Q0367
“What Heaven mandates is called nature; following nature is called the Way;…” — The Doctrine of the Mean (The Doctrine of the Mean)
Verified English quotation. Primary source: The Doctrine of the Mean. Theme: nature.
English
What Heaven mandates is called nature; following nature is called the Way; cultivating the Way is called teaching.
Source and attribution
The archive attributes this English wording to The Doctrine of the Mean and files it under Confucianism. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
About The Doctrine of the Mean
The Doctrine of the Mean appears in this archive through verified English quotations associated with the Confucianism tradition. Biographical certainty varies by figure and text; where the “author” is a scripture or school anthology, read the name as a traditional attribution rather than a modern individual biography.
How to read this passage
Nature may mean physical cosmos, living world, human nature, or a normative standard of what ought to be. Presocratics, Daoists, Stoics, and modern environmental thinkers share the word while disagreeing about its force. This passage enters that discussion through nature, learning.
Concepts in this quote
- Nature
- Philosophy quotes about nature ask what the cosmos is, how humans belong in it, and whether “natural” can guide ethics or politics.
- Learning
- Learning is philosophy’s practical twin: how judgment is formed through study, error, dialogue, and habit.
How to cite this quotation
APA: The Doctrine of the Mean. (n.d.). What Heaven mandates is called nature; following nature is called the Way; cultivating the Way is called teaching. In Philosophy Blind Box. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0367
MLA: The Doctrine of the Mean. “What Heaven mandates is called nature; following nature….” Philosophy Blind Box, https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0367.
Chicago: The Doctrine of the Mean. “What Heaven mandates is called nature; following nature….” Philosophy Blind Box. Accessed 2026. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0367.
Frequently asked questions
What is the source of the quotation “What Heaven mandates is called nature; following nature…”?
The passage is attributed to The Doctrine of the Mean, The Doctrine of the Mean. The archive attributes this English wording to The Doctrine of the Mean and files it under Confucianism. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
What does The Doctrine of the Mean mean by nature?
Nature may mean physical cosmos, living world, human nature, or a normative standard of what ought to be. Presocratics, Daoists, Stoics, and modern environmental thinkers share the word while disagreeing about its force. This passage enters that discussion through nature, learning.