A common goal of humanity is to find the answer to many philosophical questions involving the reasons humans are here and who or what else might be in the universe with us. In The Essential Mengzi, Mengzi attempts to decipher why humans are here and what basic human nature is – whether or not humans are good and how to expand upon any existing positive attributes. In The Book of Job, Job’s life is manipulated by G-d as a test of his loyalty. The nature of the divine is very clearly shown in this story. Put together, these novels create a very strong juxtaposition in which humanity comes across as being very insignificant in the universe. While some people believe that humans form the most important source of life in the universe, our part is
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It is the job of humanity to nurture the good that each person is born with in order to ensure the stability and the continuation of peace. In Mengzi’s teachings, he mentions the four “sprouts” that humans must nurture. The sprouts are benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, and propriety. These sprouts all stem from feelings of compassion, disdain, deference, approval and disapproval (Mengzi 21). All of these feelings make up the basic human nature that humans should strive to have. According to Mengzi, a person will turn out to be wholly good if these attributes are cared for. If a person comes across as evil or they do something immoral, then they have not nurtured the sprouts to the highest level. Humans are born with the ability to nurture these attributes and if they are truly developed, humans will be able to reach their full potential. The good nature of humans comes from proper development of their personalities and a healthy living environment. In addition to this philosophy, some people that follow religion more closely, believe that what makes someone a “good” person is putting faith and trust in their deities or religious idols. In The Book of Job, Job is described by Yahweh as “innocent, upright, and G-d-fearing, and keeping himself apart from evil” (Scheindlin 55). It is these good characteristics that make Job a prize of Yahweh as well as a target for the Accuser. …show more content…
As stated earlier, the divine have the ability to create, destroy, and rule over others. According to many religions, deities are all-knowing whereas the humans don’t even have the ability to comprehend everything that comes from the divine. Humans are naturally curious so they constantly attempt to understand what they cannot. In the case of Job, he questions G-d’s choices and ends up with a lecture on how small he really is. After some reflection, Job comes to a realization and states, “I see how little I am. I will not answer You. I am putting my hands to his lips” (Scheindlin 149). He realizes how insignificant he is when compared to one of the divine. Humans are not all-knowing, powerful, or immortal like deities are. The contrast between the divine and humanity is so large that humans come across as being similar to how we view ants – a very tiny, negligible part of the universe. Also, humans have no control over what happens in their lives since (according to some religious beliefs), their actions and the events of their lives come directly from a deity. In The Book of Job, Job’s life is completely changed due to the decisions of Yahweh. This diminishes the role of humans in the universe even further because our lives are not completely our own. Job was a faithful man to G-d and his life was tormented even still. Even if the divine in question is a king or a ruler, they still have
It is the job of humanity to nurture the good that each person is born with in order to ensure the stability and the continuation of peace. In Mengzi’s teachings, he mentions the four “sprouts” that humans must nurture. The sprouts are benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, and propriety. These sprouts all stem from feelings of compassion, disdain, deference, approval and disapproval (Mengzi 21). All of these feelings make up the basic human nature that humans should strive to have. According to Mengzi, a person will turn out to be wholly good if these attributes are cared for. If a person comes across as evil or they do something immoral, then they have not nurtured the sprouts to the highest level. Humans are born with the ability to nurture these attributes and if they are truly developed, humans will be able to reach their full potential. The good nature of humans comes from proper development of their personalities and a healthy living environment. In addition to this philosophy, some people that follow religion more closely, believe that what makes someone a “good” person is putting faith and trust in their deities or religious idols. In The Book of Job, Job is described by Yahweh as “innocent, upright, and G-d-fearing, and keeping himself apart from evil” (Scheindlin 55). It is these good characteristics that make Job a prize of Yahweh as well as a target for the Accuser. …show more content…
As stated earlier, the divine have the ability to create, destroy, and rule over others. According to many religions, deities are all-knowing whereas the humans don’t even have the ability to comprehend everything that comes from the divine. Humans are naturally curious so they constantly attempt to understand what they cannot. In the case of Job, he questions G-d’s choices and ends up with a lecture on how small he really is. After some reflection, Job comes to a realization and states, “I see how little I am. I will not answer You. I am putting my hands to his lips” (Scheindlin 149). He realizes how insignificant he is when compared to one of the divine. Humans are not all-knowing, powerful, or immortal like deities are. The contrast between the divine and humanity is so large that humans come across as being similar to how we view ants – a very tiny, negligible part of the universe. Also, humans have no control over what happens in their lives since (according to some religious beliefs), their actions and the events of their lives come directly from a deity. In The Book of Job, Job’s life is completely changed due to the decisions of Yahweh. This diminishes the role of humans in the universe even further because our lives are not completely our own. Job was a faithful man to G-d and his life was tormented even still. Even if the divine in question is a king or a ruler, they still have