Virtue

When you come to think of it, the inclusion of Yi (義) as a virtue signify how Chinese differ from the western world.

You see? The virtues we learn from Confucius are being kind (仁), filial (孝), loyal (忠), credible (信), polite (禮), Yi (義), temperance (廉), and self-awareness (耻). Yes, loyal to our lord, filial to our parents, Yi to our close friends, credible to colleagues and business partners, polite to ordinary acquaintance, and kind to our juniors. Besides the very last two, our virtues concern exclusively on how we should treat other people.


In contrast, the four cardinal virtues put down by Plato are prudence, justice, courage, and temperance - all characters we demand and cultivate for ourselves.