''Ren'' (, meaning "co-humanity" or "humaneness") is the

Confucian Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

virtue denoting the good quality of a virtuous human when being altruistic. ''Ren'' is exemplified by a normal adult's protective feelings for children. It is considered the outward expression of Confucian ideals.

Yan Hui Yan Hui (–481 BC) was a Chinese philosopher. He was the favorite disciple of Confucius and one of the most revered figures of Confucianism. He is venerated in Confucian temples as one of the Four Sages. Names Yan Hui is also known by his c ...

, one of the Four Sages, once asked his master to describe the rules of ''ren''. Confucius replied, "One should see nothing improper, hear nothing improper, say nothing improper, do nothing improper." Confucius also defined ''ren'' in the following way: "wishing to be established himself, seeks also to establish others; wishing to be enlarged himself, he seeks also to enlarge others." Confucius also said, "''Ren'' is not far off; he who seeks it has already found it." ''Ren'' is close to man and never leaves him. Gang Xu more specifically defined ''ren'' as "empathy", as elaborated by Confucius that "So, a man of Ren helps others become established if he desires to establish himself, and helps others reach their goals if he desires to reach his. Being able to make analogies between his own situations and those of others around him could be called the approach to Ren."

Interpretation of the Chinese character

The single

logogram In a written language, a logogram, logograph, or lexigraph is a written character that represents a word or morpheme. Chinese characters (pronounced '' hanzi'' in Mandarin, ''kanji'' in Japanese, ''hanja'' in Korean) are generally logograms, ...

for ''ren'' is a composite of two distinct common

hanzi Chinese characters () are logograms developed for the writing of Chinese. In addition, they have been adapted to write other East Asian languages, and remain a key component of the Japanese writing system where they are known as ''kanji' ...

, 人 (man, a man, a person) and 二 (two), with 人 assuming its common form inside another character, to which various interpretations have been assigned. One often hears that ''ren'' means "how two people should treat one another". While such folk etymologies are common in discussions of Chinese characters, they are often misleading. In the case of ''ren'' - usually translated as "benevolence" or "humaneness" - Humaneness is Human-ness, the essence of being human. For Confucius, the interaction of a completely dependent infant and caring parent is the most emotionally charged human interaction, "To love a thing means wanting it to live...". The

Way Way may refer to: Paths * a road, route, path or pathway, including long-distance paths. * a straight rail or track on a machine tool, (such as that on the bed of a lathe) on which part of the machine slides * Ways, large slipway in shipbuildi ...

of humaneness is human interaction and through shared experience knowing one's family." Fan Chi asked about humaneness. The Master said it is loving people. Fan Chi asked about wisdom. The Master said it is knowing people". In other words, human love and interaction is the source of humaneness, the source of the human self. Another common interpretation of the graphical elements is Man or a man connecting

Heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...

and

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's sur ...

. Pre-imperial epigraphic sources testify to alternative writings of the same character: 忎 (given as a variant of 仁 in the Shuowen dictionary), 身 with 心 below (⿱身心), and the latter compound with 人 on the right. The traditional notion about the evolution of character ''rén'' however is challenged by archaeological discoveries in the past decades. In 1977, a character ''rén'' is identified in the inscription of bronze vessel Zhongshan Wang Ding, consisting of two characters 尸 (corpse) and 二 (two); the vessel dates back to 314 B.C. The earliest extant attestation of the character 仁 was on a bronze vessel unearthed in 1981 and dated to c. 850 BCE, whereon 仁's ancestral form is composed of 尸 "dead body" and 二 "two", the latter of which also signified Heaven and Earth. Xu Gang (徐罡), Ph.D., a member of the Boston Society of Confucius, proposed that "Ren originally denoted a practice of sacrifice and martyrdom where a man of respectable social standing sacrificed himself to defend the societal expectations or code of honor, often in a time of social crisis, to honor the Heaven and the Earth".

Principles of ''li'', ''ren'', and ''yi''

The principle of ''ren'' is related to the concepts of ''li'' and ''yi''. ''Li'' is often translated as "

ritual A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized ...

" while ''yi'' is often translated as " righteousness". These three interrelated terms deal with the agency as Confucians conceive it. ''Li'' is the action that has been deemed appropriate by society, ''yi'' is the action that is indeed correct, while ''ren'' deals with the relationship between the agent and object of the action. Often ''li'' and ''yi'' are the same; however, that is not always the case. ''Li'' is the outward expression of Confucian ideals, while ''ren'' is both the inward and outward expressions of those same ideals. According to Hopfe and Woodward: "Basically, ''li'' seems to mean 'the course of life as it is intended to go'. ''Li'' also has religious and social connotations. When a society lives by ''li'', it moves smoothly: men and women respect their elders and superiors; the proper rituals and ceremonies are performed; everything and everyone is in its proper place."

Nature of ''ren''

Traditional views

''Ren'' relies heavily on the relationships between two people, but at the same time encompasses much more than that. It represents an inner development towards an altruistic goal, while simultaneously realizing that one is never alone, and that everyone has these relationships to fall back on, being a member of a family, the state, and the world. ''Ren'' is not a concept that is learned; it is innate, that is to say, everyone is born with the sense of ''ren''. Confucius believed that the key to long-lasting integrity was to constantly think, since the world is continually changing at a rapid pace. There have been a variety of definitions for the term ''ren''. ''Ren'' has been translated as "benevolence", "perfect virtue", "goodness" or even "human-heartedness". When asked, Confucius defined it by the ordinary Chinese word for love, ''ai'', saying that it meant to "love others".(Dubs 1) ''Ren'' also has a political dimension. Confucianism says that if the ruler lacks ''ren'', it will be difficult for his subjects to behave humanely. ''Ren'' is the basis of Confucian political theory; the ruler is exhorted to refrain from acting inhumanely towards his subjects. An inhumane ruler runs the risk of losing the

Mandate of Heaven The Mandate of Heaven () is a Chinese political philosophy that was used in ancient and imperial China to legitimize the rule of the King or Emperor of China. According to this doctrine, heaven (天, '' Tian'') – which embodies the nat ...

or, in other words, the right to rule. A ruler lacking such a mandate need not be obeyed, but a ruler who reigns humanely and takes care of the people is to be obeyed, for the benevolence of his dominion shows that he has been mandated by heaven. Confucius himself had little to say on the active will of the people, though he believed the ruler should definitely pay attention to the wants and needs of the people and take good care of them. Mencius, however, did state that the people's opinion on certain weighty matters should be polled. ''Ren'' also includes traits that are a part of being righteous, such as: ''xìn'' (), meaning to make one's words complement one's actions; '' lǐ'' (), which means to properly participate in everyday rituals; ''jìng'' (), meaning seriousness; and ''yì'' (), which means righteousness. When all these qualities are present, then one can truly be identified as a '' junzi'' (), or "superior man," which means a morally superior human being. Confucians basically held the view that government should be run by ''junzi'' who concentrate solely on the welfare of the people they govern.

Hypotheses regarding the origin of ''ren'' and the role of Confucius

Gang Xu analyzes various remarks on ''ren'' by Confucius, examines the earliest Chinese characters ''ren'' from archaeological discoveries in the past decades, and reviews the literature that has been rediscovered by scholars in the field. He concludes that ''ren'' originally denotes a practice of human sacrifice and martyrdom where a man of respectable social standing sacrificed himself to defend the societal expectations or code of honor, often in a time of social crisis, to honor the heaven and the earth. Confucius transformed the notion ''ren'' to "empathy" and rejected insignificant sacrifice in civil services and politics. He used the concept as the pillar of his value system and built a set of standard that is defined, in today's terms, as professionalism.

References

Sources

* Chi-Yun, Chang. ''A Life of Confucius''. Hwakang Press, Taipei 171. * Do-Dinh, Pierre. ''Confucius and Chinese Humanism''. Funk & Wagnalls, New York. 1969. * Dubs H, Homer. "The Development of Altruism in Confucianism" Apr. 1951: 48-55 JSTOR Oxford University. * Hopfe M, Lewis and Woodward R. Mark. ''Religions of the World''. Pearson Education Inc: Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, 07458. * Kong Qiu, lu. "Lun Yu", 5th century.

External links

Confucius, Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, § 6
* Yen Ooi, ''Ren. The Ancient Chinese Art of Finding Peace and Fulfilment'' (Welbeck Books) ISBN 9781787398221 Yen Ooi {{Authority control Virtue Altruism Confucian ethics