ABSTRACT
Miskawayh outlines in this chapter the importance of the concept of justice by describing it as the virtue of a balanced soul. In the observance of one’s duties toward God and other human beings, justice represents balance and a middle way, and, precisely for this reason, it is the epitome of all virtue. He sees the achievement of equilibrium as an imitation of unity – strictly speaking, of divine unity. Miskawayh describes people who succeed in realizing this state as always fair, equitable, and just in their dealings. They first demand this of themselves, then in their own dealings with others, and finally they demand that others also be treated fairly and justly. This understanding also assumes that the soul is unbalanced if it inclines too much in one direction or the other. Both exaggerated piety and unscrupulous hedonism are extremes to be avoided. Rather, it is important both to be open to this life and to reach out for something that transcends the individual’s limited existence in this world. Justice is therefore a disposition of the soul – not an act or a capacity, but a habitus developed through continuous just action.
