STATEMENT OF LEIBNIZ'S PHILOSOPHY 149 



universal benevolence, and benevolence is the habit of 

 loving 1 .' 



Thus the ethical progress of man is an approach to the 

 reality that is in God, a bringing forth of the image of 

 God which is hidden in the soul, through growing en- 

 lightenment, that is to say, through the appetition of the 

 soul passing forward to ever clearer and more distinct 

 perceptions. This feature of the philosophy of Leibniz 

 leads Windelband to describe his ethics as expressing 

 1 the philanthropic ideal of morality which was character- 

 istic of the AufTdarung period ' in Germany. i " Enlighten 

 thyself, and have a care for the enlightenment of thy fel- 

 lows : so shall you all be happy ; " that is the philosophy 

 professed by the whole eighteenth century in Germany 2 .' 



1 On the Notions of Right and Justice (1693), p. 283 (E. 118 a). Cf. 

 Nouveaux Essais, bk. ii. ch. 28, 5 (E. 286 b ; G. v. 232) : ' Ac- 

 cording to this notion' [externally imposed law], 'one and the 

 same action would be at the same time morally good or morally 

 bad, under different legislators, just as our able author' [Locke] 

 ' considered virtue as that which is praised, and accordingly one and 

 the same action would be virtuous or not, according to the different 

 opinions of men. Now, as that is not the meaning that is usually 

 given to morally good and virtuous actions, I should prefer for my 

 part to take as the measure of moral good and virtue the invariable 

 rule of reason, which it is the office of God to maintain. So we 

 may be assured that by His means, every moral good becomes also 

 a physical good, or as the ancients said, every honourable act is 

 useful ; in place of which, if we would express the view of our 

 author, we should have to say that moral good or evil is an imposed 

 or ordained [institutif^ good or evil, which he who has command of 

 power endeavours by rewards or penalties to make us do or shun. 

 The good thing is, that what proceeds from the general ordinance 

 of God is conformable to nature or to reason/ 



2 Windelband, Geschichte der neueren Philosophie, vol. i. p. 477. 

 Cf. Von der Gluckseligkeit (E. 673 a ; G. vii. 89) : ' If now a noble \hohe] 

 person attains to this, that in the midst of all luxury and honours 

 he yet finds his greatest enjoyment in the activities of his under- 

 standing and the practice of virtue, then I hold him doubly noble : 

 in himself, on account of this happiness and true joy of his ; and 

 for others, since it is most certain that this person, on account of 

 his power and insight, can and will also impart light and virtue 

 to many others, for such an imparting means a reflected light 

 upon the giver, and those who have the same common aim can 

 help one another and give new light in the investigation of truth, 

 the increase of human powers, and the promotion of that which 

 is best for all. Thus the exalted \hohe~] happiness of noble \hohe~] 



