Abrahamic and Abrahamic-inspired religions Christianity In the
New Testament, the word
righteousness, a translation of the Greek word , is used in the sense of 'being righteous before others' (e.g.
Matthew 5:20) or 'being righteous before God' (e.g.
Romans 1:17).
William Lane Craig argues that we should think of
God as the "paradigm, the locus, the source of all moral value and standards". In
Matthew's account of the
Baptism of Jesus, Jesus tells
John the Baptist, "It is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness," as Jesus requests that John perform the rite for him. The
Sermon on the Mount contains the commandment, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness". A secondary meaning of the Greek word is 'justice', which is used to render it in a few places by a few Bible translations, e.g. in
Matthew 6:33 in the
New English Bible.
Jesus asserts the importance of righteousness by saying in
Matthew 5:20, "For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven".
Paul the Apostle speaks of
two ways to achieve righteousness: through the
Law of Moses (or
Torah) and through
faith in the
atonement made possible through the death and
resurrection of Jesus Christ (). However, he repeatedly emphasizes that faith is the more effective way. For example, a few verses earlier, he states that the Jews did not attain the law of righteousness because they sought it not by faith, but by works. The New Testament speaks of a salvation founded on God's righteousness, as exemplified throughout the history of salvation narrated in the
Old Testament (). Paul writes to the Romans that righteousness comes by faith: "... a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: 'The righteous will live by faith'" (). speaks of the relationship between works of righteousness and faith, saying that "faith without works is dead". Righteous acts, according to James, include
works of charity () as well as avoiding
sins against the Law of Moses (). describes
Lot as a righteous man. Broadly, righteousness is defined as the state of being morally upright and in right standing with God according to divine standards. Rooted in the Hebrew concept of
tsedeq and the Greek
dikaiosynē, it signifies both the holy character of God and the ethical behavior expected of humanity within a conventional relationship. While the
Old Testament emphasizes righteousness through adherence to the
Mosaic Law,
New Testament theology—particularly in the
Pauline epistles—posits that human sinfulness makes perfect righteousness unattainable through personal effort alone. Consequently, mainstream
Christian doctrine teaches that righteousness is a gift of grace received through faith in
Jesus Christ. This is often distinguished between "imputed righteousness", where Christ’s merit is legally credited to the believer to achieve justification, and "imparted" or "infused" righteousness, where the Holy Spirit works within the individual to effect actual moral transformation during the process of sanctification.
Islam Righteousness is mentioned several times in the
Quran. The Quran says that a life of righteousness is the only way to go to Heaven.
Judaism Righteousness is one of the chief
attributes of God as portrayed in the
Hebrew Bible. Its chief meaning concerns
ethical conduct (for example, ; ; ; ). In the
Book of Job, the
title character is introduced as "a good and righteous man". The
Book of Wisdom calls on rulers of the world to embrace righteousness. It also concerns actively pursuing justice (Mishpat), and charity (
Tzedakah). The
Talmud mentions that there are in each generation thirty-six righteous people (called
Lamed Vav Tzadikim in Hebrew), whose existence sustains the world. This legend is mentioned by the Jewish historian and philosopher
Gershom Scholem as "widespread in Jewish folklore". After the
second World War genocide of 6 million Jews, the
Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum was tasked to identify and recognize the "
Righteous Among the Nations". They are non-Jews who took high risks to save Jews from extermination. The honorary title of "Righteous Among the Nations" is awarded since 1963 by a special commission in
Israel, headed by a justice of the
Supreme Court of Israel, after studying each case in depth and assessing if they fit the required criteria.
Mandaeism An early self-appellation for
Mandaeans is meaning 'elect of righteousness' or 'the chosen righteous', a term found in the
Book of Enoch and
Genesis Apocryphon II, 4. In addition to righteousness, also refers to
alms or
almsgiving.
East Asian religions Yi (Confucianism) , (), literally "
justice, or justness, righteousness or rightness, meaning", is an important concept in
Confucianism. It involves a moral disposition for the
good in life with the
sustainable intuition, purpose, and
sensibility to do good competently without expectation of reward. resonates with the orientation of Confucian philosophy towards the cultivation of
reverence or
benevolence () and skillful practice (). represents moral acumen that goes beyond simple rule-following. As it is based on
empathy, it involves a balanced understanding of a situation, and it incorporates the "creative insights" and grounding necessary to apply
virtues through deduction (
Yin and Yang) and reason "with no loss of purpose and direction for the total good of
fidelity. represents this ideal of totality and decisive ability to apply a virtue appropriately in a situation." In application, is a "complex principle" that includes: • skill in crafting actions which have moral fitness according to a given concrete situation • the wise recognition of such fitness • the intrinsic satisfaction that comes from that recognition.
Indian religions Although it is
difficult to find a single-word translation for in English, it can be translated as an uprising righteousness of karma, religion, faith, duty, law and virtue. Connotations of include rightness, good, natural, morality, righteousness, and virtue. In common parlance, means 'right way of living' and 'path of rightness'. It encompasses ideas such as duty, rights, character, vocation, religion, customs and all behaviour considered appropriate, correct or "morally upright". It is explained as a law of righteousness and equated to (truth): "...when a man speaks the Truth, they say, 'He speaks the Dharma'; and if he speaks Dharma, they say, 'He speaks the Truth!' For both are one" has been a central concept in India for many ages and can be traced back to the Vedic Eras, as early as 1500–1000 BCE. An ancient
Tamil moral text, the
Tirukkural, is solely based on , the Tamil term for . The
antonym of is generally referred to as . The importance of to Indian sentiments can be seen in the fact that the national flag of India includes the
Ashoka Chakra, a depiction of the ( the "wheel of dharma"), as the central motif on its flag.
Hinduism {{Verse translation|lang=sa-Latn|"Yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata Abhyutthanam adharmasya tadatmanam srjamy aham"|Whenever there is decay of righteousness, O Bharata, And there is exaltation of unrighteousness, then I Myself come forth|attr1=
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4: Text 7 This includes duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues, and "right way of living". The Sanskrit epics contain themes and examples where right prevails over wrong and good over evil. In an inscription attributed to the Indian Emperor Ashoka from , in Sanskrit, Aramaic, and Greek text, appears a Greek rendering for the Sanskrit word : the word . The
Ramayana is one of the two major Indian epics. It tells about life in India around and offers models in . The hero, Rama, lived his whole life by the rules of ; this is why he is considered heroic. When Rama was a young boy, he was the perfect son. Later, he was an ideal husband to his faithful wife, Sita, and a responsible ruler of Ayodhya. Each episode of Ramayana presents life situations and ethical questions in symbolic terms. The situation is debated by the characters, and finally, right prevails over wrong and good over evil. For this reason, in Hindu Epics, the good, morally upright, law-abiding king is referred to as . In
Mahabharata, another major Indian epic, is similarly central, and it is presented with symbolism and
metaphors. Near the end of the epic, the god
Yama, referred to as in the text, is portrayed as taking the form of a dog to test the compassion of
Yudhishthira, who is told he may not enter paradise with such an animal but who refuses to abandon his companion, for which decision he is then praised by . The appeal of Mahabharata, like Ramayana, is in its presentation of a series of moral problems and life situations, to which there are usually three answers given. According to
Daniel H. H. Ingalls Sr., one answer is of
Bhima, which is the answer of brute force, an individual angle representing materialism, egoism, and self; the second answer is of Yudhishthira, which is always an appeal to piety and gods, of social virtue and tradition; the third answer is of introspective
Arjuna, which falls between the two extremes and who, claims Ingalls, symbolically reveals the finest moral qualities of man. There is extensive discussion of at the individual level in the Epics of Hinduism, observes Ingalls; for example, on free will versus destiny, when and why human beings believe in either, ultimately concluding that the strong and prosperous naturally uphold free will, while those facing grief or frustration naturally lean towards destiny. The Epics of Hinduism illustrate various aspects of , they are a means of communicating with metaphors. In
Hinduism, signifies behaviours that are considered to be in accord with , the order that makes life and universe possible, and includes duties, rights, laws, conduct, virtues, and "right way of living". The concept of was already in use in the
historical Vedic religion, and its meaning and conceptual scope have evolved over several millennia.
Buddhism In Buddhism, means cosmic law and order but is also applied to the teachings of the Buddha. In
Buddhist philosophy, / is also the term for "
phenomena". Dharma refers not only to the sayings of the Buddha, but also to the later traditions of interpretation and addition that the various schools of Buddhism have developed to help explain and to expand upon the
Buddha's teachings.
Jainism Tattvārthasūtra, a
Jain philosophical text, mentions with the meaning of "righteous". These are forbearance, modesty, straightforwardness, purity, truthfulness, etc. Righteousness in Jainism is systematized through the doctrine of the
Ratnatraya , which collectively constitute the path to liberation. These are '
right faith (samyak darśana), right knowledge (samyak jñāna), and right conduct (samyak cāritra)'. The
Tattvārthasūtra states that liberation is attained through the combined practice of these three principles. Jain doctrine emphasizes that righteousness is incomplete if any one of these elements is absent, as ethical action without right knowledge or right faith is considered spiritually ineffective. Jainism does not personify righteousness; rather, through conduct, symbols and action. In
Jainism, righteousness is fundamentally associated with ethical discipline and spiritual purification aimed at liberating the
soul (jīva) from
karmic bondage. Jain philosophy holds that righteous living is essential to restrain the accumulation of karma and to eliminate existing karmic attachments, ultimately leading to
moksha.
Samyak cāritra, or right conduct, represents the practical dimension of righteousness in Jainism. It involves disciplined control of body, speech, and mind, along with the systematic reduction of passions such as anger, pride, deceit, and greed. In Jainism, righteousness is inseparable from the goal of liberation. Ethical discipline purifies the soul by weakening karmic attachments and gradually restoring its inherent nature of infinite knowledge, perception, and bliss. Right conduct is regarded as essential for preventing karmic influx (
āsrava) and facilitating the dissociation of accumulated karma (
nirjarā).
Sikhism For
Sikhs, the word (
Punjabi: , ) means the path of righteousness and proper religious practice.
Guru Granth Sahib in hymn 1353 connotes as duty. The
3HO movement in Western culture, which has incorporated certain Sikh beliefs, defines Sikh broadly as all that constitutes religion, moral duty, and way of life.
Persian religions Zoroastrianism In
Zoroastrianism,
asha is an important religious tenet with a complex and nuanced range of meaning. It is commonly summarized in accord with its contextual implications of 'truth' and 'right(eousness)', 'order' and 'right working'. From an early age, Zoroastrians are taught to pursue righteousness by following the Threefold Path of : , , (Good Thoughts, Good Words and Good Deeds). One of the most sacred mantras in the religion is the
Ashem Vohu, which has been translated as an "Ode to Righteousness". There are many translations that differ due to the complexity of
Avestan and the concepts involved (for other translations, see: Ashem Vohu). "Righteousness is the best good and it is happiness. Happiness is to her/him who is righteous, for the sake of the best righteousness". ==See also==