He counts/He is counted

[suprunp]

7) If something counts or is counted as a particular thing, it is regarded as being that thing, especially in particular circumstances or under particular rules.
Collins Cobuild Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary.

A small example:
181.
He soon notices that what bears him up or throws him down is not that which he is but that which he counts as being: here is the origin of vanity.
(Human, All Too Human; The Wanderer and His Shadow; translated by R.J. Hollingdale)

"which he counts as being" - means (as far as I am concerned) "what others think him to be"/"what others think he is".

Does it mean that these two following sentences convey just the same meaning (and what is more important - excite the same 'feeling' - so we can't distinguish between the passive and the active meaning):

He counts as a hero.
He is counted as a hero.

Thanks.

[5jj]

Does it mean that these two following sentences convey just the same meaning (and what is more important - excite the same 'feeling' - so we can't distinguish between the passive and the active meaning):

He counts as a hero.
He is counted as a hero.

They can convey the same meaning. My feeling is that I can say the first if I consider him a hero, regardless of whether others do or not; the second implies that he is considered a hero by many people.