What are the Five Confucian Values?
Interpretation
The Five Virtues or Five Constant Virtues (五常 / wǔ cháng) in Confucianism are:
- Ren (仁) – Humaneness, benevolence, altruism
- Yi (義) – Righteousness, morality, justice
- Li (禮) – Propriety, etiquette, rites
- Zhi (智) – Knowledge, wisdom
- Xin (信) – Integrity, truthfulness, sincerity
These five virtues formed the core ethical principles in Confucian thought and were considered the essential qualities that every cultivated individual should possess and strive to uphold. They defined the moral dispositions and conduct expected of a junzi (君子), the ideal ethical person in Confucianism.
The Five Virtues were accompanied by other key Confucian values like filial piety (xiao 孝), loyalty (zhong 忠), and harmony.
Together, these principles shaped social order, ethics, and self-cultivation in traditional Chinese culture under the influence of Confucianism.