Revelation, Rationality, Knowledge & Truth — Page 157
CONFUCIANISM philosophy, so much so that some consider him to be a prophet. Explaining a way of reaching eternal truth, he is reported to have said: 'Benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and knowledge are not infused into us from without. We are certainly furnished with them. And a different view is simply from want of reflection. Hence it is said, "Seek and you will find them. Neglect and you will lose them. ”³. Here, the external source being denied by Mencius is not revelation. Rather, he points out that our moral qualities, which are an essential element of our being, do not come to us from outside. Mencius expressed the view that sensory experience does not give us a new message by itself. In the mirror of sensory experience, the human mind can see the external images of its inner nature. Thus he does not deny the benefit of objectivity, what he denies is its independent potential in leading man to truth. All the same he admits that objective experience can be greatly helpful in guiding us to the innate fountainhead of eternal truth. . Mencius further expounded that nature, by which he means the entire cosmos, itself is not eternal but created for us by “Heaven” and “Heaven" is a sensible Creator. Explaining this, Mencius said: 'It is said in the 'Book of Poetry': "Heaven, in producing mankind,. Gave them their various faculties and relations with their specific laws. . These are the invariable rules of nature for all to hold,. And all love this admirable virtue. 4. The term "Heaven", as understood by Mencius is a. Conscious Being and it is interchangeable with our term of 157