The following is a paper I wrote as a priestcraft training exercise. I was asked to choose and compare several different codes of ethics, and while I was once trained in writing sober academic papers about dull research topics, I’ve largely forgotten how to do it, so this is rather opinionated. It is rather long for a blog post, but I’m posting the paper anyway for your entertainment and also to provide a jumping-off point for future posts about ethics in the Northern Tradition, which will ultimately (I hope) lead to the formation of a monastic Rule for myself and others who care to adopt it. If readers wish to discuss the things I said in this paper, please feel free to comment.
Codes of Ethics: A Comparison
Introduction
In this paper, five codes of conduct and ethics, drawn from five separate traditions, will be examined, compared and contrasted. All but one come from religious traditions that were founded within the last fifty years, although the roots of some of these traditions may in fact be older.
The codes of ethics which were chosen for examination are, in chronological order: the Seven Virtues of bushido (13th century), the Wiccan Rede (mid 1900s), the Nine Satanic Statements of the LaVeyan Church of Satan (1969), the Nine Noble Virtues of modern Asatru (1970s), and the Twelve Principles of Clarity from the First Kingdom Church of Asphodel (early 2000s). Four separate points of emphasis have been identified within these various codes of ethical behavior, in an effort to judge their differences and similarities with something like an unbiased standard, although that may in fact be impossible due to the author’s prejudices against certain of these faiths. Nevertheless, these points of emphasis have been useful criteria with which to compare and contrast these different codes of ethics.
Values, Goals, Behavior and Justification
The first point of emphasis, shared by all of these ethical codes, is that of values, which is here defined as “what the group holds most important.” Regardless of whether these various codes of ethics were developed slowly over time or were the inspiration of a single person, in every case the values expressed or implied by the code of ethics are clearly meant for acceptance of and adherence to by the group as a whole and as individuals – else they would not have been made publicly available.
The second point of emphasis is on goals – defined as “the ideals the individual strives to manifest.” Goals differ from values in that the emphasis is on trying to attain a personal modicum of adherence, rather than merely stating what the community feels is most important in terms of social mores. All but one of the codes of ethics described in this paper emphasize goals, with the exception having a different point of emphasis (see below).
The third point of emphasis is behavior, here defined as “how the individual is to act.” Although two of the ethical codes examined herein do not specifically state how the values are to be expressed or how the goals ought to be sought (the Seven Virtues and Nine Noble Virtues), the remaining three contain clearly stated models of action and avoidance which adherents to the faith are advised to follow.
The fourth point of emphasis, found in two of the ethical codes studied here, is justification, defined as “why the individual’s behavior is ethical.” This differs from the others in that it is retroactive, meaning that as the code of ethics in question is written, the commonly held values of the group are also being used as a standard by which to judge (presumably) past behavior rather than as encouragement for present or future deeds. This makes said ethical codes (the Nine Satanic Statements and less obviously, the Wiccan Rede) rather different in tone and possibly intent from the others examined herein.
Examining the Five Codes of Ethics
I. SEVEN VIRTUES (BUSHIDO):
(from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bushido#Seven_virtues)
Rectitude
Courage
Benevolence
Respect
Honesty
Honor
Loyalty
This code of ethical behavior was developed in feudal Japan hundreds of years ago. Unlike the Nine Noble Virtues of Asatru, which were essentially distilled from long-lost historical evidence, this code of ethics developed organically over time and was never actually written into law. Sometimes additional virtues are added to these, making a total of nine or ten, but the Seven Virtues are generally recognized as standard. Since the time of its widest influence, various versions and revisions of the bushido code have arisen, but these are not germane to the discussion.
The Seven Virtues clearly emphasize values; these concepts are what the warrior class of that culture and era esteemed most highly amongst its members. They also emphasize goals, in that each virtue is something to which every samurai warrior should aspire to guide his personal behavior. Note that how one is to strive for courage, for instance, or honesty, is not specified, thus behavior is not really emphasized directly here – it seems to be assumed that those who follow the Seven Virtues can judge for themselves how well they have met the standards. It’s also implied that there is no standard, and that these Virtues are forever unattainable, existing only as ideals to be emulated but never really attained.
One assumes that the awareness of both feudal and family obligations and social customs of the time would provide the guidelines for a follower of the Seven Virtues to mold his behavior accordingly. Outside of the context of the culture and era in which this ethical code was formed, however, one can have only a partial idea of what was meant by the Seven Virtues as a standard of samurai behavior. What constitutes “loyalty,” for instance? What is “respect”? Were the standards of behavior implied by this ethical code stricter or looser than modern Westerners can easily imagine? This brings up a further and more interesting question, applicable to any code of ethics: how meaningful is an ethical code when it is removed from its context of culture, tradition, society and historical background? The answer to that question is complex and may likewise be not very germane to this discussion, but is worth thinking about as the other ethical codes are examined.
To return to the subject at hand, it would seem that the Seven Virtues of the bushido code were meant to force their adherents to think about their behavior carefully beforehand, rather than justify it afterwards. Mindfulness is part and parcel of adherence to all but the most crude and draconian codes of ethics and is certainly a part of the spiritual tradition that gave rise to the Seven Virtues. No doubt those who followed them were aware that the values expressed herein were ideals to be sought rather than concrete goals to be obtained. One suspects that philosophical arguments about the nature of true bushido might have occupied much of the warrior’s time, if had they any to spare from fighting.
II. WICCAN REDE (WICCA):
(from http://www.wicca.com/celtic/wicca/rede.htm)
These Eight words the Rede fulfill:
“An Ye Harm None, Do What Ye Will”
The Wiccan Rede here given is part of a much, much longer guide to worship originally conceived by Gerald Gardner and Doreen Valiente in the mid-1950s as part of a new pagan faith called Wicca, based on Indo-European mythology, folkloric custom and ceremonial magic. The Rede is similar to the Thelemic injunction to “do as thou wilt shall be the whole of the law, love is the law, love under will” and may have been derived from this. It is in fact one of the few things that the many, often eclectic versions of Wicca have in common with more traditional varieties, and although sometimes combined with the so-called “Law of Three,” the Rede itself as an ethical code is pretty much limited to the eight words given above.
The Rede’s emphasis on values is implied rather than stated; “harm none” implies peaceful, nonviolent behavior requiring some forethought, while “do what ye will” points to a valuation of personal freedom. In short, do whatever you want so long as it doesn’t hurt anybody else. However, this seemingly simple statement is full of philosophical pitfalls. Exactly how is one to define “harm”? Does “harm none” include nonhumans as well as other humans? Does it include the self as well as others? Is it even possible to live without harming another being? Does “do what ye will” mean that laws set in place by other institutions are to be disregarded? The values expressed by the Rede are, whatever other conundrums they may bring up, obviously meant to be taken side by side, and it is apparently left to the individual to decide for him/herself how far to take them.
On the surface, the Wiccan Rede is a model for behavior, with the specifics left to the discretion of the adherent. There are no guidelines beyond “harm none” and no further explanations, as pointed out in the preceding paragraph. Like the Seven Virtues, the Rede requires a certain amount of mindfulness; however, this author feels that it also puts the adherent in danger of a “slippery slope” mentality where “harm” can potentially be more easily dismissed in favor of “do what ye will.” While the implication of the Seven Virtues is that the opposite of each virtue (cowardice, lack of respect, etc.) are unworthy goals to aspire to, the Wiccan Rede seems on closer examination to emphasize justification as much as the Nine Satanic Statements (examined below), if less openly. It is, after all, far easier to explain away “harm” than it is to admit that you acted or are going to act unworthily.
The Wiccan Rede is perhaps the most philosophically unsatisfying of the various ethical codes examined here, in the author’s opinion. True, it does in a way set a far higher standard than any of the others in that it forces the adherent to define for him/herself what constitutes “harm” (which is far more difficult to define than something like “loyalty”) and to consider every possibly permutation of harm which may arise, for anybody, anywhere, before taking any action. While mindfulness of this sort is an admirable thing to cultivate, ultimately one cannot live and avoid inflicting harm on anybody else. In its attempt to present a way to live without inducing pain, inconvenience or trouble on any other living thing, the Wiccan Rede instead provides its adherents with a good deal of pain, inconvenience and trouble in just getting through a single ordinary day while being faithful to their own ethics.
III. NINE SATANIC STATEMENTS (CHURCH OF SATAN):
(from The Satanic Bible by Anton Szandor LaVey)
1. Satan represents indulgence, instead of abstinence!
2. Satan represents vital existence, instead of spiritual pipe dreams!
3. Satan represents undefiled wisdom, instead of hypocritical self-deceit!
4. Satan represents kindness to those who deserve it, instead of love wasted on ingrates!
5. Satan represents vengeance, instead of turning the other cheek!
6. Satan represents responsibility to the responsible, instead of concern for psychic vampires!
7. Satan represents man as just another animals, sometimes better, more often worse than those that walk on all-fours, who, because of his “divine spiritual and intellectual development,” has become the most vicious animal of all!
8. Satan represents all of the so-called sins, as they all lead to physical, mental, or emotional gratification!
9. Satan has been the best friend the church has ever had, as he has kept it in business all these years!
The Nine Satanic Statements were the creation of Anton LaVey, founder of the Church of Satan and author of The Satanic Bible. This ethical code was neither formed over time by a culture or community, nor agreed upon by members of a group, and as such might seem a little out of place. However, it is the opinion of the author that the Nine Satanic Statements provide an interesting contrast and comparison to the other codes of ethics presented here.
Here, the values are mostly stated outright: self-indulgence, the attainment of wisdom, situational ethics, self-gratification. The ninth statement is less a statement of ethics than a polemic on Satanism’s founding and opposing tradition, and therefore can be disregarded for this discussion. Obviously, the adherents are being advised, however implicitly, to act in a manner coherent with these values of self-gratification, as well as occasionally being advised about actual behavior (“…vengeance, instead of turning the other cheek!”) While these statements are vague in some ways, they seem to form a more coherent world-view than that of the Wiccan Rede, which implies merely that causing harm is wrong.
On the other hand, the Satanic Statements seem to be mostly about justification rather than the striving for goals, as with the Seven Virtues. Statement 7 in particular, which calls humans “just another animal,” implies that any behavior, no matter how anti-social, is justifiable if self-gratification and situational ethics merit it. LaVey does further explain in his book that kindness “to those who deserve it” is something admirable, and provides further explanation of his rather excited manifesto; however, this also beggars the question raised above about how meaningful a code of ethics is when removed from its context – in this case, the book in which the Nine Satanic Statements first appeared.
However, the emphasis on justifying one’s primal urges is at least open to all but the most dense of adherents, and while the Wiccan Rede is meant to propel its followers towards mindfulness, it also runs the risk of providing a good excuse for anything so long as the notion of “harm” can be conveniently re-defined. The Satanic Statements are unabashedly about ego and the self, and make no attempts to disguise themselves as anything else. It would be hard to imagine running afoul of this code of ethics, because by its very nature it neither encourages the striving for of goals, nor does it represent the commonly held values of a group, being the inspiration of one person. However, given the essentially selfish, ego-gratifying nature of the Statements, it is also hard to imagine any adherents being part of a group for very long.
IV. NINE NOBLE VIRTUES (ASATRU):
(from http://www.sacred-texts.com/bos/bos653.htm)
Courage
Truth
Honor
Fidelity
Discipline
Hospitality
Industriousness
Self-Reliance
Perseverance
The Nine Noble Virtues were created by American Asatruar as a kind of distillation of the values they perceived to have been held most dearly by their heathen, pre-Conversion ancestors. They were not codified or recognized in their current form by those who lived in early Scandinavian or Germanic areas, a fact that is often ignored in modern Asatru. Nevertheless, these nine ideas represent a system of both values and goals, much the same as with the Seven Virtues of bushido. (In fact, it is tempting to accuse the Asatruar responsible for writing up the original Nine Noble Virtues as having sneakily drawn from the Seven Virtues, which would no doubt urge some of them into loud denials. But this is a digression…)
Much of what was said about the Seven Virtues applies here as well. These nine precepts are commonly described by Asatruar as values which the heathen community is supposed to hold dear (and by which it often judges the behavior of outsiders, consciously or not). These are also often described as goals to which an Asatru adherent should aspire to exemplify in his or her personal behavior. As the bushido code was written for a warrior class, so the Nine Noble Virtues appeal greatly to those within Asatru who seek to reconnect with the glories of going a-viking and berserking. The difference here is that the Nine Noble Virtues are meant for everyone, not just male warriors – men, women, children, nobles, ordinary folk and (though it is not often stated) priests and clergyfolk.
As with the Seven Virtues, the Nine Noble Virtues are open to a certain amount of interpretation, and also, it is implied that their antitheses (deceptiveness, laziness, inhospitality, etc.) are to be studiously avoided. However, the reasons for this are slightly different than that of the Seven Virtues – this is another place where context becomes important. Whereas the Seven Virtues were meant as a model of samurai behavior, which was intended to bring glory to the individual and reaffirm one’s worth as a warlord and ties to one’s own lord and Emperor, the Nine Noble Virtues are meant as much for the good of the community as for the individual’s own personal benefit. Indeed, modern Asatru writings on the subject often emphasize that the Nine Noble Virtues are essential to the smooth workings of heathen society. Community as a whole is the emphasis here, rather than honor among warriors.
V. TWELVE PRINCIPLES OF CLARITY (FIRST KINGDOM CHURCH OF ASPHODEL):
(from http://cauldronfarm.com/asphodel/clerk/charteroffaith.html)
We recognize the Twelve Principles of Clarity as a structure for spiritual discipline.
1. I will maintain purity of body.
2. I will maintain simplicity in my possessions.
3. I will strive for clarity of words.
4. I will strive to live sustainably on the Earth.
5. I will place no commitment of the heart above my commitment to my spiritual path.
6. I will commit only to honorable work.
7. I will maintain clarity in all relationships.
8. I will strive for purity in my sexuality.
9. I will sustain clarity of faith.
10. I will submit humbly to honorable authority.
11. I will maintain loyalty to the endurance of my community.
12. I will strive always for mindfulness and clarity of soul.
Asphodel is a small Pagan kingdom rather than a widespread religious movement or an social class; therefore, it falls somewhere between the Seven Virtues of an entire warrior class and the Satanic Statements created by one person. The Twelve Principles were written and ratified by a council of folk within this small community, and are hereby presented in its Charter of Belief as both goals to strive for and a model of behavior. They too have implied values, predominantly purity, clarity and community.
Here, rather than holding up a single umbrella term for various community values, the emphasis is on re-phrasing these values to apply to the individual. Whereas the Seven Virtues and Nine Noble Virtues are vaguer, the Principles of Clarity seem to be along the same lines as the Satanic Statements in that they provide a more or less clear guideline for behavior, one that more specifically addresses various areas of human life such as sexuality, spiritual belief, submission to authority and prioritizing relationships, compared to the Satanic Statements which refer everything back to “whatever gratifies one’s ego the most.” It is therefore both more complicated and yet better defined than some of the codes examined here, albeit with less room for interpretation on some points.
The goal here seems to be self-understanding, judging from the phrasing of many of the principles, and the emphasis on clarity. Whereas the Seven Virtues and Nine Noble Virtues are mostly about ideals which may never be truly attainable at all times, some of the Twelve Principles are fairly easy to follow – submitting humbly to honorable authority merely requires that one judge the authority honorable, and one behave in such a way that emphasizes humility, which is admittedly less of a philosophical and theological pitfall than just having “perseverance” as a value, for example. On the other hand, some of the Principles are just as vague as any of the other values expressed elsewhere: what, exactly, constitutes “clarity of soul”? On the whole, however, the Twelve Principles seem to strike a healthy balance between dictation of community standards and allowing the individual to set his or her own personal standards, and to judge whether or not s/he has met the goals set by the values implied herein.
Conclusions
Allowing for the biases of the author, this paper was begun with the intent of comparing several codes of ethics along some clearly defined standards: what values are expressed, what goals are encouraged, what behavior is proscribed and what justifications are given for said behaviors. Each ethical code had at least two of these points of emphasis. However, not all codes of ethics are created equally. Personally, the author found the Wiccan Rede far too vague, with an unfortunate propensity to be used as mere justification for unethical behavior, due to the extremely loose philosophical definition of “harm.” The Satanic Statements might work as a guide for personal behavior were the adherent intent on not having any real friends or community, and on pissing off all his/her relatives, as while they are openly self-justifying, they are also inherently antisocial. Therefore, neither of these two codes of ethics provides a satisfying model for creating one’s own ethical code.
Of the remaining three, the Twelve Principles of Clarity can only partially be described as a real “code of ethics;” ethical behavior is more loosely defined there, and the emphasis seems to be on spiritual growth more than community ethics, although those that are emphasized are firmly stated. The Seven Virtues and Nine Noble Virtues, while not allowing for much concrete direction, provide room for personal interpretation without being too vague (stealing from guests is clearly a breach of the NNV, for instance, while “courage” may be interpreted to include the conquering of personal trauma as well as an actual act of physical bravery). They also allow for the continual improvement of both individual and community values and behavior by being things which are striven for rather than absolutes which are met at some time or another.
In the formulation of a personal code of ethics, the author feels inclined to settle on some key values, which would also be understood to be goals, similar to those given in the bushido and Asatru traditions. This approach seems to strike a good balance between the interminable vagueness of the Wiccan Rede and the specific Principles of Clarity. This approach also leaves room for further expansion while still providing a sound framework for a code of ethical behavior.
