In many ethical systems, the right path is the one that does not stray far from the middle. Aristotle preached that virtue was striking a balance between the vices of excess and of defect. A similar concept was presented by Plato, who was influenced by Pythagorean (570 -495 BC) ideas.
The concept of balance is also an important aspect of Confucianism since the philosophy of Yin Yang appeared about the same time as Confucius (551 – 479 BC), who wrote of a harmonious life that avoids excesses and deficiencies where wisdom was learned from both the old and the young, the high and the low.
Since Lao Tzu (the founder of Taoism and the concept of Yin and Yang) and Confucius lived about the same time, they may have met and shared thoughts.
The Doctrine of the Mean was a basis for civil service examinations in China from 1312 to 1905.
The concept of Yin and Yang applies to many aspects of life. In Taoism heaven is masculine and earth is feminine suggesting the dependence of the entire creation upon the Creator.
A whole series of possible interactions between the Yin and Yang in life is contained in the Chinese Book of Changes, the i Ching.
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Lloyd Lofthouse is the award-winning author of My Splendid Concubine [3rd edition]. When you love a Chinese woman, you marry her family and culture too. This is the lusty love story Sir Robert Hart did not want the world to discover.
Finalist in Fiction & Literature – Historical Fiction
The National “Best Books 2010” Awards
Honorable Mentions in General Fiction
2012 San Francisco Book Festival
2012 New York Book Festival
2012 London Book Festival
2009 Los Angeles Book Festival
2009 Hollywood Book Festival
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