“And how is a person of integrity endowed with qualities of integrity? There is the case where a person of integrity is endowed with conviction, conscience, concern; he is learned, with aroused persistence, unmuddled mindfulness and good discernment. This is how a person of integrity is endowed with qualities of integrity.” — Cūḷa-puṇṇama Sutta (MN 110) We use a positive model of integrity. It provides powerful access to enhanced performance for individuals, groups, organizations, and societies. In our model, we discern (recognize) four phenomena dealing with right and wrong: • morality • ethics • legality • integrity

1. BEING INTEGRITY 3: DISCERNMENT
A New Model of Integrity
THE ESOTERICTEACHING

2. “And how is a person of integrity
endowed with qualities of integrity?
There is the case where a person of
integrity is endowed with conviction,
conscience, concern; he is learned, with
aroused persistence, unmuddled
mindfulness and good
discernment.This is how a person of
integrity is endowed with qualities of
integrity.”
— Cūḷa-puṇṇama Sutta (MN 110)
DISCERNING INTEGRITY

3. DISCERNING INTEGRITY
We use a positive model of integrity. It
provides powerful access to enhanced
performance for individuals, groups,
organizations, and societies.
In our model, we discern (recognize) four
phenomena dealing with right and wrong:
• morality
• ethics
• legality
• integrity

4. DISCERNING INTEGRITY
Philosophical discourse and common usage
misdefine and confuse morality, ethics, legality
and integrity.This causes people to
misunderstand the four phenomena, so it is
very difficult to apply them properly.Their
integrity declines as a result.
In our model, we discern, distinguish and
define morality, ethics and legality as
instances of normative values or
virtues (about good and bad, right and
wrong, or what should or should not be).

5. DEFINITION: NORMATIVEVIRTUE
nor•ma•tive adj. establishing, relating to, or
deriving from a standard or norm, especially
of behavior:“negative sanctions are used to
enforce normative behavior.”
Late 19th century: from French normatif,
from Latin norma ‘carpenter's square’
vir•tue n. behavior showing high moral
standards; a morally good or desirable
quality:“patience is a virtue”.
• a good or useful quality of a thing.

6. DISCERNING INTEGRITY
Integrity is discerned as an instance of
positive values, devoid of normative
content. Integrity is thus not about good or
bad, or right or wrong, or what should or
should not be.
Furthermore, the four phenomena are
distinguished as belonging to distinct
domains.Thus the definition of each term
becomes clear, unambiguous, and discrete.

7. DEFINITION: POSITIVE
po•si•tive adj. consisting in or characterized
by the presence or possession of features or
qualities rather than their absence; indicating
the presence of something; constructive in
intention or attitude; showing optimism and
confidence; showing pleasing progress, gain,
or improvement.
Philosophy: dealing only with matters of fact
and experience; not speculative or
theoretical. Compare with positivism.

8. DISCERNING INTEGRITY
NormativeValues PositiveValues
SocialVirtue Domain:
Morality
GroupVirtue Domain:
Ethics
LegalVirtue Domain:
Legality
Objective Domain:
Integrity
“The state or
condition of being
whole, complete,
unbroken, etc.—the
intention to eliminate
suffering without
dependence”

9. DEFINITION: MORALITY
mo•ra•li•ty n: principles concerning the
distinction between right and wrong, or
good and bad behavior.
• a particular system of values and principles
of conduct, esp. one held by a specified
person or society: a bourgeois morality.
• the extent to which an action is right or
wrong: behind all the arguments lies the issue
of the morality of the possession of nuclear
weapons.
From Old French moralite or late Latin
moralitas, from Latin moralis.

10. DEFINITION: ETHICS
e•thics n. moral principles that govern a
person’s or group’s behavior:“Judeo-
Christian ethics”; the moral correctness of
specified conduct:“the ethics of euthanasia.”
The branch of knowledge that deals with
moral principles.
Schools of ethics in Western philosophy can
be divided into three:

11. DEFINITION: ETHICS
• Aristotelian: virtues (such as justice,
charity, and generosity) are dispositions to
act in ways that benefit both the person
possessing them and that person's society.
• Kantian: makes the concept of duty
central to morality: humans are bound,
from a knowledge of their duty as rational
beings, to obey the categorical imperative
to respect other rational beings.
• Utilitarian: the guiding principle of
conduct should be the greatest happiness
or benefit of the greatest number.

12. DEFINITION: LEGALITY
Le•ga•li•ty n. The quality or state of being
in accordance with the law:“documentation
testifying to the legality of the arms sale.”
• obligation imposed by law.
Late Middle English: from French légalité or
medieval Latin legalitas ‘relating to the law,’
from Latin legalis.
le•gal adj. of, based on, or concerned with
the law:“the American legal system.”
• appointed or required by the law:“a legal
requirement.”

13. DEFINITION: INTEGRITY
in•teg•ri•ty n: The quality of being honest
and having strong moral principles; moral
uprightness:‘He is known to be a man of
integrity.’
The state of being whole and undivided:
‘upholding territorial integrity and national
sovereignty.’
The condition of being unified, unimpaired,
or sound in construction:‘the structural
integrity of the novel.’
Internal consistency or lack of corruption [as
in electronic data]:‘integrity checking’.

14. DEFINITION: DOMAIN
do•main n. an area of territory owned or
controlled by a ruler or government:“the
southwestern domains of the king.”
• a specified sphere of activity or knowledge:
“the expanding domain of psychology”
• figurative :“visual communication is the
domain of the graphic designer.”

15. DEFINITION: REALM
realm n. a kingdom:“the peers of the
realm”;“the defense of the realm.”
• a field or domain of activity or interest:
“the realm of applied chemistry.”
• Zoology: a primary biogeographical division
of the earth's surface.
Middle English rewme, from Old French
reaume, from Latin regimen ‘government’

16. DEFINITION: POSITIVISM
po•si•ti•vi•sm n.
A philosophical system that holds that every
rationally justifiable assertion can be
scientifically verified or is capable of logical
or mathematical proof, and that therefore
rejects metaphysics and theism. From French
positivisme; coined by philosopher Comte.
• a humanistic religious system founded on
this.
• another term for logical positivism.

17. DISCERNING INTEGRITY
NormativeValues PositiveValues
SocialVirtue Domain:
Morality
GroupVirtue Domain:
Ethics
LegalVirtue Domain:
Legality
Objective Domain:
Integrity
“The state or
condition of being
whole, complete,
unbroken, etc.—the
intention to eliminate
suffering without
dependence”

18. DEFINITION OF INTEGRITY
Here is a very interesting and powerful
functional definition of integrity:
Integrity is a state of being leading
to reducing or eliminating suffering
for self and others.
Thus, in this series we define Integrity as:
The objective, measurable state or
condition of being whole, complete,
unbroken, unimpaired, sound, in
perfect condition—born of
compassion: the intention to
eliminate suffering for self and
others without creating
dependence.

19. EXERCISE: DISCERNMENT
• Make sure you understand the
definitions of the terms as used in the
context of this video. How has
confusion among these terms
influenced your thinking and behavior
in the past? Has it affected your
behavior?
• How does disambiguation of the
definitions of integrity, morality, ethics
and legality help to apply them in
practice? Can you think of any specific
examples in your experience?