The Confucianists believe that men are endowed by Heaven (Tian, equivalent in meaning to Nature) with a set of innate virtues. In one occasion, Confucius makes a remark about himself that “Heaven produced virtue in me”.Mencius further develops this assumption of human nature into an ontological doctrine. Everyone is endowed from Heaven, he says, with four beginnings (Si Duan) of “heart-mind” (Xin); they are the seats for four cardinal virtues: humanity (Ren), righteousness (Yi), propriety (Li), and wisdom (Zhi).While the heart-mind for shame and distaste (for one’s own bad behavior) is the seat of feeling for justice, the heart-mind for compassion is the origin of humanity. Humanity and justice are the inborn moral qualities which defines the essential character of a human being and without which a man would be reduced to a mere animal. With adequate education, learning and self-cultivation, these innate capacities will be actualized in a person, making him a mature gentleman. It is to be noted that, since very early in Confucianism, gentleman became a respectful title for anyone who acquired high moral status. As Liang Qichao points out, “Junzi is not a word denoting one’s social status; it is a word that denotes one’s moral status. In other words, Junzi represents a person who has perfected his Ren Ge”.