benevolence, righteousness, and wisdom (Cua, 1977 , 1978 ) in oper-
ational and behavioral terms. It is the means by which relatively
more abstract virtues are translated into personal conduct. In the
most general sense, propriety is the way in which a virtuous person
conducts life, and is a comprehensive measure of culturedness. Looked
at this way, conduct propriety is not about conforming to external
rules imposed on individuals, but about acquiring a new character that
seeks to live a noble-minded life.
Self-cultivation: transformation of instinctive desires
As discussed earlier, Xunzi on one hand steadfastly argued for the
evilness of human instinctive desires and emotions, but on the other
believed in the human potential to be thoughtful, reflective, and
rational. This potential paves the way for the possibility of humans
to acquire pro-social, rational, and moral ways of thinking so as to
balance or counteract instinctive desires and emotions. To the extent
individuals engage in conscientious and continuous self-cultivation,
they become superior, qualifying them to be better humans and better
leaders. The key to acquiring good human nature is the process of
self-cultivation.
In general, noble-mindedness and sageness result from continuous
and conscientious mental and behavioral exertions, which involves
continuous learning, thinking, and performing goodness (Xunzi,
Book 8). ‘‘By accumulating earth you can create a mountain; by
accumulating water you can make a sea...A man in the street, one
of the hundred Clans, who accumulates goodness and achieves it
completely, is called a sage’’ (Xunzi, Book 8: 8.11). In Book 2 on
self-cultivation, Xunzi prescribes specific domains of self-cultivation
ranging from cultivating one’s thoughts, aspirations, and tempera-
ment, to keeping good physical health and good life habits, to
attending to the etiquette of postures and mannerisms. Furthermore,
Xunzi proposes major ways of self-cultivation in Books 2 and 23.
The first is to learn and follow the model of rituals and rules that
came down from past sage-kings that have been tried and proven
right. Second, one must learn from teachers, absorbing their know-
ledge and following their advice because they are in the best position
to know those ritual traditions and norms and are able to interpret
them in the light of new circumstances. ‘‘Having a teacher and the
Bridging Confucianism and Legalism 61