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64-573: Every language has a word expressing good in the sense of "having the right or desirable quality" ( ἀρετή ) and bad in the sense "undesirable". A sense of moral judgment and a distinction "right and wrong, good and bad" are cultural universals . Although the history of the origin of the use of the concept and meaning of "good" are diverse, the notable discussions of Plato and Aristotle on this subject have been of significant historical effect. The first references that are seen in Plato's The Republic to

128-586: A moral philosophy that incorporated this new usage, it was in the Nicomachean Ethics of Aristotle that the doctrine of arete found its fullest flowering. Aristotle's Doctrine of the Mean is a paradigm example of his thinking. Aristotle deliberated on the various goals of education: including practical skills, arete , and theory. Educating towards arete means boys would be educated towards things that are useful in life. However, there

192-579: A broad spectrum. The Mishnah lists concentric circles of holiness surrounding the Temple in Jerusalem : Holy of Holies , Temple Sanctuary, Temple Vestibule, Court of Priests, Court of Israelites, Court of Women, Temple Mount , the walled city of Jerusalem , all the walled cities of Israel, and the borders of the Land of Israel . Distinctions are made as to who and what are permitted in each area. Likewise,

256-635: A connotation of oneness and transparency like in the Jewish marriage example, where husband and wife are seen as one in keeping with Genesis 2:24. Kodesh is also commonly translated as 'holiness' and 'sacredness'. The Torah describes the Aaronite priests and the Levites as being selected by God to perform the Temple services; they, as well, are called "holy." Holiness is not a single state, but contains

320-533: A person or thing's "full realization of potential or inherent function." The term may also refer to excellence in " moral virtue ." The concept was also occasionally personified as a minor goddess, Arete (not to be confused with the mythological Queen Arete ), who, together with sister Homonoia , formed the Praxidikai ("Exacters of Justice"). In its earliest appearance in Greek , this notion of excellence

384-402: A religious concept, basic ideas of a dichotomy between good and evil has developed in western cultures so that today: In cultures with Buddhist spiritual influence, this antagonistic duality itself must be overcome through achieving Śūnyatā , or emptiness. This is the recognition of good and evil not being unrelated, but two parts of a greater whole; unity, oneness, a Monism . Morality

448-645: A term, is mostly misinterpreted as the idea of sanctification in Islam and it is used to pray about saints , especially among Sufis, in whom it is common to say "that God sanctifies his secret" ("qaddasa Llahou Sirruhu"), and that the Saint is alive or dead. Images of the Buddha and bodhisattvas are ceremonially consecrated in a broad range of Buddhist rituals that vary depending on the Buddhist traditions. Buddhābhiseka

512-647: A wide variety of interpretations on sacredness. The Anglican , Catholic , Lutheran , and Methodist Churches, believe in Holy Sacraments that the clergy perform, such as Holy Communion and Holy Baptism , as well as strong belief in the Holy Catholic Church , Holy Scripture , Holy Trinity , and the Holy Covenant . They also believe that angels and saints are called to holiness . In Methodist Wesleyan theology holiness has acquired

576-545: Is "the cause of sight itself". As the sun is in the visible realm, the form of Good is in the intelligible realm. It is "what gives truth to the things known and the power to know to the knower". It is not only the "cause of knowledge and truth, it is also an object of knowledge". Plato identifies how the form of the Good allows for the cognizance to understand such difficult concepts as justice. He identifies knowledge and truth as important, but through Socrates (508d–e) says, "good

640-588: Is a Pali and Sanskrit term referring to these consecration rituals. Mormonism is replete with consecration doctrine, primarily Christ's title of "The Anointed One" signifying his official, authorized and unique role as the savior of mankind from sin and death, and secondarily each individual's opportunity and ultimate responsibility to accept Jesus' will for their life and consecrate themselves to living thereby wholeheartedly. Book of Mormon examples include "sanctification cometh because of their yielding their hearts unto God" (Heleman 3:35) and "come unto Christ, who

704-623: Is a phenomenon found in several religions, especially religions which have eco-friendly belief as core of their religion. For example, the Indian-origin religions ( Buddhism , Hinduism , Jainism , and Sikism ) revere and preserve the groves , trees , mountains and rivers as sacred. Among the most sacred rivers in Hinduism are the Ganges , Yamuna , Sarasvati rivers on which the rigvedic rivers flourished. The vedas and Gita ,

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768-444: Is based on the Jewish concept of God, whose holiness is pure goodness and is transmissible by sanctifying people and things. In Islam , sanctification is termed as tazkiah , other similarly used words to the term are Islah -i qalb (reform of the heart), Ihsan (beautification), taharat (purification), Ikhlas (purity), qalb -is- salim (pure/safe/undamaged heart). Tasawuf (Sufism), basically an ideology rather than

832-499: Is better understood as 'sacred' or 'sanctuary' in the context of places considered sacred in Islam. For example: The Hebrew word kodesh ( קֹדֶשׁ ) is used in the Torah to mean 'set-apartness' and 'distinct' like is found in the Jewish marriage ceremony where it is stated by the husband to his prospective wife, "You are made holy to me according to the law of Moses and Israel." ( את מקדשת לי כדת משה וישראל ). In Hebrew, holiness has

896-430: Is called virtue . Sacred Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity ; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a " sacred artifact " that is venerated and blessed ), or places (" sacred ground "). French sociologist Émile Durkheim considered

960-538: Is communicated to things, places, times, and persons engaged in His Service. Thus, Thomas Aquinas defines holiness as that virtue by which a man's mind applies itself and all its acts to God; he ranks it among the infused moral virtues , and identifies it with the virtue of religion. However, whereas religion is the virtue whereby one offers God due service in the things which pertain to the Divine service, holiness

1024-419: Is considered among the gravest of sins. The various sacrifices are holy. Those that may be eaten have very specific rules concerning who may eat which of their parts, and time limits on when the consumption must be completed. Most sacrifices contain a part to be consumed by the priests—a portion of the holy to be consumed by God's holy devotees. The encounter with the holy is seen as eminently desirable, and at

1088-457: Is generally held when a new Jain temple is erected or new idols are installed in temples. The consecration must be supervised by a religious authority, an Acharya or a Bhattaraka or a scholar authorized by them. Hierology ( Greek : ιερος, hieros , 'sacred or 'holy', + -logy ) is the study of sacred literature or lore . The concept and the term were developed in 2002 by Russian art-historian and byzantinist Alexei Lidov . Analysing

1152-651: Is generally used in relation to people and relationships, whereas sacredness is used in relation to objects, places, or happenings. For example, a saint may be considered as holy but not necessarily sacred. Nonetheless, some things can be both holy and sacred, such as the Holy Bible . Although sacred and holy denote something or someone set apart to the worship of God and therefore, worthy of respect and sometimes veneration, holy (the stronger word) implies an inherent or essential character. Holiness originates in God and

1216-515: Is no agreement about what constitutes arete , which leads to disagreement about how to train students for arete . To say that arete has a common definition of excellence or fulfillment may be an overstatement simply because it was very difficult to pinpoint arete , much less the proper ways to go about obtaining it. In Homer 's Iliad and Odyssey , arete mainly describes heroes and nobles and their mobile dexterity, with special reference to strength and courage , though it

1280-510: Is not limited to this. For instance, the excellence of the gods generally included their power, but, in the Odyssey (13.42), Odysseus asked the gods to grant the Phaeacians arete , which here is generally translated as prosperity. Penelope 's arete , as another example, relates to co-operation , for which she is praised by Agamemnon . Though associated with "manly" qualities,

1344-419: Is regarded by some biologists (notably Edward O. Wilson , Jeremy Griffith , David Sloan Wilson , and Frans de Waal ) as an important question to be addressed by the field of biology. Arete (moral virtue) Arete ( Ancient Greek : ἀρετή , romanized :  aretḗ ) is a concept in ancient Greek thought that, in its most basic sense, refers to "excellence" of any kind —especially

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1408-515: Is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption, ... and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved" (Omni 1:26). In most South Indian Hindu temples around the world, Kumbhabhishekam , or the temple's consecration ceremony, is done once every 12 years. It

1472-409: Is the form of the Good. This form is the basis for understanding all other forms, it is what allows us to understand everything else. Through the conversation between Socrates and Glaucon (508a–c) Plato analogizes the form of the Good with the sun as it is what allows us to see things. Here, Plato describes how the sun allows for sight. But he makes a very important distinction, "sun is not sight", but it

1536-475: Is the highest human ability and happiness. The ancient Greeks applied the term arete ( ἀρετή ) to anything: for example, the excellence of a chimney, the excellence of a bull for breeding, and the excellence of a man. The meaning of the word changes depending on what it describes since everything has its own excellence; the arete of a man is different from the arete of a horse. This way of thinking originates from Plato , where it can be seen in

1600-544: Is the virtue by which one makes all one's acts subservient to God. Thus, holiness or sanctity is the outcome of sanctification , that Divine act by which God freely justifies a person and by which He has claimed them for His own. The English word holy dates back to the Proto-Germanic word hailagaz from around 500 BCE , an adjective derived from hailaz ('whole'), which was used to mean 'uninjured, sound, healthy, entire, complete'. In non-specialist contexts,

1664-502: Is usually done to purify the temple after a renovation or simply done to renew the purity of the temple. Hindus celebrate this event on the consecration date as the witnessing gives a good soul a thousand "punya", or good karma . Panch Kalyanaka Pratishtha Mahotsava is a traditional Jain ceremony that consecrates one or more Jain Tirthankara icons with celebration of Panch Kalyanaka (five auspicious events). The ceremony

1728-513: Is yet more prized". He then proceeds to explain that "although the good is not being" it is "superior to it in rank and power", it is what "provides for knowledge and truth" (508e). In contrast to Plato, Aristotle discusses the Forms of Good in critical terms several times in both of his major surviving ethical works, the Eudemian and Nicomachean Ethics . Aristotle argues that Plato's Form of

1792-656: The Allegory of the Cave . In particular, the aristocratic class was presumed, essentially by definition, to be exemplary of arete : The root of the word is the same as aristos , the word which shows superlative ability and superiority, and aristos was constantly used in the plural to denote the nobility . By the 5th and 4th centuries  BCE , arete as applied to men had developed to include quieter virtues, such as dikaiosyne ( justice ) and sophrosyne ( self-restraint ). Though Plato tried to produce

1856-463: The Form of the Good are within the conversation between Glaucon and Socrates (454c–d). When trying to answer such difficult questions pertaining to the definition of justice , Plato identifies that we should not "introduce every form of difference and sameness in nature" instead we must focus on "the one form of sameness and difference that was relevant to the particular ways of life themselves”, which

1920-587: The Jewish holidays and the Shabbat are considered to be holy in time; the Torah calls them "holy [days of] gathering." Work is not allowed on those days, and rabbinic tradition lists 39 categories of activity that are specifically prohibited. Beyond the intrinsically holy, objects can become sacred through consecration . Any personal possession may be dedicated to the Temple of God, after which its misappropriation

1984-706: The Latin Sanctus (to set apart for special use or purpose, make holy or sacred) and consecrat (dedicated, devoted, and sacred). The verb form 'to hallow' is archaic in English, and does not appear other than in the quoted text in the Lord's Prayer in the New Testament. The noun form hallow , as used in Hallowtide , is a synonym of the word saint . In the various branches of Christianity

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2048-403: The dialectic of the sacred, Mircea Eliade outlines that religion should not be interpreted only as "belief in deities", but as "experience of the sacred." The sacred is presented in relation to the profane; the relation between the sacred and the profane is not of opposition, but of complementarity, as the profane is viewed as a hierophany . French sociologist Émile Durkheim considered

2112-400: The dichotomy between the sacred and the profane to be the central characteristic of religion : "religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things , that is to say, things set apart and forbidden." In Durkheim's theory, the sacred represented the interests of the group, especially unity, which were embodied in sacred group symbols, or totems . The profane, on

2176-432: The dichotomy between the sacred and the profane to be the central characteristic of religion : "religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things , that is to say, things set apart and forbidden." In Durkheim's theory, the sacred represents the interests of the group, especially unity, which are embodied in sacred group symbols, or using team work to help get out of trouble. The profane, on

2240-621: The pantheon of early Iranian deities into two opposing forces : Ahura Mazda ( Illuminating Wisdom ) and Angra Mainyu ( Destructive Spirit ) that were in conflict. For the western world, this idea developed into a religion that spawned many sects , some of which embraced an extreme dualistic belief that the material world should be shunned and the spiritual world should be embraced. Gnostic ideas influenced many ancient religions, which teach that gnosis (variously interpreted as enlightenment , salvation , liberation , or "oneness with God") may be reached by practising philanthropy to

2304-519: The British Isles during the mid-19th century. Commonly recognized outward expressions or "standards" of holiness among more fundamental adherents frequently include applications relative to dress, hair, and appearance: e.g., short hair on men, uncut hair on women, and prohibitions against shorts, pants on women, make-up and jewelry. Other common injunctions are against places of worldly amusement, mixed swimming, smoking, minced oaths , as well as

2368-455: The Good does not apply to the physical world, for Plato does not assign "goodness" to anything in the existing world. Because Plato's Form of the Good does not explain events in the physical world, humans have no reason to believe that the Form of the Good exists and the Form of the Good thereby, is irrelevant to human ethics. Plato and Aristotle were not the first contributors in ancient Greece to

2432-518: The Homeric usage of the term was not necessarily gender-specific, as Homer applied the term to both the Greek and Trojan heroes as well as major female figures, such as Penelope , the wife of Greek hero Odysseus . In the Homeric poems , arete is frequently associated with bravery, but more often with effectiveness. In some contexts, arete is explicitly linked with human knowledge, where

2496-451: The Homeric usage of the term was not necessarily gender-specific, as Homer applied the term to major female figures as well as the Greek and Trojan heroes. The Odyssey states that "far-sounding Zeus takes away half the arete of a man, when the day of slavery takes hold of him." In the Iliad , the way Homer describes Achilles is an example of arete . Arete is associated with

2560-463: The basic concept of Good and Evil until it came to have several, sometimes complex definitions such as: A significant enlightenment context for studying the "good" has been its significance in the study of " the good, the true, and the beautiful " as found in Immanuel Kant and other Enlightenment philosophers and religious thinkers. These discussions were undertaken by Kant, particularly in

2624-454: The context of his Critique of Practical Reason . John Rawls 's book A Theory of Justice prioritized social arrangements and goods, based on their contribution to justice . Rawls defined justice as fairness , especially in distributing social goods, defined fairness in terms of procedures, and attempted to prove that just institutions and lives are good, if every rational individual's goods are considered fairly. Rawls's crucial invention

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2688-538: The crossroads ", it concerns the early life of the hero Heracles . At a crossroads, Arete appeared to Heracles as a young maiden and offered him glory and a life of struggle against evil; her counterpart Kakia ( κακία , 'badness') offered him wealth and pleasure. Heracles chose to follow the path of Arete. This story was later used by Christian writers, such as Methodius of Olympus , Justin Martyr , Clement of Alexandria , and Basil of Caesarea . Arete

2752-416: The daughter of Praxidike (goddess of justice). Arete and Homonoia were known jointly as the Praxidikai ("Exacters of Justice"). As with many minor Greek deities, there is little or no real mythical background to Arete, who is used at most as a personification of virtue . The only surviving story involving Arete was told in the 5th century  BCE by the sophist Prodicus . Known as " Hercules at

2816-501: The designation of ariya-puggala ('noble person'). Buddha described the Four stages of awakening of a person depending on their level of purity. This purity is measured by which of the ten samyojana ('fetters') and klesha have been purified and integrated from the mindstream . These persons are called (in order of increasing sanctity) Sotāpanna , Sakadagami , Anāgāmi , and Arahant . The range of denominations provide

2880-639: The details differ. Sanctification in Christianity usually refers to a person becoming holy, while consecration in Christianity may include setting apart a person, building , or object, for God. Among some Christian denominations there is a complementary service of " deconsecration ", to remove something consecrated of its sacred character in preparation for either demolition or sale for secular use. In rabbinic Judaism sanctification means sanctifying God's name by works of mercy and martyrdom , while desecration of God's name means committing sin . This

2944-542: The emergence of monotheistic thought (notably in Euthyphro , which ponders the concept of piety ( τὸ ὅσιον ) as a moral absolute). The idea is further developed in Late Antiquity by Neoplatonists , Gnostics , and Church Fathers . Aside from ancient Greek studies of the "good", more than twenty-five hundred years ago in the eastern part of ancient Persia a religious philosopher called Zoroaster simplified

3008-714: The eschewing of television and radio. Among the names of God in the Quran is Al-Quddus ( القدوس ): found in Q59:23 and 62:1 , the closest English translation is 'holy' or 'sacred'. (It shares the same triliteral Semitic root , Q-D-Š , as the Hebrew kodesh .) Another use of the same root is found in the Arabic name for Jerusalem: al-Quds , 'the Holy'. The word ħarām ( حرام ), often translated as 'prohibited' or 'forbidden',

3072-411: The expressions " virtue is knowledge " and " arete is knowledge" are used interchangeably. In this sense, the highest human potential is knowledge, and all other human abilities derive from this central capacity. If arete is knowledge, the highest human knowledge is knowledge about knowledge itself . In this light, the theoretical study of human knowledge, which Aristotle called "contemplation",

3136-484: The goodness and prowess of a warrior. Debra Hawhee points out that the norms and practices of Athenian virtuosity "operate within the politics of reputation, whose normative poles are honor and shame." Dying in battle or securing a victory in the Olympic Games were considered agathos ("good") and, hence, deserving of timê ("honor"). So, not only is Achilles a brave and brilliant warrior but also, from

3200-464: The mind and soul would be exercised by other means. Arete is a significant part of the paideia of ancient Greeks: the training of the boy to manhood. This training in arete included physical training , for which the Greeks developed the gymnasion ; mental training, which included oratory , rhetoric , and basic sciences ; and spiritual training, which included music and what

3264-632: The most sacred of hindu texts were written on the banks of Sarasvati river which were codified during the Kuru kingdom in present-day Haryana . Among other secondary sacred rivers of Hinduism are Narmada and many more. Among the sacred mountains, the most sacred among those are Mount Kailash (in Tibet), Nanda Devi , Char Dham mountains and Amarnath mountain, Gangotri mountain. Yamunotri mountain, Sarasvotri mountain (origin of Sarasvati River ), Dhosi Hill , etc. In Theravada Buddhism one finds

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3328-543: The other hand, involve mundane individual concerns. The word sacred descends from the Latin sacer , referring to that which is ' consecrated , dedicated' or 'purified' to the gods or anything in their power, as well as to sacerdotes . Latin sacer is itself from Proto-Indo-European *seh₂k- "sacred, ceremony, ritual". Although the terms sacred and holy are similar in meaning, and they are sometimes used interchangeably, they carry subtle differences. Holiness

3392-440: The other hand, involved mundane individual concerns. Durkheim explicitly stated that the dichotomy sacred/profane was not equivalent to good/evil . The sacred could be good or evil , and the profane could be either as well. In ancient Roman religion , the concept of sacrosanctity ( Latin : sacrosanctitas ) was extremely important in attempting to protect the tribunes of the plebs from personal harm. The tribunician power

3456-522: The outset, he is destined to die in battle at Troy with the utmost glory—a guarantor of arete . According to Bernard Knox 's notes in the Robert Fagles ' translation of The Odyssey , " arete " is also associated with araomai , the Greek word for "pray". Arete was occasionally personified as a goddess, the sister of Homonoia (goddess of concord, unanimity, and oneness of mind), and

3520-449: The point of personal poverty, sexual abstinence (as far as possible for hearers and totally for initiates ), and diligently searching for wisdom by helping others. This development from the relative or habitual to the absolute is evident in the terms ethics and morality as well, both being derived from terms for "regional custom", Greek ἦθος and Latin mores , respectively (see also siðr ). Medieval Christian philosophy

3584-416: The removal of corpses to graveyards and similarly profane work, the city gates were left exempted from the rite. Indian-origin religion , namely Hinduism and its offshoots Buddhism , Jainism and Sikhism , have concept of revering and conserving ecology and environment by treating various objects as sacred, such as rivers, trees, forests or groves, mountains, etc. Sacred rivers and their reverence

3648-652: The secondary meaning of the reshaping of a person through entire sanctification . The Holiness movement began within the United States Methodist church among those who thought the church had lost the zeal and emphasis on personal holiness of Wesley's day. Around the middle of the 20th century, the Conservative Holiness Movement , a conservative offshoot of the Holiness movement, was born. The Higher Life movement appeared in

3712-414: The study of the "good" and discussion preceding them can be found among the pre-Socratic philosophers. In Western civilisation, the basic meanings of κακός and ἀγαθός are "bad, cowardly" and "good, brave, capable", and their absolute sense emerges only around 400 BC, with Pre-Socratic philosophy , in particular Democritus . Morality in this absolute sense solidifies in the dialogues of Plato , together with

3776-572: The term holy refers to someone or something that is associated with a divine power , such as water used for baptism . The concept of things being made or associated with the sacred is widespread among religions , making people, places, and objects revered, set apart for special use or purpose, or transferred to the sacred sphere. Words for this include hallow , sanctify , and consecrate , which can be contrasted with desecration and deconsecration . These terms are used in various ways by different groups. Sanctification and consecration come from

3840-438: Was also used by Plato in his discussion of athletic training and the education of young boys. It was commonly believed that the mind, body, and soul each had to be developed for a man to live a life of arete . This led to the thought that athletics had to be present in order to obtain arete . Athletics did not need to occupy one's life, but could be used to exercise the body into the right condition for arete , just as

3904-419: Was bound up with the notion of the fulfillment of purpose or function: living up to one's potential. A person of arete is of the highest effectiveness; such a person uses all of their faculties— strength , bravery , and wit —to achieve real results. In the Homeric world, arete involves all of the abilities and potentialities available to humans. Though particularly associated with "manly" qualities,

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3968-525: Was founded on the work of Bishop Augustine of Hippo and theologian Thomas Aquinas , who understood evil in terms of Biblical infallibility and Biblical inerrancy , as well as the influences of Plato and Aristotle, in their appreciation of the concept of the Summum bonum . Silent contemplation was the route to appreciation of the Idea of the Good. Many medieval Christian theologians both broadened and narrowed

4032-463: Was later arrogated to the emperors in large part to provide them with the role's sacred protections. In addition to sanctifying temples and similar sanctuaries, the Romans also undertook the ritual of the sulcus primigenius when founding a new city—particularly formal colonies —in order to make the entire circuit of the town's wall ritually sacred as a further means of protection. In order to allow

4096-462: Was the original position , a procedure in which one tries to make objective moral decisions by refusing to let personal facts about oneself enter one's moral calculations. In religion, ethics, and philosophy, " good and evil " is a very common dichotomy . In cultures with Manichaean and Abrahamic religious influence, evil is usually perceived as the antagonistic opposite of good . Good is that which should prevail and evil should be defeated. As

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