Human Nature
According to Chinese Wisdom
Is human nature basically good or bad? This is one of the
most controversial questions that does not have a definitive answer.
From the Biblical point of view, man was originally good,
but because of the original sin of Adam and Eve, man becomes evil or sinful. There
are those who believe that man is created in God's image to serve Him; if that
is truly the case, man is still inherently good. There are, on the other hand,
those who believe that man is inherently bad.
Well, what is the Chinese concept of human
nature?
According to Hsun Tzu (荀子), a Confucian
Chinese philosopher who lived approximately between 310-219 B.C., the nature of
man is evil, and his goodness is the result of his right actions and
activities. Hsun Tzu’s explanation was that man’s innate nature is to seek
gain, which is often followed by strife and rapacity that may annihilate his
deference and compliance; man’s envy and hatred of others may obliterate his
loyalty and faithfulness; and man’s desire to gratify his five senses may engender
his own lewdness and licentiousness. This is how man may have become bad and even evil.
Essentially, good and evil are only moral concepts
that have coexisted since the beginning of time; humans have been categorizing
different actions and feelings based on their own philosophical concepts. Good
and evil are closely linked together, just like the concept of yin and yang; one cannot exist without the other, and they balance and
complement each other.
According to Mencius,
another ancient sage from China
Undeniably, we all have the bright as well
as the dark side of life. The Bible
calls the dark side of human nature “sin.” None of us is exempt from sin.
Life is always an inner struggle between what is perceived in an individual’s
moral system as “right” and the dark opposing force inside to do just the
opposite as “wrong.” To make matters worse, most of us are really quite good at
our self-deception: either we deceive ourselves
into thinking that the dark opposing force does not exist in ourselves, or we
simply inflate our own personal virtues to overshadow the dark force within us.
No matter whether human
nature is inherently good or bad, how
you
view the nature of humans is important because it shapes the way you look at
life, and, more importantly, how you
live your own life.
No matter whether we were born “good” or
“bad”, we all have enough “goodness”
within us to change ourselves to
become “better.”
Be A Better and Happier You With Tao Wisdom: This
book is about using human wisdom to become wiser and happier. It also includes
the translation and the complete text of Tao Te Ching an
ancient Chinese classic by the famous sage, Lao Tzu, on human
wisdom.
The Happiness Wisdom: This
book helps you create your own happiness recipe based on ancient wisdom,
contemporary wisdom, and spiritual wisdom. Your recipe has to be yours,
and only you can create it, because it’s you who
will be going on your life journey.
Stephen Lau
Copyright© by Stephen Lau
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