The Cardinal Virtues: Part One of a Multipart Series on Virtue
Virtue – or excellence – is the perfection of the nature of a thing: through virtue, every being arrives at its summit. The natural function of the virtues is to impose order onto chaos and to purify the superior of the inferior. Virtue herself is a Goddess – called Aretê in Greek and Virtus in Latin – and all of the virtues, in themselves, have their origins in the Gods.
The four cardinal virtues are Wisdom, Courage, Temperance, and Justice.
WISDOM is the perfection of the rational aspect of man. It is the power to discriminate accurately between the good and the bad. Wisdom is acquired when the soul acts alone, avoiding the confusions of embodiment.
COURAGE is the perfection of the willful aspect of man. It consists of an unwavering resistance to that which is inferior. It is the power to uphold the dictates of law and reason and to preserve through everything the correct belief about what is to be feared and what isn’t. The courageous person does not fear separation from the body.
TEMPERANCE is the perfection of the desiring aspect of man. It is the power to turn away from the inferior and to turn towards the better. The temperate person desires that which is good but does not desire that which is bad.
JUSTICE is the harmonization in man of his tripartite soul. It is in itself the activity which is proper to a being and truly belonging to it. The just person does precisely what he should do, only what he should do, only with what is his, and endeavors to maintain this proper apportionment in all his affairs and dealings.
