Humans’ Innate Seeds of Goodness

Montaril, Liane Micah R.                                                                                                                                         4H4

Prelim Paper-Essay                                                                                                                                       TOUR 131

Humans’ Innate Seeds of Goodness

“Human nature is good, just as water seeks low ground. There is no man who is not good, just as there is no water that does not flow downward.” –Meng Zi

        The philosophy of a famous Chinese Philosopher named Meng Zi talks about human nature and political theory. In this reflection/essay, I’ll focus on human nature. According to Meng Zi, all human being has innate seeds of goodness, everyone is born with it. Whether that human is the most wicked person that had ever existed, his natural goodness lies on the depths of his heart. How can this philosophy still be evident nowadays? When evil has been invading the minds and hearts of the people which detract themselves from the true reason of their being? Meng Zi has reminded us that human nature is good but the influence of the society makes it evil. In the present, society has already many forms of evil, and it becomes graver as time passes by. The reason of satisfying their needs, wants or both makes human irrational, because the society has been instilling in their hearts and mind is that for them to survive in this world, they have to satisfy those necessities and luxuries well in fact they should not, because some things that are seen by our mere eyes are sometimes unreal or imaginative. Meng Zi is telling us that we should always master what is our reason, and that reason is always to show goodness or to be benevolent with people around us. “All have a heart-mind that feels for others.” Meng Zi says so. Compassion for people come naturally from people, even though the society that had been influencing us is evil.