sage and a scholar, he is associated with the development of the Mishnah and the Talmud and, as such, is one of the most important figures in Jewish history. Asked for a summary of the Jewish religion in the most concise terms, Hillel replied (reputedly while standing on one leg): "That which is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow. That is the whole Torah. The rest is commentary; go and learn."[19]
Eastern religions
Buddhism
Buddhist practice as outlined in the Noble Eightfold Path can be regarded as a progressive list of virtues.[20]
- Right View – realizing the Four Noble Truths (samyag-vyāyāma, sammā-vāyāma).
- Right Mindfulness – mental ability to see things for what they are with clear consciousness (samyak-smṛti, sammā-sati).
- Right Concentration – wholesome one-pointedness of mind (samyak-samādhi, sammā-samādhi).
Buddhism's four brahmavihara ("Divine States") can be more properly regarded as virtues in the European sense. They are:
- Mettā/Maitrī: loving-kindness towards all; the hope that a person will be well; loving kindness is the wish that all sentient beings, without any exception, be happy.[21]
- Karuṇā: compassion; the hope that a person's sufferings will diminish; compassion is the wish for all sentient beings to be free from suffering.[21]
- Muditā: altruistic joy in the accomplishments of a person, oneself or other; sympathetic joy is the wholesome attitude of rejoicing in the happiness and virtues of all sentient beings.[21]
- Upekkhā/better source needed]
There are also the
Daoism
"Virtue", translated from Chinese
In early periods of
The Daoist concept of De, compared to Confucianism, is more subtle, pertaining to the "virtue" or ability that an individual realizes by following the Dao ("the Way"). One important normative value in much of Chinese thinking is that one's social status should result from the amount of virtue that one demonstrates, rather than from one's birth. In the Analects, Confucius explains de as follows: "He who exercises government by means of his virtue may be compared to the north polar star, which keeps its place and all the stars turn towards it."[26] In later periods, particularly from the Tang dynasty period, Confucianism absorbed and melded its own concepts of virtues with those from Daoism and Buddhism.[25]
There are symbols that represent virtue in Chinese Culture. Chinese classic paintings have many symbols representing virtue. Plum blossom represents resilience and perseverance. Orchid represents elegance, gentleness, and quietness. Bamboo represents loyalty, trust-worthiness, and humility. Chrysanthemum represents genuineness and simplicity.[citation needed]
Hinduism
- See also: Āpastamba Dharmasūtra 1.20.6
Further reading
- Bellarmine, Robert (1847). . The Art of Dying Well. Translated by John Dalton. Richardson and Son.
- Deharbe, Joseph (1912). . A Complete Catechism of the Catholic Religion. Translated by Rev. John Fander. Schwartz, Kirwin & Fauss.
- Newton, John (2000). Complete Conduct Principles for the 21st Century. Nicer Century World Publishing. ISBN 0-9673705-7-4.
- Hankins, James (2019). Virtue Politics: Soulcraft and Statecraft in Renaissance Italy. Harvard University Press.
- Hein, David (August 18, 2013). "Christianity and Honor". The Living Church.
- OCLC 750831024.
- Waldron, Martin Augustine (1912). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 15. New York: Robert Appleton Company. . In Herbermann, Charles (ed.).
External links
- The Wikiversity course on virtues
- "List of the Virtues". The VirtueScience Philosophy. TSQ (Truth Seeking Quotient).
- Turri, John; Alfano, Mark; Greco, John (9 July 1999). "Virtue Epistemology". Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
- "Virtue: sila". Access to Insight. 30 November 2013.
- Adams, John P. (25 May 2009). "Greek Virtue". California State University, Northridge. (quotations)
- "List of personal strengths (psychology research)". Meaning and Happiness.com. — Peterson & Seligman findings
- "Roman virtues". NovaRoma. 18 October 2020.
- "Roman Virtues". Respublica Romana. 15 September 2019.
- "In Our Time: Virtue". BBC. 28 February 2002. — BBC Radio 4 discussion with Galen Strawson, Miranda Fricker, and Roger Crisp
- "What are Virtues?". Virtues For Life. 8 February 2019.
- Gross, David M. "Notes on Virtues". LessWrong.