ABSTRACT
Harmony has been a profound theme in Chinese thought since earliest times, profound in ontological, ethical and religious senses. Issues of harmony and dis-harmony affect nearly every philosophic discussion in East Asia. 1 Harmony has not had that kind of importance in the West however. For Aristotle and his massively influential tradition, harmony has had a subsidiary position relative to his more central structural approach to value. For Plato however harmony is as central as it has been in Chinese thought, although most commentators on Plato have been Aristotelians who have missed that point. 2
