The Kang Gao (in the Book of Documents) says: “Be able to manifest your bright virtue.”
The Tai Jia says: “Constantly reflect upon and uphold Heaven’s bright mandate.”
The Di Dian (i.e., the Yao Dian) says: “Be able to illuminate your lofty and luminous virtue.”
All of these point to self-illumination – making one’s own inner virtue shine forth.
《康誥》曰：「克明德。」
《太甲》曰：「顧諟天之明命。」
《帝典》曰：「克明峻德。」
皆自明也。
Note
This passage cites three classical lines from the Book of Documents (Book of History) to elucidate the central idea introduced at the beginning of The Great Learning: “illuminating one’s bright virtue”. “Bright virtue” (“illustrious virtue”) refers to the innate, luminous moral nature inherent in every human being – a foundational concept in Confucian views of human nature. Phrases like “be able to manifest your bright virtue” and “illuminate your lofty and luminous virtue” do not imply acquiring virtue from outside, but rather consciously actualizing the moral potential already within. The line from Tai Jia – “constantly reflect upon Heaven’s bright mandate” – further connects personal virtue with the cosmic order, urging individuals to remain ever-mindful of their moral responsibility as entrusted by Heaven.
Zhu Xi, in his commentary on The Great Learning, emphasizes that all these statements mean “self-illumination”: true bright virtue is not sought externally, but awakened internally. This marks the Confucian path of “inward transcendence” – a moral cultivation grounded not in divine revelation or external authority, but in introspection, sincerity, and rectification of the mind, allowing one’s innate virtue to naturally unfold. This view affirms human moral agency and provides the ontological foundation for the subsequent Confucian project of self-cultivation, family regulation, state governance, and world pacification.
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