Xun Zi: Human

Xun Zi was Ancient Chinese philosopher. Explore interesting quotes on human.

Xun Zi: 26 quotes2 likes

“Learning proceeds until death and only then does it stop. … Its purpose cannot be given up for even a moment. To pursue it is to be human, to give it up to be a beast.”

Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy (2001), p. 258
An Exhortation to Learning

“Human nature is evil, and goodness is caused by intentional activity.”

Quoted in: Fayek S. Hourani (2012) Daily Bread for Your Mind and Soul, p. 336.

“A questioner asks: If human nature is evil, then where do ritual and rightness come from? I reply: ritual and rightness are always created by the conscious activity of the sages.”

Sources of Chinese Tradition (1999), vol. 1, p. 180
Human nature is evil

“Human nature is evil; its goodness derives from conscious activity. Now it is human nature to be born with a fondness for profit. Indulging this leads to contention and strife, and the sense of modesty and yielding with which one was born disappears. One is born with feelings of envy and hate, and, by indulging these, one is led into banditry and theft, so that the sense of loyalty and good faith with which he was born disappears. One is born with the desires of the ears and eyes and with a fondness for beautiful sights and sounds, and, by indulging these, one is led to licentiousness and chaos, so that the sense of ritual, rightness, refinement, and principle with which one was born is lost. Hence, following human nature and indulging human emotions will inevitably lead to contention and strife, causing one to rebel against one’s proper duty, reduce principle to chaos, and revert to violence. Therefore one must be transformed by the example of a teacher and guided by the way of ritual and rightness before one will attain modesty and yielding, accord with refinement and ritual, and return to order.”

Sources of Chinese Tradition (1999), vol. 1, pp. 179-180
Human nature is evil