Dictionary:

virtue

(vûr'chū)

1. Moral excellence and righteousness; goodness.
2. An example or kind of moral excellence: the virtue of patience.
Chastity, especially in a woman.
A particularly efficacious, good, or beneficial quality; advantage: a plan with the virtue of being practical.
Effective force or power: believed in the virtue of prayer.
virtues Christianity. The fifth of the nine orders of angels in medieval angelology.
Obsolete. Manly courage; valor.

idiom:

by (or in) virtue of

On the grounds or basis of; by reason of: well-off by virtue of a large inheritance.

[Middle English vertu, from Old French, from Latin virtūs, manliness, excellence, goodness, from vir, man.]

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Thesaurus: virtue

noun

The quality or state of being morally sound: good, goodness, morality, probity, rectitude, righteousness, rightness, uprightness, virtuousness. See right/wrong.
The condition of being chaste: chastity, decency, innocence, modesty, purity, virginity, virtuousness. See good/bad, restraint/unrestraint, sex/asexual.
A special feature or quality that confers superiority: beauty, distinction, excellence, merit, perfection. See good/bad.
A level of superiority that is usually high: caliber, merit, quality, stature, value, worth. See good/bad, value/worthlessness/evaluation.

Antonyms: virtue

Definition: honor, integrity
Antonyms: dishonor, evil, immorality, vice

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: virtue

Practical dispositions in conformity with standards of excellence or with principles of practical reason. The seven cardinal virtues of the Christian tradition include the four "natural," or cardinal, virtues, those inculcated in the old pagan world that spring from the common endowment of humanity, and the three "theological" virtues, those specifically prescribed in Christianity and arising as special gifts from God. The natural virtues are prudence, temperance, fortitude, and justice; this enumeration, said to go back to Socrates, is found in Plato and Aristotle. To these St. Paul added the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love — virtues which, in Christian teaching, do not originate naturally in humanity but are instead imparted by God through Christ and then practiced by the believer.

For more information on virtue, visit Britannica.com.

Philosophy Dictionary: virtue

A virtue is a trait of character that is to be admired: one rendering its possessor better, either morally, or intellectually, or in the conduct of specific affairs. Both Plato and Aristotle devote much time to the unity of the virtues, or the way in which possession of one in the right way requires possession of the others; another central concern is the way in which possession of virtue, which might seem to stand in the way of self-interest, in fact makes possible the achievement of self-interest prop-erly understood, or eudaimonia. But different conceptions of moral virtue and its relation to other virtue characterize Platonic, Aristotelian, Stoic, Christian, Enlightenment, Romantic, and 20th-century ethical writing. These divisions reflect central preoccupations of their time and needs of the cultures in which they gain predominance: the humility, charity, patience, and chastity of Christianity would have been unintelligible as ethical virtues to classical Greeks, whereas the ‘magnanimity’ of the great-souled man of Aristotle is hard for us to read as an unqualified good. Syntheses of Christian and Greek conceptions are attempted by many, including Aquinas, but a resolute return to an Aristotelian conception has been impossible since the emergence of generalized benevolence as a leading virtue. For Hume a virtue is a trait of character with the power of producing love or esteem of others, or pride in oneself, by being ‘useful or agreeable’ to its possessors and those affected by them. In Kant, virtue is purely a trait that can act as a handmaiden to the doing of duty, having no independent ethical value, and in utilitarianism, virtues are traits of character that further pursuit of the general happiness.

Columbia Encyclopedia: virtue

[Lat.,=manliness], in philosophy, quality of good in human conduct. The cardinal virtues, as presented by Plato, were wisdom (or prudence), courage, temperance, and justice. They are to be interpreted as descriptive of conduct rather than innate qualities and are achieved through proper training and discipline. They have been called natural virtues, as contrasted with the Christian theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity. As early as the 14th cent. the Christian virtues were combined with the Platonic virtues and called the seven cardinal virtues, figuring largely, with the opposing seven deadly sins, in such medieval literature as Dante's Divine Comedy. Some contemporary philosophers, such as Alasdair MacIntyre, have argued that traditional notions of virtue provide the best framework for reflection in ethics.

History 1450-1789: Virtue

Virtue refers to a valued human characteristic or to excellence, or to the sum of such qualities. Hence, the term has an inherently normative or evaluative connotation, since it selects out forms of knowledge and action that are approved and commended. The notion of virtue in Western thought stems from the Greek word arete as translated into the Latin virtus. The concept has a long history in Europe and was widely employed in a number of contexts—social and political as well as moral—during the early modern period.

In its earliest Greek expressions, "virtue" denoted the superlative prowess of the heroic warrior and thus possessed both highly individualistic and gendered implications. Although the latter never fully disappeared (hence the etymological connection between virtue and virility, both derived from the root vir, 'man'), the former was subsumed into the communal sphere with the rise of the classical polis. Virtue and the virtues came to be regarded in the city-states of the ancient world as coordinate with the laws and customs of a given community. Thinkers as diverse as Pythagoras, Plato, and Aristotle agreed that the moral character of the individual constituted a microcosm of the political character of the city. The Greeks commonly identified four so-called cardinal virtues—courage, wisdom, justice, and temperance—although they also upheld the worthiness of many other qualities.

The ancient Romans and the European Christians generally embraced both the private and the public aspects of virtue. The popularity of philosophical schools such as Stoicism and Epicureanism among cultivated Romans and the other-worldliness and asceticism of Christianity tended to locate forms of virtue in the individual and to promote the priority of personal happiness over public good. Yet the Romans (particularly in the period of the Republic) also hailed the sacrifices of leaders and fellow citizens who were motivated by purely civic goals. Likewise, medieval Christians expected that government would be conducted by rulers whose actions fully accorded with standards of earthly rectitude, justice primary among them. To the list of cardinal virtues came to be added the so-called Christian or theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity.

The conventional wisdom about the fate of virtue in modern Europe charts an arc of its repoliticization during the Renaissance (in the guise of so-called civic humanism), followed by a period of redefinition and disappearance from the public sphere occasioned by the Protestant Reformation, the emergence of liberalism, the rise of commercial society, and the spread of Enlightenment values. This interpretation requires some qualification, however, inasmuch as the process was less one of straightforward decline than of complex transformation.

The association of the Renaissance itself (especially in Italy) with the glorification of civic-minded virtue—the ethos of sacrifice for the sake of one's fellow citizens and city—shared by members of a community (the so-called "civic humanism" thesis pioneered by Hans Baron) has come under serious and deserved challenge. While it is true that many of the greatest humanists of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries embraced citizenship as the fullest expression of a virtuous human life, taking the Roman statesman-orator Cicero as their exemplar, others adopted alternative views. Praise of Caesar and the Roman Empire, and hence devaluation of civic virtue, was quite common among leading humanists. A further group of Renaissance thinkers maintained a more orthodox Christian account of virtue as essentially a mark of God's grace or a trait that demonstrated one's worthiness for salvation. Moreover, there was nothing essentially urban about the idea of public virtue as the foundation for a good state; such a view was as widespread at the courts of territorial monarchs as in the cities of the Italian peninsula. Conceptions of virtue in Renaissance thought simply lacked the uniformity implied by the civic humanism thesis as commonly stated.

Early modern Europe witnessed numerous attempts to redefine, challenge, or criticize both conventional public and private ideals of virtue. Perhaps the most famous example of this is Niccolò Machiavelli (1469–1527), who enjoys an infamous reputation for his attack on virtue, especially in its standard classical and Christian versions. In his Il principe (1513–1514; The prince), Machiavelli argues that virtue as taught by ancient philosophers and preached from pulpits is very often incompatible with effective use of political power. A ruler who seeks to govern according to the cardinal and theological virtues will lose his office, since others who are prepared to employ tactics that lack moral sanction will oust him in their own quest for position and glory. Machiavelli peppers his little book with tales of virtuous magistrates who have been ruined and vicious ones who have succeeded. According to Machiavelli, the only assurance that the prince can overcome the vicissitudes of politics is a readiness to act in a manner inconsistent with virtue when circumstances require it. The Machiavellian ruler is not above counseling murder, deception, manipulation, and nearly every other mode of conventionally immoral conduct, if these acts prove efficient in maintaining hold on the levers of power. Machiavelli calls this moral flexibility virtù (the standard Italian word for 'virtue'), thus apparently turning the conventional discourse of ethics on its head.

Yet Machiavelli is not guilty of "teaching evil," despite the accusation made against him. In fact, his conception of virtù suggests that the ruler should always act according to commonplace virtue whenever he can do so without undermining his own power. Conventionally evil means should only be used when absolutely necessary, and even then the prince must do his best to ensure that people do not perceive him to be acting immorally, lest his reputation be harmed. Moreover, Machiavelli seems to think that this advice pertains only in the case of holders of public office; Machiavellian virtù is, one might say, a distinctively political way of acting, not to be commended to private persons in their interactions with one another. Nor ought it be forgotten that in his own political loyalties and other political writings, Machiavelli stood for a republican conception of civic virtue that lauded the sacrifice of personal goals and desires for the sake of attaining the communal glory of one's city.

Machiavelli was not alone among early modern European authors in reformulating ideas about virtue inherited from the classical and Christian past. For example, many humanists posed questions about the connection between virtue and nobility as it had customarily been conceived. In this period, as in early times, blood and birth were regarded as bestowing nobility upon an individual, and nobility in turn qualified a person to wield power and rule over natural inferiors. But humanist writers proposed that virtue alone prepared men for political office, since those who were most virtuous were most likely to act for the common good. Hence, it was the virtuous who possessed true nobility (vera nobilitas), and virtue was by no means coextensive with paternity and landed wealth. In Italy and even more noticeably in northern Europe, invocations of virtue could easily be translated into challenges to the cherished principle that some people were "naturally born" to rule.

Another modification of traditional conceptions of virtue came with the continuing commercialization of European economic relations and social values. Whereas for the ancient philosophers and medieval Christian theologians the private accumulation of liquid wealth had been widely viewed as incompatible with virtue, early modern authors began to reevaluate this doctrine. Some thinkers, such as the Italian civic humanists Leonardo Bruni (c. 1370–1444) and Gian Francesco Poggio Bracciolini (1380–1459), contended that citizens should proudly acknowledge industriousness and self-acquired possessions as the foundation of morality and the greatness of their cities. Other authors went further. The Dutch-born Bernard de Mandeville (1670–1733) proposed in his Fable of the Bees (1714/1729) the famous principle that private vices yield public goods, which is to say that the pursuit of personal gain, and indeed the desire for comfort and luxury, lead directly to the enrichment of society as a whole and the consequent benefit of all its members.

In spite of recent claims that the Enlightenment project of grounding morality on human reason alone led to the erosion of virtue-based ethics, thinkers of the eighteenth century continued to uphold virtue as central to the worthwhile human life. The central document of the Enlightenment, the Encyclopédie (1751–1758) compiled by Denis Diderot and Jean Le Rond d'Alembert, treated virtue as an indwelling sense given to all members of mankind universally and without exception and thus invariable in its content across time and place. While the Discours sur l'origine et les fondements de l'inégalité parmi les hommes (1755; Discourse on the origins of inequality) and the Émile (1762) of Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–1778) seem to treat the conventional virtues as affectations imposed artificially and detrimentally upon naturally good humanity, their author still insisted upon virtue as indispensable for a free society. Using language that any civic republican might endorse, Rousseau stipulated in Discours sur l'économie politique (1755; A discourse on political economy) that virtue is realized when citizens conform their particular wills to the determinations of the general will. While the discourse of virtue may have been further transformed during the early Enlightenment, it by no means disappeared.

Bibliography

Primary Sources

Kohl, Benjamin G., and Ronald G. Witt, eds. The Earthly Republic: Italian Humanists on Government and Society. Philadelphia, 1978.

Kraye, Jill, ed. Cambridge Translations of Renaissance Philosophical Texts. Vol. 2, Political Philosophy. Cambridge, U.K., and New York, 1997.

Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. The Social Contract and Discourses. Edited by G. D. H. Cole. Revised by J. H. Brumfitt, and John C. Hall. New York, 1993.

Secondary Sources

Baron, Hans. The Crisis of the Early Italian Renaissance: Civic Humanism and Republican Liberty in an Age of Classicism and Tyranny. Rev. ed. Princeton, 1966.

Burtt, Shelley. Virtue Transformed: Political Argument in England, 1688–1740. Cambridge, U.K., and New York, 1992.

Hankins, James, ed. Renaissance Civic Humanism: Reappraisals and Reflections. Cambridge, U.K., and New York, 2000.

Mac Intyre, Alasdair. After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory. 2nd ed. Notre Dame, Ind., 1984.

Pagden, Anthony, ed. The Languages of Political Theory in Early-Modern Europe. Cambridge, U.K., and New York, 1987.

Skinner, Quentin. Visions of Politics. Vol. 2, Renaissance Virtues. Cambridge, U.K., and New York, 2002.

—CARY J. NEDERMAN

Devil's Dictionary: virtues

A cynical view of the world by Ambrose Bierce

n.pl.

Certain abstentions.

Word Tutor: virtue

IN BRIEF: The quality of doing what is right and avoiding what is wrong. Also: Any admirable quality or attribute.

Wisdom is knowing what to do next; virtue is doing it. — David Starr Jordan (1851-1931)

Quotes About: Virtue

Quotes:

"Great necessities call out great virtues." - Abigail Adams

"Some virtues are only seen in affliction and others only in prosperity." - Joseph Addison

"A homely face and no figure have aided many women heavenward." - Minna Antrim

"All virtue is summed up in dealing justly." - Aristotle

"Of all the varieties of virtues, liberalism is the most beloved." - Aristotle

"The greatest virtues are those which are most useful to other persons." - Aristotle

See more famous quotes about Virtue

Wikipedia: Virtue

Personification of virtue (Greek ἀρετή) in Celsus Library in Ephesos, Turkey

Virtue (Latin virtus; Greek ἀρετή) is moral excellence of a person. A virtue is a trait valued as being good. The conceptual opposite of virtue is vice.

According to its etymology the word virtue (Latin virtus) signifies manliness or courage. Taken in its widest sense virtue means the excellence of perfection of a thing, just as vice, its contrary, denotes a defect or absence of perfection due to a thing. In its strictest meaning, however, as used by moral philosophers and theologians, virtue is an operative habit essentially good, as distinguished from vice, an operative habit essentially evil. The four cardinal (hinge) virtues are Justice, Courage, Wisdom, and Moderation. These were enumerated by the Greek philosophers. The three supernatural virtues of Faith, Hope and (unselfish) Love are part of the tradition of Pauline Christianity and Judaism. Both the natural and supernatural virtues depend on a person's understanding that truth can be discovered. Modernist views are at odds with this idea.

Virtue can also be meant in another way. Virtue can either have normative or moral value; i.e. the virtue of a knife is to cut, the virtue of an excellent knife is to cut well (this is its normative value) vs. the virtues of reason, prudence, chastity, etc. (which have moral value).

In the Greek it is more properly called ἠθικὴ ἀρετή (ēthikē aretē). It is "habitual excellence". It is something practiced at all times. The virtue of perseverance is needed for all and any virtue since it is a habit of character and must be used continuously in order for any person to maintain oneself in virtue. However, Friedrich Nietzsche stated that 'when virtue has slept, it will arise all the more vigorous'.

Four classic Western virtues

The four classic Western cardinal virtues are:

temperance : σωφροσύνη (sōphrosynē)
prudence : φρόνησις (phronēsis)
fortitude : ανδρεία (andreia)
justice : δικαιοσύνη (dikaiosynē)

This enumeration is traced to Greek philosophy, being listed by both Plato and Socrates.

Prudence and virtue

Seneca, the Roman Stoic said that perfect prudence is indistinguishable from perfect virtue. His point was that if you take the longest view, and consider all the consequences, in the end, a perfectly prudent person would act in the same way as a perfectly virtuous person. Many people have found it valuable to determine how each of the virtues is prudent, as well as how they harmonize.

Christian virtues

See also: Seven virtues

In Christianity, the theological virtues are faith, hope and charity or love/agape, a list which comes from 1 Corinthians 13:13 (νυνι δε μενει πιστις ελπις αγαπη τα τρια ταυτα μειζων δε τουτων η αγαπη pistis, elpis, agape). These are said to perfect one's love of God and Man and therefore (since God is super-rational) to harmonize and partake of prudence.

Roman virtues

Auctoritas — "Spiritual Authority" — The sense of one's social standing, built up through experience, Pietas, and Industria.
Comitas — "Humour" — Ease of manner, courtesy, openness, and friendliness.
Clementia — "Mercy" — Mildness and gentleness.
Dignitas — "Dignity" — A sense of self-worth, personal pride.
Firmitas — "Tenacity" — Strength of mind, the ability to stick to one's purpose.
Frugalitas — "Frugalness" — Economy and simplicity of style, without being miserly.
Gravitas — "Gravity" — A sense of the importance of the matter at hand, responsibility and earnestness.
Honestas — "Respectability" — The image that one presents as a respectable member of society.
Humanitas — "Humanity" — Refinement, civilization, learning, and being cultured.
Industria — "Industriousness" — Hard work.
Pietas — "Dutifulness" — More than religious piety; a respect for the natural order socially, politically, and religiously. Includes the ideas of patriotism and devotion to others.
Prudentia — "Prudence" — Foresight, wisdom, and personal discretion.
Salubritas — "Wholesomeness" — Health and cleanliness.
Severitas — "Sternness" — Gravity, self-control.
Veritas — "Truthfulness" — Honesty in dealing with others.

Virtues of Islam

RIGHTEOUSNESS

"Do no evil nor mischief on the (face of the) earth." (2:60)
"Let there arise out of you a band of people inviting to all that is good, enjoining what is right, and forbidding what is wrong." (3:104)
"Do good to parents, kinsfolk, orphans, those in need, neighbors who are of kin, neighbors who are strangers, the companion by your side, the wayfarer (ye meet), and what your right hands possess." (4:36)
"[God] forbids all indecent deeds, and evil and rebellion: He instructs you, that ye may receive admonition." (16:90)
"Verily the most honored of you in the sight of God is (he who is) the most righteous of you." (49:13)

GENEROSITY

"Give of the good things which ye have (honorably) earned, and of the fruits of the earth which We have produced for you." (2:267)
"If ye disclose (acts of) charity, even so it is well, but if ye conceal them, and make them reach those (really) in need, that is best for you ." (2:271)
"By no means shall ye attain righteousness unless ye give (freely) of that which ye love." (3:92)
"Those saved from the covetousness of their own souls, they are the ones that achieve prosperity." (59:9)
"[Do not] expect, in giving, any increase (for thyself)!" (74:6)

GRATITUDE

"Eat of the good things that We have provided for you, and be grateful to God, if it is Him ye worship." (2:172)
"Show gratitude to Me and to thy parents: to Me is (thy final) Goal." (31:14)
"[God] liketh not ingratitude from His servants: if ye are grateful, He is pleased with you." (39:7)

CONTENTMENT

"In no wise covet those things in which God hath bestowed His gifts more freely on some of you than on others: to men is allotted what they earn, and to women what they earn: but ask God of His bounty." (4:32)

HUMILITY

"Call on your Lord with humility and in private: for God loveth not those who trespass beyond bounds." (7:55)
"Celebrate the praises of thy Lord, and be of those who prostrate themselves in adoration." (15:98)
"The servants of (God) Most Gracious are those who walk on the earth in humility, and when the ignorant address them, they say, 'Peace!'" (25:63)
"Exult not, for God loveth not those who exult (in riches)." (28:76)
"Swell not thy cheek (for pride) at men, nor walk in insolence through the earth; for God loveth not any arrogant boaster." (31:18)

KINDNESS

"God loveth those who are kind." (5:13)
"Be kind to parents. Whether one or both of them attain old age in thy life, say not to them a word of contempt, nor repel them, but address them in terms of honor. And, out of kindness, lower to them the wing of humility, and say: 'My Lord! bestow on them Thy Mercy even as they cherished me in childhood.'" (17:23-24)
"We have enjoined on man (to be good) to his parents: in travail upon travail did his mother bear him, and in years twain was his weaning." (31:14)
"Treat not the orphan with harshness, nor repulse him who asks." (93:9-10)

COURTESY

"When a (courteous) greeting is offered you, meet it with a greeting still more courteous, or (at least) of equal courtesy. God takes careful account of all things." (4:86)
"Let not some men among you laugh at others: it may be that the (latter) are better than the (former): nor let some women laugh at others: it may be that the (latter) are better than the (former): nor defame nor be sarcastic to each other, nor call each other by (offensive) nicknames." (49:11)

PURITY

"Eat of what is on earth, lawful and good; and do not follow the footsteps of the Satan, for he is to you an avowed enemy." (2:168)
"[God] loves those who keep themselves pure and clean." (2:222)
"When ye prepare for prayer, wash your faces, and your hands (and arms) to the elbows; Rub your heads (with water); and (wash) your feet to the ankles. If ye are in a state of ceremonial impurity, bathe your whole body... God doth not wish to place you in a difficulty, but to make you clean." (5:6)

GOOD SPEECH

"Say to My servants that they should (only) say those things that are best: for Satan doth sow dissensions among them." (17:53)
"[The believers] have been guided... to the purest of speeches." (22:24)
"Woe to every (kind of) scandal-monger and backbiter." (104:1)

RESPECT

"Say to the People of the Book and to those who are unlearned: 'Do ye (also) submit yourselves?' If they do, they are in right guidance, but if they turn back, thy duty is to convey the Message." (3:20)
"Enter not houses other than your own, until ye have asked permission and saluted those in them: that is best for you, in order that ye may heed (what is seemly). If ye find no one in the house, enter not until permission is given to you: if ye are asked to go back, go back: that makes for greater purity for yourselves." (24:27-28)
"Avoid suspicion as much (as possible): for suspicion in some cases is a sin: and spy not on each other, nor speak ill of each other behind their backs. Would any of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother?" (49:12)

WISDOM

"Invite (all) to the Way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching; and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious." (16:125)

TOLERANCE

"Say: 'O People of the Book! come to common terms as between us and you: That we worship none but God; that we associate no partners with Him; that we erect not, from among ourselves, lords and patrons other than God.' If then they turn back, say ye: 'Bear witness that we (at least) are Muslims (bowing to God's Will).'" (3:64)
"If it had been thy Lord's Will, they would all have believed, all who are on earth! Wilt thou then compel mankind, against their will, to believe!" (10:99)

JUSTICE

"Stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to God, even as against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be (against) rich or poor: for God can best protect both. Follow not the lusts (of your hearts), lest ye swerve." (4:135)
"God loveth those who judge in equity." (5:42)
"Take not life, which God hath made sacred, except by way of justice and law." (6:151)

MERCY

"If the debtor is in a difficulty, grant him time till it is easy for him to repay. But if ye remit it by way of charity, that is best for you if ye only knew." (2:280)
"We ordained therein for them: 'Life for life, eye for eye, nose or nose, ear for ear, tooth for tooth, and wounds equal for equal.' But if any one remits the retaliation by way of charity, it is an act of atonement for himself." (5:45)
"Overlook (any human faults) with gracious forgiveness." (15:85)
"Repel (Evil) with what is better: then will he between whom and thee was hatred become as it were thy friend and intimate!" (41:34)
"(It is) for those who believe and put their trust in their Lord... when they are angry even then forgive." (42:36-37)
"The recompense for an injury is an injury equal thereto (in degree): but if a person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from God: for (God) loveth not those who do wrong." (42:40)

DIGNITY

"To those against whom war is made, permission is given (to fight), because they are wronged." (22:39)
"If any do help and defend themselves after a wrong (done) to them, against such there is no cause of blame." (42:41)

COURAGE

"(It is) for those who believe... when an oppressive wrong is inflicted on them, (are not cowed but) help and defend themselves." (42:36-39)

FIRMNESS

"How many of the Prophets fought (in God's way), and with them (fought) large bands of godly men? But they never lost heart if they met with disaster in God's way, nor did they weaken (in will) nor give in. And God loves those who are firm and steadfast." (3:146)
"Bear with patient constancy whatever betide thee; for this is firmness (of purpose) in (the conduct of) affairs." (31:17)

FRANKNESS

"Fear God, and make your utterance straight forward: That He may make your conduct whole and sound." (33:70-71)

HOPE

"Here is a plain statement to men, a guidance and instruction to those who fear God. So lose not heart, nor fall into despair: For ye must gain mastery if ye are true in Faith." (3:138-139)
"What is with you must vanish: what is with God will endure. And We will certainly bestow, on those who patiently persevere, their reward according to the best of their actions." (16:96)

PATIENCE

"Seek (God's) help with patient perseverance and prayer: It is indeed hard, except to those who are humble, who bear in mind the certainty that they are to meet their Lord, and that they are to return to Him." (2:45-46)
"Be sure we shall test you with something of fear and hunger, some loss in goods or lives or the fruits (of your toil), but give glad tidings to those who patiently persevere, who say, when afflicted with calamity: 'To God We belong, and to Him is our return'. They are those on whom

(descend) blessings from their Lord, and Mercy." (2:155-157)

"Pray for help from God, and (wait) in patience and constancy: for the earth is God's, to give as a heritage to such of His servants as He pleaseth; and the end is (best) for the righteous." (7:128)

PERSEVERANCE

"On no soul doth God place a burden greater than it can bear. It gets every good that it earns, and it suffers every ill that it earns." (2:286)
"Ye shall certainly be tried and tested in your possessions and in your personal selves; and ye shall certainly hear much that will grieve you, from those who received the Book before you and from those who worship partners besides God. But if ye persevere patiently, and guard against evil, then that will be of great resolution." (3:186)

DISCIPLINE

"Bow down, prostrate yourselves, and adore your Lord; and do good; that ye may prosper. And strive in His cause as ye ought to strive, (with sincerity and under discipline)." (22:77-78)

SELF-RESTRAINT

"Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that ye may (learn) self-restraint." (2:183)
"[Do not follow] the lust (of thy heart), for it will mislead thee from the Path of God." (38:26)
"For such as had entertained the fear of standing before their Lord's (tribunal) and had restrained (their) soul from lower desires, their abode will be the Garden." (79:40-41)

BALANCE / MODERATION

"Fight in the cause of God those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for God loveth not transgressors." (2:190)
"Commit no excess: for God loveth not those given to excess." (5:87)
"And the servants of (God) Most Gracious are those who... when they spend, are not extravagant and not niggardly, but hold a just (balance) between those (extremes)." (25:63-67)
"Seek, with the (wealth) which God has bestowed on thee, the Home of the Hereafter, nor forget thy portion in this world: but do thou good, as God has been good to thee." (28:77)

PRUDENCE

"When ye deal with each other, in transactions involving future obligations in a fixed period of time, reduce them to writing... whether it be small or big; it is juster in the sight of God, more suitable as evidence, and more convenient to prevent doubts among yourselves." (2:282)
"If a wicked person comes to you with any news, ascertain the truth, lest ye harm people unwittingly, and afterwards become full of repentance for what ye have done." (49:6)

UNITY

"Hold fast, all together, by the Rope which God (stretches out for you), and be not divided among yourselves; and remember with gratitude God's favor on you; for ye were enemies and He joined your hearts in love, so that by His Grace, ye became brethren." (3:103)

FRUGALITY

"Eat not up your property among yourselves in vanities." (4:29)
"Waste not by excess: for God loveth not the wasters." (6:141)

SINCERITY

"God will never change the grace which He hath bestowed on a people until they change what is in their (own) souls." (8:53)
"Woe to the worshippers... who (want but) to be seen." (107:4-6)

RESPONSIBILITY

"Whoever recommends and helps a good cause becomes a partner therein: And whoever recommends and helps an evil cause, shares in its burden." (4:85)

LOYALTY

"Fulfill (every) engagement, for (every) engagement will be inquired into (on the Day of Reckoning)." (17:34)

TRUSTWORTHINESS

"If one of you deposits a thing on trust with another, let the trustee (faithfully) discharge his trust, and let him fear God." (2:283)
"God doth command you to render back your trusts to those to whom they are due." (4:58)

HONESTY / FAIR-DEALING

"Cover not Truth with falsehood, nor conceal the Truth when ye know (what it is)." (2:42)
"Take not your oaths, to practice deception between yourselves." (16:94)
"Truly many are the partners (in business) who wrong each other: Not so do those who believe and work deeds of righteousness, and how few are they?" (38:24)
"Woe to those that deal in fraud, - Those who, when they have to receive by measure from men, exact full measure, but when they have to give by measure or weight to men, give less than due." (83:1-3)

REPENTANCE

"Seek ye the forgiveness of your Lord, and turn to Him in repentance; that He may grant you enjoyment, good (and true), for a term appointed ." (11:3)
"Your Lord knoweth best what is in your hearts: If ye do deeds of righteousness, verily He is Most Forgiving to those who turn to Him again and again (in true penitence)." (17:25)

SPIRITUALITY

"Behold! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day, - there are indeed Signs for men of understanding, - Men who celebrate the praises of God, standing, sitting, and lying down on their sides, and contemplate the (wonders of) creation in the heavens and the earth, (with the thought): 'Our Lord! not for naught hast Thou created (all) this! Glory to Thee!'" (3:190-191)
"Establish regular prayer: for prayer restrains from shameful and evil deeds; and remembrance of God is the greatest (thing in life) without doubt." (29:45)
"True, there is for thee by day prolonged occupation with ordinary duties: But keep in remembrance the name of thy Lord and devote thyself to Him whole-heartedly. (He is) Lord of the East and the West: there is no god but He: take Him therefore for (thy) Disposer of Affairs." (73:7-9)

Buddhist virtues

Buddhist practice as outlined in the Noble Eightfold Path can be regarded as a progressive list of virtues.

Right Viewpoint - Realizing the Four Noble Truths (samyag-dṛṣṭi, sammā-diṭṭhi)
Right Values - Commitment to mental and ethical growth in moderation (samyak-saṃkalpa, sammā-saṅkappa)
Right Speech - One speaks in a non hurtful, not exaggerated, truthful way (samyag-vāc, sammā-vācā)
Right Actions - Wholesome action, avoiding action that would do harm (samyak-karmānta, sammā-kammanta)
Right Livelihood - One's job does not harm in any way oneself or others; directly or indirectly (weapon maker, drug dealer, etc.) (samyag-ājīva, sammā-ājīva}
Right Effort - One makes an effort to improve (samyag-vyāyāma, sammā-vāyāma)
Right Mindfulness - Mental ability to see things for what they are with clear consciousness (samyak-smṛti, sammā-sati)
Right Meditation - State where one reaches enlightenment and the ego has disappeared (samyak-samādhi, sammā-samādhi)

Buddhism's four brahmavihara ("Divine States") can be more properly regarded as virtues in the European sense. The are:

Metta/Maitri: 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."^[1]
Karuna: compassion; the hope that a person's sufferings will diminish; compassion is the "wish for all sentient beings to be free from suffering."^[2]
Mudita: 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."^[3]
Upekkha/Upeksha: equanimity, or learning to accept both loss and gain, praise and blame, success and failure with detachment, equally, for oneself and for others; equanimity means "not to distinguish between friend, enemy or stranger, but regard every sentient being as equal. It is a clear-minded tranquil state of mind - not being overpowered by delusions, mental dullness or agitation."^[4]

Samurai values

In Hagakure, the quintessential book of the samurai, Yamamoto Tsunetomo encapsulates his views on 'virtue' in the four vows he makes daily:

Never to be outdone in the way of the samurai or Bushidō
To be of good use to the master.
To be filial to my parents.
To manifest great compassion, and act for the sake of Man.

Tsunetomo goes on to say:

If one dedicates these four vows to the gods and Buddhas every morning, he will have the strength of two men and never slip backward. One must edge forward like the inchworm, bit by bit. The gods and Buddhas, too, first started with a vow.

Nietzsche on Virtue

Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche often took a more cynical view on virtue. A few of his key thoughts:

"One virtue is more of a virtue than two, because it is more of a knot for one's destiny to cling to."
"Virtue itself is offensive."
"When virtue has slept, it will arise all the more vigorous."

Virtues and values

Virtues can be placed into a broader context of values. Each individual has a core of underlying values that contribute to our system of beliefs, ideas and/or opinions (see value in semiotics). Integrity in the application of a value ensures its continuity and this continuity separates a value from beliefs, opinion and ideas. In this context a value (e.g., Truth or Equality or Greed) is the core from which we operate or react. Societies have values that are shared among many of the participants in that culture. An individual's values typically are largely, but not entirely, in agreement with their culture's values.

Individual virtues can be grouped into one of four categories of values:

Ethics (virtue - vice, good - bad, moral - immoral - amoral, right - wrong, permissible - impermissible)
Aesthetics (beautiful, ugly, unbalanced, pleasing)
Doctrinal (political, ideological, religious or social beliefs and values)
Innate/Inborn (inborn values such as reproduction and survival, a controversial category)

A value system is the ordered and prioritized set of values (usually of the ethical and doctrinal categories described above) that an individual or society holds.

Some virtues (a virtue is a character trait valued as being good) recognized in various Western cultures of the world include:

Virtue and vice

The opposite of a virtue is a vice. One way of organizing the vices is as the corruption of the virtues. Thus the cardinal vices would be folly, venality, cowardice and lust. The Christian theological vices would be blasphemy, despair, and hatred.

However, as Aristotle noted, the virtues can have several opposites. Virtues can be considered the mean between two extremes. For instance, both cowardice and rashness are opposites of courage; contrary to prudence are both over-caution and insufficient caution. A more "modern" virtue, tolerance, can be considered the mean between the two extremes of narrow-mindedness on the one hand and soft-headedness on the other. Vices can therefore be identified as the opposites of virtues, but with the caveat that each virtue could have many different opposites, all distinct from each other.

Capital vices

The seven capital vices or seven deadly sins suggest a classification of vices and were enumerated by Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century. The Catechism of the Catholic Church mentions them as "capital sins which Christian experience has distinguished, following St. John Cassian and St. Gregory the Great."[1] "Capital" here means that these sins stand at the head (Latin caput) of the other sins which proceed from them, e.g., theft proceeding from avarice and adultery from lust.

These vices are pride, envy, avarice, anger, lust, gluttony, and sloth. The opposite of these vices are the following virtues: meekness, humility, generosity, tolerance, chastity, moderation, and zeal (meaning enthusiastic devotion to a good cause or an ideal). These virtues are not exactly equivalent to the Seven Cardinal or Theological Virtues mentioned above. Instead these capital vices and virtues can be considered the "building blocks" that rule human behaviour. Both are acquired and reinforced by practice and the exercise of one induces or facilitates the others.

Ranked in order of severity as per Dante's Divine Comedy (in the Purgatorio), the seven deadly vices are:

Pride or Vanity — an excessive love of self (holding self out of proper position toward God or fellows; Dante's definition was "love of self perverted to hatred and contempt for one's neighbor"). In the Latin lists of the Seven Deadly Sins, pride is referred to as superbia.
Avarice (covetousness, Greed) — a desire to possess more than one has need or use for (or, according to Dante, "excessive love of money and power"). In the Latin lists of the Seven Deadly Sins, avarice is referred to as avaritia.
Lust — excessive sexual desire. Dante's criterion was "lust detracts from true love". In the Latin lists of the Seven Deadly Sins, lust is referred to as luxuria.
Wrath or Anger — feelings of hatred, revenge or even denial, as well as punitive desires outside of justice (Dante's description was "love of justice perverted to revenge and spite"). In the Latin lists of the Seven Deadly Sins, wrath is referred to as ira.
Gluttony — overindulgence in food, drink or intoxicants, or misplaced desire of food as a pleasure for its sensuality ("excessive love of pleasure" was Dante's rendering). In the Latin lists of the Seven Deadly Sins, gluttony is referred to as gula.
Envy or jealousy; resentment of others for their possessions (Dante: "Love of one's own good perverted to a desire to deprive other men of theirs"). In the Latin lists of the Seven Deadly Sins, envy is referred to as invidia.
Sloth or Laziness; idleness and wastefulness of time allotted. Laziness is condemned because others have to work harder and useful work can not get done. (also accidie, acedia)

Several of these vices interlink, and various attempts at causal hierarchy have been made. For example, pride (love of self out of proportion) is implied in gluttony (the over-consumption or waste of food), as well as sloth, envy, and most of the others. Each sin is a particular way of failing to love God with all one's resources and to love fellows as much as self. The Scholastic theologians developed schema of attribute and substance of will to explain these sins.

The 4th century Egyptian monk Evagrius Ponticus defined the sins as deadly "passions," and in Eastern Orthodoxy, still these impulses are characterized as being "Deadly Passions" rather than sins. Instead, the sins are considered to invite or entertain these passions. In the official Catechism of the Catholic Church published in 1992 by Pope John Paul II, these seven vices are considered moral transgression for Christians and the virtues should complement the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes as the basis for any true Morality.

Virtue in Chinese philosophy

"Virtue", translated from Chinese de (德), is also an important concept in Chinese philosophy, particularly Daoism. De (Chinese: 德; pinyin: dé; Wade-Giles: te) originally meant normative "virtue" in the sense of "personal character; inner strength; integrity", but semantically changed to moral "virtue; kindness; morality". Note the semantic parallel for English virtue, with an archaic meaning of "inner potency; divine power" (as in "by virtue of") and a modern one of "moral excellence; goodness".

Confucian moral manifestations of "virtue" include ren ("humanity"), xiao ("filial piety"), and zhong ("loyalty") In Confucianism the notion of ren according to Simon Leys means "humanity" and "goodness". Originally ren had the archaic meaning in the Confucian Book of Poems of "virility", then progressively took on shades of ethical meaning. (On the origins and transformations of this concept see Lin Yu-sheng: "The evolution of the pre-Confucian meaning of jen and the Confucian concept of moral autonomy," Monumenta Serica, vol31, 1974-75.)

The Daoist concept of De, however, 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: "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." (2/1, tr. James Legge)[1]

Virtue in modern psychology

Martin Seligman, Christopher Peterson, and other researchers involved in the positive psychology movement, recognizing the deficiency inherent in psychology's tendency to focus on dysfunction rather than on what makes a healthy and stable personality, set out to develop a list of "Character Strengths and Virtues"^[5] applicable to the widest possible range of human cultures. Although few if any virtues are truly universally valued, Seligman and his team found that the ones on their list are all considered important by an overwhelming majority of cultures.^[6] Rare communities that do not admire kindness or courage may exist, but they are clearly exceptional.

The researchers discovered a total of twenty-four virtues that are ubiquitous, divided into six basic types.

Wisdom and Knowledge: creativity, curiosity, open-mindedness, love of learning, perspective
Courage: bravery, persistence, integrity, vitality
Humanity: love, kindness, social intelligence
Justice: citizenship, fairness, leadership
Temperance: forgiveness and mercy, humility and modesty, prudence, self-regulation
Transcendence: appreciation of beauty and excellence, gratitude, hope, humor, spirituality

References

New Catholic Encyclopedia, Catholic University of America, 1967. pg 704.

^ http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhism/bs-s15.htm Buddhist Studies for Secondary Students, Unit 6: The Four Immeasurables
^ http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhism/bs-s15.htm Buddhist Studies for Secondary Students, Unit 6: The Four Immeasurables
^ http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhism/bs-s15.htm Buddhist Studies for Secondary Students, Unit 6: The Four Immeasurables
^ http://buddhism.kalachakranet.org/immeasurables_love_compassion_equanimity_rejoicing.html A View on Buddhism, THE FOUR IMMEASURABLES: Love, Compassion, Joy and Equanimity
^ Peterson, C., & Seligman, M.E.P. (2004). Character Strengths and Virtues: A Handbook and Classification. Oxford University Press. (ISBN 0195167015)
^ Seligman, Martin E.P. (2002). Authentic Happiness: Using the New Positive Psychology to Realize Your Potential for Lasting Fulfillment. New York: Free Press. pp. 132-133. (ISBN 0-7432-2297-0)