Implicit and Explicit Ethics in Mindfulness-Based Programs in a Broader Context

Abstract

In the contemporary debate over whether mindfulness-based programs need to incorporate explicit ethics or if there are already implicit ethics that obviate this obligation, rhetorical arguments present these two positions as polar extremes. What is generally missing from this discourse is awareness of how these two positions on human nature and ethical cultivation rehash historical debates with analogous positions within Buddhist contexts. I add a new comparison to the contemporary debates with historical Confucian debates on human nature and ethical cultivation that move beyond the two opposite views of innate human ethical goodness versus innate ethical blindness. I overview the positions of nine Chinese thinkers to show how the conversation on human nature and ethical cultivation can move beyond two positions along the axis of innate ethics and incorporate an axis of intellectual versus practical grasp of ethical cultivation. I argue that awareness of the broader historical debates concerning this issue can help illuminate contemporary positions. Finally, I suggest turning attention away from arguments about human nature and toward a more fruitful examination regarding if, and how, mindfulness-based programs may lead to ethical change.