Virtues

“The five virtues of Confucius: Kindness, Wisdom, Honesty, Good Manners, Faithfulness.”

Confucius considered kindness as his first virtue, and from thereon the other four follows, in no specific order, I must add. The world in which we find ourselves, kindness is dished out in morsels. That should, however, not be the case. We gain wisdom by acting on the knowledge we attain, and if your action is founded on a foundation of kindness and wisdom, then I think that it would be hard to be dishonest. 

If you foster these virtues, then I am sure that you will always act upon doing what is right. Good manners and being faithful are part of good moral standing, thereby completing the five virtues of Confucius. When we cultivate these virtues, we can be sure that it will enhance our mutual existence as ethical and moral beings.

Having a strong virtuous foundation is important, and the character Dorothea in Miguel de Cervantes’s Don Quixote knew this very well when she said that virtue is the truest nobility. Let us not fall into the niche of those who view virtue as something unattractive; let us rather embrace it with our entire being, and if you cannot do that, then rethink what C. S. Lewis said: “… even attempted virtue will bring light.”

Let your light shine brightly in this world. I will give Mark Twain the last word: “Always do right. This will gratify some people, and astonish the rest”.

I am kind and I am benevolent,

for wisdom and honesty, I also do care,

good manners and faithfulness must be added there.

This makes up Confucius’s five-fold contingent.