Expanding Ethical Horizons: Rethinking the Ethics of <i>De</i> 德 and <i>Guṇa</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> 老子 and <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i>

This paper aims to engage in an ethical discussion of <i>de</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> and <i>guṇa</i> in the <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i> to expand the horizon of our ethical understanding of Chinese and Indian philosophy. First, this paper will explore the diff...

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Main Author: Pritam Saha
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-01-01
Series:Religions
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/16/1/35
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author Pritam Saha
author_facet Pritam Saha
author_sort Pritam Saha
collection DOAJ
description This paper aims to engage in an ethical discussion of <i>de</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> and <i>guṇa</i> in the <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i> to expand the horizon of our ethical understanding of Chinese and Indian philosophy. First, this paper will explore the different ethical levels of <i>de</i> and <i>guṇa</i> and discuss how these levels operate and are bound together. From an ethical perspective, this paper points out that <i>de</i> and <i>guṇa</i> can each be divided into two parts—higher <i>de</i> and lower <i>de</i>, and higher <i>guṇa</i> and lower <i>guṇa</i>. It will further explain the ethical significance of <i>de</i> and <i>guṇa</i>, arguing that they offer a unique contribution to developing our contemporary understanding of ethics. We will also seek to discover the interplay of <i>de</i> and/with the <i>dao</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> and that among the three <i>guṇas</i> in the <i>Gītā</i> from the perspective of human behaviors. In the conclusion, we will provide a comparative discussion of our findings on the ethics of <i>de</i> and <i>guṇa</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> and the <i>Gītā</i>. These findings suggest that <i>de</i> and <i>guṇa</i> promote a shared philosophical outlook within their respective traditions and thereby make a contribution to post-comparative ethical approaches.
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spelling doaj-art-72ea77cddea6476096d5dfd6e4a60cf62025-01-24T13:47:22ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442025-01-011613510.3390/rel16010035Expanding Ethical Horizons: Rethinking the Ethics of <i>De</i> 德 and <i>Guṇa</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> 老子 and <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i>Pritam Saha0Department of Philosophy, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, ChinaThis paper aims to engage in an ethical discussion of <i>de</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> and <i>guṇa</i> in the <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i> to expand the horizon of our ethical understanding of Chinese and Indian philosophy. First, this paper will explore the different ethical levels of <i>de</i> and <i>guṇa</i> and discuss how these levels operate and are bound together. From an ethical perspective, this paper points out that <i>de</i> and <i>guṇa</i> can each be divided into two parts—higher <i>de</i> and lower <i>de</i>, and higher <i>guṇa</i> and lower <i>guṇa</i>. It will further explain the ethical significance of <i>de</i> and <i>guṇa</i>, arguing that they offer a unique contribution to developing our contemporary understanding of ethics. We will also seek to discover the interplay of <i>de</i> and/with the <i>dao</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> and that among the three <i>guṇas</i> in the <i>Gītā</i> from the perspective of human behaviors. In the conclusion, we will provide a comparative discussion of our findings on the ethics of <i>de</i> and <i>guṇa</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> and the <i>Gītā</i>. These findings suggest that <i>de</i> and <i>guṇa</i> promote a shared philosophical outlook within their respective traditions and thereby make a contribution to post-comparative ethical approaches.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/16/1/35the <i>Laozi</i>the <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i>post-comparative ethics<i>de</i><i>guṇa</i>
spellingShingle Pritam Saha
Expanding Ethical Horizons: Rethinking the Ethics of <i>De</i> 德 and <i>Guṇa</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> 老子 and <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i>
Religions
the <i>Laozi</i>
the <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i>
post-comparative ethics
<i>de</i>
<i>guṇa</i>
title Expanding Ethical Horizons: Rethinking the Ethics of <i>De</i> 德 and <i>Guṇa</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> 老子 and <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i>
title_full Expanding Ethical Horizons: Rethinking the Ethics of <i>De</i> 德 and <i>Guṇa</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> 老子 and <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i>
title_fullStr Expanding Ethical Horizons: Rethinking the Ethics of <i>De</i> 德 and <i>Guṇa</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> 老子 and <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i>
title_full_unstemmed Expanding Ethical Horizons: Rethinking the Ethics of <i>De</i> 德 and <i>Guṇa</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> 老子 and <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i>
title_short Expanding Ethical Horizons: Rethinking the Ethics of <i>De</i> 德 and <i>Guṇa</i> in the <i>Laozi</i> 老子 and <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i>
title_sort expanding ethical horizons rethinking the ethics of i de i 德 and i guna i in the i laozi i 老子 and i bhagavad gita i
topic the <i>Laozi</i>
the <i>Bhagavad-Gītā</i>
post-comparative ethics
<i>de</i>
<i>guṇa</i>
url https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/16/1/35
work_keys_str_mv AT pritamsaha expandingethicalhorizonsrethinkingtheethicsofideidéandigunaiintheilaoziilǎoziandibhagavadgitai