The ABCs: V is for (Radical) Virtue
Hint: It's an Inside Job
In many spiritual traditions, there is a practice in which a selected scriptural passage becomes the theme for the week. At Radical Spirituality, we do the same thing, but in a radical way.
Each Sunday, I offer The ABC’s of Radical Spirituality, a single, simple word distilled from the common principles of all the world’s faith and wisdom teachings that serves as the exploration for the week. They are the roots of Radical Spirituality. And because I am that person, the words are in alphabetical order. We start with A and go to Z.
It’s a simple practice to get to the roots of what matters on our spiritual path. The best part is that you will get out of it what you put into it. If you just keep the word on a sticky-note on your computer, it will still work it’s magic. But to dig deeper, delve in, dive in, and see what you find.
V is for (Radical) Virtue
The strength of a man's virtue should not be measured by his special exertions, but by his habitual acts. – Blaise Pascal
Virtue is a tricky word, as it seems to connote a kind of moralistic goody-two-shoes-ness, or a holier-than-Thou righteousness. These days, “virtue signaling” implies showing the world just how righteous one is according to certain ideals or ideologies. And yet, at its root, Virtue is much deeper, and much more important than performative “goodness.”
Virtue comes from the Latin root, vir, which means “man.” While over time, it became associated with virility and valor, honor on the battlefield and ultimately moral perfection, the radical understanding is “man” as “humanity.” Virtue is what makes us human.
That means that we must investigate the qualities and behaviors that make us most human. Of course, each spiritual tradition has it’s virtues, “codes of honor,” morals or ethics that make us “good” humans. Catholic ethics talk about Cardinal Virtues -prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance- and Theological Virtues, such as faith, hope, and charity. Jewish law refers to 613 mitzvot, or the various “good deeds” that prescribe how one relates to God and to others. Buddhists refer to the Ten Virtues of the Buddha, which include non-violence, charity and honesty. And for Daoists, Virtue, or De, is the inner nature of all things.
While there may be some doctrinal discrepancies about what constitutes Virtue, there is a common root: Our humanity is our ultimate Virtue. While we humans are capable of all kinds of horrific things, it is our capacity for compassion, generosity, and love that defines us as humans. And, if we see ourselves as Divine as well, then Virtue is both our innate human and divine capacity. We may not always behave as the best humans we can be, but we can strive to cultivate our humanity, our Divinity, our Virtue.
This week, we explore Virtue: What does it mean to be truly human? What attitudes, attributes and behaviors define our humanity/Divinity?
Deeper Roots
In some ways, Virtue is the penultimate ABC. Our humanity – our Virtue -- differentiates us from other species. While other animals might exhibit similar traits, we aren’t certain that they are aware of them in the same way we are. They don’t make a practice of getting better at being dolphins or dogs; we keep trying to be better humans. In fact, that’s one of the primary purposes of spirituality – to become better humans in a better world (The other is unity with Source/God/Ultimate Reality, which besides the transcendent possibility, also helps us become better humans).
In Philosophy, ethics and virtue are married. Aristotle saw Virtue as an aspect of one’s character: it reflected who you fundamentally are, and your ethical actions arose from that character. Other philosophers saw it as a series of actions done out of duty or utility: Virtuous actions were either considered the “right” thing because you had a duty to others, or because they produced the greatest good.
The Aristotelian model is actually closest to the Radical Spirituality one: if our fundamental nature is to be human – or a reflection/emanation of the Divine in human form -, then our Virtue derives from that innate character of humanity/Divinity. Depending upon how you define Divinity, that gives us a clue to the characteristics of Virtue.
In Judaism, the 613 mitzvot, or commandments, are laws or proscriptions to help us be in right relationship to God and thus, become better humans. They encompass everything from what we eat to how to care for our fields and orchards, from when we pray to how we care for the dead. While they may seem overly specific and sometimes random, they are action-centered guidelines for how to cultivate our capacity for humanity through our relationship to the sacred. Doing them is considered Virtue alone.
Virtue Ethics is a concept in Christianity that says that Christ is the ultimate example of Virtue, and we humans must emulate Christ in our actions (What would Jesus do?). Similar to Aristotle (not surprisingly, as Christianity borrowed many Greek ideas), Christianity seeks to cultivate an inner, or character-driven sense of Virtue, that appears as action in the world. Following Jesus’ divine example, humans are tasked to love, mercy, compassion, and charity.
The Eastern traditions are also character-driven in the sense that cultivating the capacity for Virtue is an inside job. In Daoism, De, or Virtue, is translated as Inner Power. The Daode Jing, the classic of Daoism, is a manual for cultivating Virtue, or the inner capacities that are in alignment with the Dao. The practices of meditation in Daoism, Buddhism and Hinduism are partly designed so that we build the inner power, or character, that can act with compassionate loving-kindness. While there are also precepts in all the Eastern traditions, such as not killing, not lying, not engaging in sexual impropriety, the real Virtue is the development of a character that wouldn’t do those things in the first place.
So, ultimately, the deepest root of Virtue is our innate human capacity to behave in ways that serve the greater good. Rather than dictated from the outside in the form of laws, precepts, ethics or ideologies, true Virtue arises from our humanity/Divinity. The more human we are, the more Virtue we have. The more Virtue we have, the more Divine we become. It’s an inside job.
Blessedness is not the reward of virtue but virtue itself. – Baruch Spinoza
Reflection Questions
What does Virtue mean to me?
Where or how do I experience Virtue in myself or others?
What prevents me from Virtue?
How can I cultivate Virtue?
Suggested Practice
Make a list of the qualities that you consider most human. For the week, pay attention to where you experience those qualities in yourself or others. How do you feel when you experience Virtue?
Friendship with a man is friendship with his virtue. - Mencius
Your reflection questions are extremely helpful