Honesty
I've had a quote for about 30 years about honesty, and it is one that I appreciate more as time goes on. First, it is not at all moral or religious and has no threats about what might happen to you after you die, but has a comment about what happens to you right here.
Kindle is now readable in bright sunlight (6" Display, U.S. Wireless)
To Children in South Africa
"It is my pleasure to be amongst you all, children. And I hope that you are very well proceeding on, and very well going on in your studies, because that is your education. A man who has finished with his studies it is his duty to do other business works, but who are children, it is their duty to study, to understand knowledge that they must know.
(Skipped paragraph on another topic.)
And never speak a lie, because that is something which brings us down from our character, brings us down from our personality. Never speak a lie. And never steal anything. That's also something which brings us down from our character, from our personality.
So now I would not take a long time. I think you would excuse me because I have other works too. But it is a great pleasure for me that I have been here amongst you, to tell you something, or two words that I think are important the whole life, never to speak a lie, and never steal." Prem Rawat
I had an experience of what he is talking about. A friend and I were little crooks when we were growing up. We were really good at shoplifting and had more stuff than all the kids we knew put together, and all of them had been caught at least once, but we hadn't. Even among the adults only mom was better. (Just kidding mom!)
Then as we got closer to jail time it slowly tapered off. One day when I was 17 I walked into a store just to buy something but I had a feeling like I had to act natural. To get rid of that and just feel free it seemed like it would be worth quitting shoplifting altogether. It was one of the early conscious decisions in my life and it started such a nice direction. When I read this quote it was the first time I ever heard anyone talk about anything like my experience.
It is always an advantage to know about things we are susceptible to that take you away from yourself, and just thought I'd pass it on for any value it might have for you.
I should add that I'm not a believer in total honesty. I think there are times when it wouldn't even be a good idea, under duress or to save your life of course, but another milder one also. If one person is being honest and dealing with another person who is being dishonest, the honest person might be putting himself at a disadvantage and that is not what honesty is for. If I were the (slightly) honest person in that situation I would feel completely free to kid the other person around just a little bit.
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