Gawi and Gawa and Habituation

Extracted from the Book Ethics by Pasco, Suarez and Rodriguez

In Filipino, the words gawi and gawa can give a sense of what philosophers mean by ethical
action. Filipinos distinguish between thoughtless, instinctive mannerisms and reflexes from
gawa (action) and gawi (inclination). In reflecting on how Filipinos use these words, one can
understand that human actions are different from mere bodily movements.

Freedom figures closely into action and inclination. Freedom here means not only the
ability to act free from outside influences or the independence from the impediments to
one's wishes. It is the willful act and decision that give form and shape to the actions and
inclinations of people. This freedom is oriented toward the wherefore, the what for, and the
whom for the doings of people.

These are the common aspects of human action that Filipinos understand as action and
inclination: that free human acts are governed by reflection and are freely decided such that
they are not determined by internal or external forces.

However, gawi and gawa are not identical. Gawa refers to the free action that is oriented toward
a particular end. For example, a worker uses his/her free imagination and will to bring about
services and products that contribute to the well being of society.

As one governed by free decision making, the creative worker embraces all the information
he/she can gather to effectively realize his/her purpose.

A process of discernment accompanies the creative work. The carpenter, for instance, must
learn many details about wood: its feel, its hardness and pliability, as well as its strength.
He/She should know at hand very well. Part of this knowledge is the knowledge about the
body's movement in accomplishing this work. The carpenter should study how heavy or light the
hand should move over certain kinds of wood, what tools to apply so that the wood yields the
best piece: a stool, a table, or the wheel of a cart.

The word gawi also refers to a free kind of work. However, instead of focusing on a particular
end like a product or fulfillment, gawi refers to the kind of acts that people are used to
accomplishing.

Gawi does not only refer to particular acts of a person. A person's kagawian or habitual action
reveals the truth about himself/herself. While the beautiful table and the intricately designed
chair are products of a carpenter that has gotten used to being one, in his kagawian, he reveals
himself/herself as a good or a bad person.

A worker who produces for the society is judged skilled or unskilled. But a person is judged
good or evil, right or wrong based on kagawian or habituation. Kagawian is the Filipino
equivalent of ethos in Greek and mos or moris in Latin.
Ethics and Ethos

The term ethics comes from the Greek word ethos, which means custom, a characteristic, or
habitual way of doing things, or action that is properly derived from one's character. The Latin
word mos or moris (and its plural mores) from which the adjective moral is derived is equivalent
to ethos.

From a purely etymological point of view, ethical and moral are, therefore, synonymous. Also,
restricted to such root word considerations, ethics and morality may only be a "simple
description of the mores or ways of behaving, whether of the human person in general or of a
particular population." It seems then that as a field of study, ethics need not be "normative" in
guiding human action and it is even seemingly imperative to preserve an attitude of neutrality
that excludes all judgments of value. Etymologically, ethics is but a survey of patterns of
behavior that is done by the human being in general or a society in particular..

Looking closely, however, human action ought to be understood clearly in a very strict sense. As
considered above, human action has to do with human movements that are ruled by one's
freedom. Given that freedom is not only the independence from what could hinder but also a
consideration of the goal of the action, ethics cannot be limited to pure description. Since goals
are inherently directional, they imply normativity.

In the same manner that gati for the Filipino is different from gawa, Aristotle differentiates
between human actions that are "praxis" and "to poiein." What is important for the human agent
who engages in "to poiein." gawa for Aristotle, is to successfully complete a particular work be it
artistic or technical: that the tabletop is smooth, the carvings are precise, and the chair's legs
are balanced. The human person himself/herself is significant only in considering the result in
matters of "to poiein" or gawa Ethics, on the other hand, not only has such "normative"
considerations as to the end product of the actions.

Ethics, as concerned with "praxis" for Aristotle, properly focuses on the human agent that is
revealed through his/her actions. Ethics is normative with regard to its being a practical science.
It does not only limit itself to the description of human actions but also aims to guide them.
Students who study ethics are not to stop at the pure description of human mores but are
ushered into a disciplined science that guides them in judging and rectifying human patterns of
behavior. Ethics proposes guidelines, considerations, and norms to provide advice and rules so
that the way of right living and its practice are clarified.

If kagawian is the Filipino equivalent of the Greek ethos and the Latin mor/moris, gawa is "to
poiein" and gawi is "praxis". Ethics for Filipino students is the philosophy of human action that
allows them to learn the art of living. It is an art that enables them to be reconciled with their
freedom and that which is expected of them (by others and themselves). Thus, ethics is a way
for them to find happiness.
Ethics also considers that which is worthy of a human being. This means that living rightly
is not only about searching for happiness but living as one ought to live as a human being In
living rightly, one receives contentment and approval both from others and himself/herself, and
in living wrongly, he/she deserves blame (from others and from himself/herself). Such an ethics
not only serves as a path to happiness but also reaches out in fullness of reflection for that
action which is an obligation for a human being. The gravity of such an ethical consideration is
given voice in the Filipino. saying, “ Madaling maging tao, mahirap magpakatao.”

The effort in living rightly, though a task, need not exclude the promise of the gift of happiness.
There is no reason to presuppose why a life that is consistent with what the human person
ought to do should not bring him/ her happiness. The Filipino student is, therefore, invited to
outgrow kung saan ka masaya suportahan kita and get to sa dapat mong gawin talaga kang
sasaya