Do not respond to sincere apology with vindictiveness
When safety and justice permit, receive genuine repentance without clinging to revenge.
Skip to atlas contentM434 · Bodhisattva Ethics M028 · Life, Violence and Peace M311 · Refugee Protection and Asylum M005 · Truth, Speech and Knowledge M461 · Jewish Mitzvot and Applied Justice M041 · Property, Work and Economic Justice M446 · Soto Zen Precept Ethics M007 · Truth, Speech and Knowledge M206 · Medical and Research Ethics M433 · Bodhisattva Ethics M386 · Tolerance, Pluralism and Peace Education M144 · Community, Education and Spiritual Responsibility M116 · Family, Sexuality and Relationships M545 · Brahma Kumaris Spiritual Values M368 · Moral Character and Spiritual Qualities M255 · Labor Rights and Decent Work M257 · Labor Rights and Decent Work M449 · Soto Zen Precept Ethics M229 · Disability, Accessibility and Inclusion M306 · Ethics of Ageing and Older Persons M524 · Nichiren Buddhist Human Revolution M320 · Restorative Justice and Repair M568 · ISKCON Vaishnava Ethical Discipline M221 · Disability, Accessibility and Inclusion
WORLD MORALS EDITION XXI
World Morals — a shared human inquiry
An interactive atlas of moral teachings across the world's religious and secular traditions — from ancient scriptures to modern ethics.
Comparative atlas · Original English corpus · Evidence before conclusions
A mapping is not a verified quotation. Workbook labels are preserved. An absent mapping does not mean rejection. We do not rank the moral worth of any system.
- Moral teachings
- 610
- Religious systems
- 52
- Nonreligious systems
- 41
- Source evidence rows
- 10620
Many traditions. One invitation to understand.
Find a teaching, follow its source anchors, and explore common ground without erasing differences. Every number describes only the systems represented in this edition.
610 teachings found · Edition XXI
Do not retaliate excessively
Reject vengeance that exceeds justice.
Do not return people to persecution
Do not expel or return a person to a territory where serious persecution or irreparable harm is reasonably feared.
Do not slander
Do not unjustly damage another person's reputation through false or reckless claims.
Do not stand idly by when another is endangered
Take reasonable action to rescue or protect a person facing serious and preventable harm.
Do not steal
Do not take property, labor, credit, data, or resources without consent.
Do not surrender to destructive anger
Recognize anger without allowing it to govern speech, judgment, or harmful action.
Do not use harsh or degrading speech
Avoid speech intended to humiliate, dehumanize, or needlessly wound.
Do not use medical knowledge for abuse
Never apply clinical knowledge to torture, coercion, persecution, or violations of human rights.
Do not withhold teaching or aid out of selfishness
Share knowledge, guidance, and assistance when doing so is appropriate and beneficial.
Educate against prejudice and resentment
Teach history, ethics, and civic understanding in ways that reduce inherited hatred and stereotyping.
Educate all persons
Promote broad access to learning.
Educate children morally
Teach responsibility, compassion, truthfulness, and wisdom.
Educate for peace, truth, purity, and nonviolence
Treat moral and spiritual values as essential dimensions of education alongside professional competence.
Elicit the best in others
Act in ways that encourage fairness, kindness, responsibility, and ethical growth in other people.
Eliminate forced labor
Do not compel work through threats, coercion, captivity, debt bondage, or confiscation of identity documents.
Eliminate workplace discrimination
Provide equal treatment in employment and occupation without unjust discrimination.
Embrace and sustain wholesome conduct
Actively cultivate beneficial habits instead of defining morality only by prohibitions.
Enable accessible communication
Provide information in usable formats and support alternative communication methods.
Enable older persons to participate in society
Remove barriers to civic, cultural, educational, and community participation.
Encourage others toward hope and growth
Support people in recognizing their capacity, dignity, and ability to overcome suffering.
Encourage responsible acknowledgment of wrongdoing
Create conditions for offenders to understand impact, accept responsibility, and make amends.
Engage in honest occupation
Support oneself and one's dependents through work that is truthful, lawful, and ethically responsible.
Ensure accessibility
Remove physical, informational, communication, digital, and institutional barriers to participation.