In the Analects, virtue (*de*) appears as a kind of moral power that is at once inwardly cultivated and outwardly influential. It is not a static possession but a living force that shapes character and radiates into the surrounding social world. Confucius likens governing by virtue to the North Star, fixed in its place while the other stars revolve around it, suggesting that genuine virtue draws others without coercion. This moral influence is especially crucial for rulers and leaders, whose authority rests less on punishment and more on the quiet persuasiveness of ethical example. When those in high positions embody virtue, the people are said to become virtuous in response, as if attuned to a shared moral field.

At the heart of this moral power stand the central Confucian qualities that virtue gathers and harmonizes. *Ren* (humaneness or benevolence) provides the core orientation of concern for others, while *li* (ritual propriety) offers the concrete forms through which that concern is expressed in speech, gesture, and role-fulfillment. Alongside these, *yi* (righteousness), *zhi* (wisdom), and trustworthiness are integrated into a coherent moral disposition. Virtue, in this sense, is the comprehensive excellence of character that unites benevolent feeling, proper form, moral discernment, and reliability into a single, steady way of being.

Such virtue is not assumed to be innate or effortless; it is the fruit of sustained self-cultivation. Study, reflection, and disciplined observance of ritual are the means by which a person gradually aligns inner intention with outer conduct. The exemplary person, the *junzi*, is portrayed as one who constantly refines the self, placing concern for virtue above the pursuit of profit and measuring words against deeds. Through this ongoing practice, virtue becomes stable enough to guide action spontaneously, especially within the web of relationships that define human life.

Virtue thus reveals itself most clearly in concrete relationships and social responsibilities. It is seen when rulers rule as true rulers, ministers serve as true ministers, parents act as true parents, and children as true children, each role fulfilled with humaneness and propriety. In this relational setting, virtue seeks a balanced, harmonious mean rather than extremes, aiming at right action that sustains order and mutual respect. Where such virtue is present, governance becomes an extension of moral character, and social harmony arises not from fear of punishment but from a shared sense of what is right and fitting.