“For where you find unrest, grief, fear, frustrated desire, failed aversion, jealousy, and envy, happiness has no room for admittance. And where values are false, these passions inevitably follow.” – Epictetus
“The kernel of all jealousy is lack of love.” – Jung
Excellence is the most significant of all the virtues, it is that side of the divide in humanity most to do with reality. It begins with the recognition of all that is excellent and then proceeds in its application. People who achieve this ability to recognise but then proceed no further in developing application, which is to say imitation, are called psychics in Christian esoteric traditions, as opposed to hylics who do not recognise excellence at all. Psychics are capable of doing good so long as the rules are spelled out precisely and they are devoted to them. The proceeding seven virtues in Structured Virtues Theory represent fulfilment in the promise inherent of excellence recognition (Roe 2023b). These other virtues constitute the path through which pneumatics achieve completed excellence: patience, conservation, prudence, ethics, justice, courage, and willpower.
FOUNDATIONS
The foundations of excellence are in recognition, which is derived out of a mastery of the honesty aspect of Reason. A person experiencing this may have no other word for it but envy, however it is simple honest analysis and propriety. So the person will wish to describe this as jealousy or envy. However, it distinguishes itself from envy with love. There is a deep affection for excellence which reveals those who have mastered honesty.
A LOVING ‘ENVY’
‘Envy’ admitted freely and without malice indicates that it is not envy, but couched in the love of excellence. This is the identifier of the excellence virtue. The preceding virtues of magnanimity, honour, temperance, and loyalty are in the moments of honesty. This makes excellence the first virtue to touch upon a complete Reason, the extent of honesty being most essential to it. This ‘virtuous envy,’ or recognition of excellence, speaks volumes about the person experiencing it. It signifies the alignment of desires with the self and reality. What begins as recognition, proceeds to a grateful embodiment through that love of excellence (Roe 2023a).
OBSESSIONS AND DESIRE
Obsession has a lot to do with desire in material things or moving pleasures. It is a block against loyalty. This renders a person prone to hubris and real envy. The pathway to dependence is through the passing distractions that cannot fulfil a person. Neither can a desire that drives distraction away from excellence ever be fulfilled. Where temperance is the alleviation of these desires, loyalty and honour point clearly toward the ideal ends. Spiritual desires for improvement and progress cannot be evil.
CONSTANT PROGRESS
Progress is only possible through the honesty aspect of Reason, because this leads to truth which allows the operations of Reason. Excellence demands excellence and begets it all the more still. Recognition of excellence cannot be denied once installed firmly because it is the catalyst of that singular path toward willpower, the highest bloom of Reason. Nothing can oppose a person who fully recognises excellence from achieving it. Where people stumble most is in the recognition, because then the other virtues necessarily fall short. Excellence is absolutely unattainable without the recognition through complete honesty, and it is eternally short of completion because it must always set the mark higher still. This is an eternal and ceaseless desire for improvement.
“This ‘virtuous envy,’ or recognition of excellence, speaks volumes about the person experiencing it. It signifies the alignment of desires with the self and reality. What begins as recognition, proceeds to a grateful embodiment through that love of excellence”
“Excellence demands the sacrifice of everything for truth. For the excellent person, this comes mostly in the form of opposition to lies, and the expulsions of lies are seen as opportunities for more improvement.”
TRUTH
Since it is impossible without honesty, it makes sense that excellence shines most in its unabashed demonstration of truth, despite any opposition and despite all hatred for the truth. The evillest people in the World will always despise the truth and therefore excellence, because it rejects their material delusions. Excellence, like the pervading light of the Sun, shines into everything to reveal truth. Excellence recognises itself most through improvement over the self and spiritual selection, which can only be done through the ‘harshest’ of truths. But the truth is only harsh to those who are outside of it. For those inside truth, recognising excellence, it is nourishment. Patience, conservation, and prudence can come easily to a person at peace in the excellence of truth through honesty.
OPPOSITION
In fact, excellence is recognisable for its tendency to move into opposition and against the prevailing materialist movements. Excellence demands the sacrifice of everything for truth. For the excellent person, this comes mostly in the form of opposition to lies, and the expulsions of lies are seen as opportunities for more improvement. A person who has achieved excellence cannot agree with what is claimed simply for material benefits, as many do without realising it. Excellence cannot allow for sacrifice to nothing, because it must discourage all but sacrifice to progress, improvement itself, which attends truth.
SUMMARY
Excellence, then, is pivotal in the development of virtues as the initial stepping forward into analytical Reason from intellectual honesty. There is no proper analysis of self relative to others without developed honesty. This appropriate judgement of self is necessary for excellence, whatever form that takes within the logic of culture and legacy.
REFERENCES
Roe, M. A. (2023a). Gratitude Embodied. 24K Journal of Virtues Science. Series 1 Issue 2. Gratitude Embodied – How to Live Reasonably and Without Addiction
Roe, M. A. (2023b). Structural Virtues Theory – Resurrexit Spiritus part 5. 24K Journal of Virtues Science. Series 1 Issue 0. Resurrexit Spiritus: Spiritual Phenomenology, Evolution of Spirit, First Other Theory of Fatherhood Attachment, and Structural Virtues System
Truth, Excellence, & Judgement
- Truth only harsh to those outside of it.
- Truth is nourishment.
- Excellence places truth first.
- Progress through intellectual honesty.
- Judgement of self is necessary.