RELI 448N Week 4 Discussion: Chinese Religion - Download Paper For A Pass

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RELI 448N Week 4 Discussion: Chinese Religion Manage Discussion Entry Professor and Class, Ren: Is one of the important ideal ethic in Confucianism meaning kindness, love and generosity, tha... t teaches people to be caring, thoughtful and selfless. Yi: Is one of the important ideal ethic in Confucianism often translated as "righteousness. It is the ethic that says when others are in troubles, we should help them out of the problems. Li: Is one of the important ideal ethic in Confucianism often translated as "ritual" which means to properly participate in everyday rituals. Li is the action which has been deemed appropriate by society. Li is the outward expression of Confucian ideals Zhi: Is one of the important ideal ethic in Confucianism indicating wise person, that deliberate and understand daily life. Xin: Is one of the important ideal ethic in Confucianism that connotes belief, trust and blamelessness described as “a communal property” (Alexus McLeod,2012). It is, therefore, a virtue that is necessary to build and uphold social harmony. References Matt Stefon: Ren Chinese Philosophy: https://www.britannica.com/topic/renLinks to an external site. Alexus McLeod ,2012: Ren as a Communal Property in the Analects: Article in Philosophy East and West 62(4):505-528 • October 2012 with 31 Reads o Manage Discussion Entry Hello Professor and Class, According to Molloy 2013, Ren refers to generosity and kindness that teaches individuals to be selfless, thoughtful and caring meaning love for one another is essential. Yi means to help when others are in trouble. The belief states that we should have the ability to differentiate right and wrong. Li means respect and polite,“ doing what is appropriate” or “doing what is proper to the situation.” Zhi is a wise person belief who should understand the way of life. Xin is the belief of innocence and trust. How Ren contributes to social harmony According to Gassmann 2000, Ren is characterized by love, goodness, and happiness as a virtue for people in the community to live in peace. It is a bearing and conduct that should exist in the human being to uphold a flourishing society. It gives the idea of what a human being should be and inspire people to endeavor toward it. The belief states that every human being has ren and it manifests itself to when a righteous person treats other individuals with humaneness. It generally makes people mature by having ethnicity promoting social harmony. o Manage Discussion Entry Confucius taught that personal excellence comes from the manifestation of five virtues (Molloy, 2013). The five virtues are as follows: Ren, the virtue of benevolence, charity, and humanity Yi, the virtue of honesty and uprightness; Zhi, the virtue of knowledge or wisdom; Xin, the virtue of faithfulness and integrity; and, Li, the virtue of correct behavior, or propriety, good manners, politeness, ceremony, worship. Confucius believed that chaos and disorder developed from the misuse and abuse of ritual/propriety, Li (Nilar, 2011). Li is about community and one’s interaction and responsibilities toward everyone around him. It is about how people behave toward each other to express one’s inner thoughts and intentions. If li is not practiced as it is meant to be, one can mistake ones intentions, take offense or feel disrespected. One who fails to make use of them is more likely to be misunderstood . However, deceivers can also make use of such rules of etiquette or polite behavior in society, and someone who is taken in by a false use of good etiquette is likely to become mistrustful (Nilar, 2011). The objective of Confucius’ virtues was to restore social and moral excellence and the cultivation of purity within the heart of individuals. Confucius believed that goodness can be taught and learned and the society can only be in harmony and at peace under the guidance of wisdom (Yao, 2000). If it all were really that simple. This is a man who lived approximately between 551-479 BCE. His virtues remind me of how I was raised and what my parents taught me. As we grow up, we react to situations in our life, those that we are proud of and those we wish we could take back. There is so much chaos and disorder in this world we live in today, everything from basic relationships within our homes to the mistrust and lack of faith and integrity in our elected officials. I think this world today could use a serving or two of Confucianism. Nilar, T. (2011). The concept of "li" in Confuscius social ethics. University Research Journal, 4, 51–62. Retrieved from https://uyr.uy.edu.mm/handle/123456789/289Links to an external site. Links to an external site.Molloy, M. (2013). Experiencing the world's religions (6th ed.). New York City, NY: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Yao, X. (2000). An Introduction to Confucianism. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. Retrieved from http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/samples/cam032/99021094.pdfLinks to an external site. Reply Reply to Comment ▪ Manage Discussion Entry Hi Professor Salyer and fellow classmates, In the article by Wai-ying Wong (2011), the five virtues in Confucianism are referred to as "gentleman virtues" which refer to the ruling class and otherwise mean one of good moral standards or qualities. Depending on how the terms are used, determines the translation as there can be several definitions for each. Our lesson this week defines ren as virtue/goodness and even kindness or gentleness (CCN, 2018, week 4 lesson). Yet according to Nagel-Angerman (2012), it is described as meaning "human or humanity". A third definition from Wong (2012), describe the same word as "trustworthiness". The word yi is defined as meaning "acting properly with high ethical standards" in our lesson (CCN, 2018, week 4 lesson). Nagel-Angerman describes Yi as "righteous" and states that this virtue is an extremely important one for fathers and rulers (2012). Wong's definition is "trustworthiness" (2011). Wong (2011), quotes Confucius as stating that yi is "considered supreme" for the gentleman, and goes on further to state that when the virtues of ren and yi are violated, this violation is considered immoral. All three definitions are similar in nature. Li is considered "difficult to translate" according to Nagel-Angerman (2012) yet our lesson attempts to define it as meaning ritual/propriety. The term zhi is not addressed in our lesson but can be translated as wisdom and could even be interpreted as knowledge or intelligence. Zhi is about being in-tuned to and knowing others but the emphasis is place on knowing oneself and then using that insight when dealing with others. Wong (2012, p 74), defines zhi as the "substance" of morality. Last but not least is xin. Our lesson does not speak to this virtue however Nagel-Angerman defines xin as "the heart" and states that Mencius described the remaining four virtues of ren, yi, li, and zhi as having "their root in xin". Wong (2011), contends that zhi means "possessed by the mind". This definition goes hand in hand with Mencius' description as the heart cannot feel or love without the mind. One loves with their mind before they can love with their heart. I would say that ren is probably the most important virtue as it translates out to gentleness and kindness; however xin is a close second. I feel ren is the foundation for the other virtues to build upon. It's unfortunate that in today's world, there isn't enough of this when interacting with our fellow man. We (as humans) tend to be aggressive and even mean when we feel our way is the only way and close ourselves off to the possibility of loving another just because they may be different. References: Chamberlain College of Nursing (2019). Comparative Religions, Week 4 lesson. Downers Grove, IL: on line Nagel-Angerman, Monique, (2012). The Five Virtues. Calliope, 22(5), 16. Retrieved from https://chamberlainuniversity.idm.oclc/login? url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx? direct=true&db=f5h&AN=70894481&site=eds-live&scope=siteLinks to an external site. Wong, Wai-ying (2011). The Moral and Non-Moral Virtues in Confucian Ethics. Asian Philosophy 21(1), 71- 82. https://doi.org.10.1080/09552367.2011.540378Links to an external site. o Manage Discussion Entry Professor and Class, Ren- the virtue of benevolence,sympathy, empathy, charity, and humanity (Molloy, 2013). Yi- the virtue of honesty and uprightness (Molloy, 2013). Li- the virtue of correct behavior, or propriety (doing what is appropriate), good manners, politeness (Molloy, 2013). Zhi- the virtue knowledge (Molloy, 2013). Xin- the virtue of faithfulness and integrity (Molloy, 2013). Confucianism social virtues are their most prized virtues (Molloy, 2013). These virtues help people become their best self. Ren is noted to be one of the most important concepts of Confucius's ethics which is often translated as love (Chang and Mansford, 2016). Our current text translates the virtue of ren to be benevolence, sympathy, empathy, charity, and humanity (Molloy, 2013). Ren wants you to think of other people. You should be kind and considerate. A large portion of the Analects are focused on defining ren, approximately 13% and 58 of the 449 chapters (Chang and Mansford, 2016). Confucius believed that because human nature is generally good that human beings are responsible for the origination of ren. He also believed that ren focuses on human problems. Ren is believed to start at home within ourselves and then our families. Becasue of the concept of ren and its loose translation of love it is believed that this is what drives us to do good things and not harm one another. I believes that this contributes to social harmony by simply stating that ren is an other way of saying treat others how you want to be treated. If we are able to empathize and sympathize for people, help them when they need it and love each other instead of doing harm and cutting people down. If everyone followed this practice it is almost unimaginable how different the would could be. I also feel like it means that we need to be less selfish and more selfless. Helping people a they fall instead of kicking them while they are down seems most appropriate. References Chang, W., & Mansford Prior, J. (2016). Confucian Ren and Jesus’ Agape as a Basic Virtue toward a More Ecumenical World. Journal of Ecumenical Studies, 51(4), 552– 566. https://doi-org.chamberlainuniversity.idm.oclc.org/10.1353/ecu.2016.0049Links to an external site. o Manage Discussion Entry I chose “ren” to research and understand. According to out book, “When we look at the Chinese ideogram for the virtue of ren, we understand its meaning: to think of the other. It is translated in many ways: “sympathy,” “empathy,” “benevolence,” “humaneness,” “kindness,” “consideration,” “thoughtfulness,” and “human- heartedness.” (Molloy, 2013, p.234 ) “Confucius mentioned Ren over one hundred times, but he never formally defined it. In the English world, scholars have translated Ren by many terms – benevolence, love, altruism, kindness, charity, compassion, magnanimity, humaneness, humanity, prefect virtue, goodness, and so forth. Confucius said, ‘Ren is to love others’. Ren is a general virtue that has to be realized among other virtues. For example, Confucius said, “You achieve Ren if everywhere under Heaven you can practice the five: courtesy, breadth, good faith, diligence and clemency” (Analects, 17.6). In this sense, a person of Ren is a morally perfect person, and Ren may be translated as “perfect virtue,” “goodness,” and “human excellence.” (Ukessays) Michelle [Show More]

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