In Chinese philosophy, yi (simplified Chinese: 义; traditional Chinese: 義; pinyin: yì) refers to righteousness, justice, morality, and meaning.
| Yi | |||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 義 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 义 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Vietnamese name | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vietnamese | nghĩa | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chữ Hán | 義 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Korean name | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Hangul | 의 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Hanja | 義 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Japanese name | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kanji | 義 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Hiragana | ぎ | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Confucianism
In Confucianism, yi involves a moral disposition to do good, and also the intuition and sensibility to do so competently.[1][2] Yi represents moral acumen which goes beyond simple rule following, involving a balanced understanding of a situation, and the "creative insight" and decision-generating ability necessary to apply virtues properly and appropriately in a situation with no loss of sight of the total good.[2]
Yi resonates with Confucian philosophy's orientation towards the cultivation of benevolence (ren) and ritual propriety (li).
In application, yi is a "complex principle" which includes:[2]
- skill in crafting actions which have moral fitness according to a given concrete situation
- the wise recognition of such fitness
- the intrinsic satisfaction that comes from that recognition
Daoism
The Zhuangzi discusses the relationship between yi (righteousness) and de (virtue).[3]
See also
References
Bibliography
- Archie, Lee C. (30 October 2000). "The Main Concepts of Confucianism". philosophy.lander.edu. Lander University. Retrieved 2012-08-13.
- Cheng, Chung-ying (July 1972), "On yi as a universal principle of specific application in Confucian morality", Philosophy East and West, 22 (3): 269–280, doi:10.2307/1397676, JSTOR 1397676
- Watson, Burton (1968). The complete works of Chuang Tzu. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231031479.