Overview
- Virtue as an ideogram
- Dàodé：Dào births life, virtue fosters
- Following Dào
- The two main definitions of virtue: morality and power
- Our virtue
Virtue as an ideogram
Dé, 德, means “virtue; goodness; morality; ethics; kindness.” The ideogram pairs the glyph for walk, 彳, with the sign for virtue, 悳 (shows an eye judging straightness and the glyph for heart).
You can read this ideogram counterclockwise: walk with a heart that sees straight.
Dàodé：Dào births life, virtue fosters
The title, “Dàodéjīng” can be read as a single unit: dàodé, 道德. Dào is virtue. Virtue is Dào. We can think of this as one term: dàodé. While this wording may have been derived from the Dàodéjīng itself, it’s helpful to remember the unity of Dào and dé.
Chapter 51 of the Dàodéjīng begins: “Dào births life, virtue fosters it.” Dào and virtue are not separate. Both life and virtue are Dào.
The second line of the chapter continues: “Things take form and power completes them.” This shows that virtue is more than a moral quality. The word, shēng, 生, means both to give birth as well as life in general. “Births life” may be redundant but it expresses how life both originates from Dào and how it continually sustains all creatures throughout their lifespans.
The definition of virtue includes “a beneficial quality or power,” and “capacity to act; potency.” When we say, “by virtue of,” we acknowledge such power. The Dàodéjīng sees the ultimate virtue as fostering life, which is why human beings should also foster life. For followers of Dào, morality is rooted in the very goodness of the world itself. Kindness fosters life. Dàodé fosters life and so is kind.
It’s because of this that reverence exists: “That’s why every one of the myriad things reveres Dào and values virtue.” (Dàodéjīng, ch. 51) However, we human beings depart from this whenever we hold ourselves apart from virtue.
For most creatures, valuing life is inherent. But human beings often devalue life for selfish reasons. We may think “no one will notice,” or “my needs are more important.” Quite the opposite, every act matters and our needs are fulfilled by participating in our wider world. That’s why we’re urged to, “reduce desire,” (Dàodéjīng, ch. 19) and to “decrease, and decrease again until you reach nonaction.” (Dàodéjīng, ch. 48) We avoid the “doing”—in the form of unnecessary effort—that takes us away from Dào.
Following Dào
The Yìjīng, 易經 (I Ching, Book of Changes; antecedents date earlier than the eleventh century BCE) gives us this important line:
Harmonious following is virtue (dàodé, 道德) and reason is righteousness. —Yìjīng, “Shuōguà,” 1
Alternate translations expand on this wisdom. “Follow” can also mean “obey; submit.” “Reason” can also mean “texture; intrinsic order; logic; truth; manage.” Righteousness can also mean “justice; conduct.” A looser paraphrase might be: “Following harmoniously is virtuous and understanding the truth leads to right conduct.” The term, “follower of Dào,” resonates with this expression from the Yìjīng.
The word for “follower” is tú, 徒. It also means “disciple; apprentice; believer; follower; to go on foot.” The ideogram shows “walk,” 走, to follow another, 彳. As a reminder, the word dào, 道 combines the symbol for a head, 首, with walking, 辶. Some see the head as representing a leader, so logically, a follower walks behind them. On a more abstract level, Dào is the beginning of all, the “head” of all existence, and so it’s logical that we follow it.
The two main definitions of virtue: morality and power
Virtue has two important definitions in the Dàodéjīng. The first equates virtue to a moral quality. Actions that leave no negative outcomes (wúwéi) typify this definition.
Low virtue acts,
but leaves consequences.
High benevolence acts,
and leaves no consequences.
—Dàodéjīng, chapter 38
True morality arises when a person is aligned with Dào. “Great virtue appears only when following Dào.” (Dàodéjīng, ch. 21) That virtue is inherent and is revealed when the veil of selfishness is set aside.
The second major meaning shows that virtue is a nurturing power:
Dào births life, virtue fosters it.
Things take form and power completes them.
That’s why every myriad thing
reveres Dào and values virtue.
—Dàodéjīng, chapter 51
All this returns us to dàodé. Dào is everything, it is always moving, it is virtuous in that it births and fosters life without any conditions, and the proper response from human beings should be reverence, virtue, and integration with Dào in all ways.
Our virtue
We can complete our understanding by returning to the ideogram itself. Let’s focus on the cross, 十, at the top, that the eye, 目, sees.
- When we mark the center of a circle, we use a cross.
- When we make a right angle, we use a cross.
- When we talk about the intersection of two concerns, we use a cross.
If we want to walk our path with awareness, we can see the cross as a representation of a balance point. For instance, you could take one axis as heaven and earth, and the other as representing advance and retreat. If you can find the center of balance between both pairs you’ll be steady.
Understanding that Dào, virtue, life, and human conduct are all integrated. If you want a simple formula to follow Dào it is to always nurture life.