SPARE THE ROD AND SPOIL THE CHILD

        In the past it was believed that the parents and the Teachers must be strict with children. Otherwise, the children would be spoiled. A child was continuously beaten so as the keep him away from negligence and bad habits. But with the passage of time, it is believed that a child has to be treated as an individual and that he has his own special needs and desires. Education today primarily caters to a child’s needs without too much use of the rod. Corporal punishment has been abolished in schools and the emphasis is on treating a child with sympathy and understanding. This helps in the development of the child’s personality.   

   

THE PEN IS MIGHTIER THAN THE SWORD

        The wounds caused by a sword may be deep and serious. But they ultimately heal with the right treatment and the passage of time. But the wounds caused by the pen when we write ill of others and criticize them are incurable. That is why it is said that the death and destruction caused by military conquerors is short-lived. So is their glory and heroism. On the other hand, the writings of such immortal men of letters as Kalidas, Shakespeare, Goethe and others leave as indelible impression on the human mind and civilization. The writings of Voltaire and Rousseau, for example, brought about the French Revolution with their slogan of Liberty, Equality and Justice. Such writers deserve our respect and reverence, and not the military conquerors who main and kill thousands of people to fulfill their selfish ambitions.

JUSTICE DELAYED IN JUSTICE DENIED

       It is generally believed that the mills of God grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly small. There may be delay in divine justice, but it is eventually meted out to the wronged as well as the wrong-doers. But the same cannot be said about justice in the world. Cases in our civil courts keep piling up and judgement is delayed beyond all reasonable expectations. It is said that if the grandson gets justice in a case filed by his grandfather even before the grandson was born, he should consider himself lucky for justice in Indian courts in inordinately delayed. In such cases, justice Delayed becomes justice denied because the wronged party is not alive to savor the fruits of justice.

SHOULD NOT THROW STONES AT OTHERS THOSE WHO LIVE IN GLASS HOUSES

     None of us is perfect. We all have our more or less faults and weaknesses. We should not, therefore, criticize and make fun of others when we see their black spots. They may turn back and pick up our faults and weaknesses and we shall end up by blaming each other and arguing about whose faults are more glaring than the others’. This will bring about disorder and chaos in society. We should think of ourselves are living in a glass house. If we throw stones at others from inside our glass house and they retaliate by throwing stones at us, our glass house will be shattered. We should develop tolerance for others’ weaknesses and shortcomings before we expect them not to criticize and make fun of us.

IDLENESS IS THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL

         It has been rightly said that an idle man’s brain is the devil’s workship. If one sits idle for a long period of time, one’s mind is likely to go astray and come up with mischief. On the other hand, if one keeps oneself busy and occupied one gets hardly any chance to think of unnecessary and irrelevant things to divert his mind and attention from the task at hand. Idleness often leads to indolence and fatalism. It may also lead one to take to evil ways. It must, therefore, be avoided at all costs and we should keep ourselves occupied all the time with constructive work and creative pursuits. That would take our mind off mischief and harming others.

ALL THAT GLITTERS IS NOT GOLD

         We should not go by only outward appearances because all that glitters is not gold. A well-dressed, handsome person may turn out to be a villain whereas an ordinary looking, poor person may prove to be a friend in need. We should therefore not to try to form our impressions, good or bad, when we see someone for the first time. Only when we have interacted with a person over a long period of time should we make an assessment of his character and worth. We should guard ourselves from being led or misled by a person’s polite behaviour, humility and ever- smiling nature. Instead, we should observe him longer for forming an unbiased and unprejudiced judgement of his character and conduct

UNEASY LIES THE HEAD THAT WEARS THE CROWN

          An ordinary labourer is said to lead a far happier life than a king. After having worked hard throughout the day, the labourer enjoys a good night’s sleep without a care in the world. On the other hand, a king cannot sleep peacefully. He tosses and turns in his bed because he is full of tension. He has to cope with many worries. Similarly, a rich industrialist has to deal with and overcome several problems during the day. His mind is full of these problems when he goes to bed at night, whereas an ordinary worker in his factory has no such problems to deal with. He has put in the required hours of work during the day and goes home a contended person. This shows how a wealthy person contracts many diseases and ailments that an ordinary healthy person has not even heard of, thus proving the truth of the saying that uneasy lies the head that wears the crown of responsibilities.

WHERE THERE IS A WILL, THERE IS A WAY

        If we unable to get what we want, we should not sit in a corner and blame our luck and circumstances. Failures are a part of our life and we must struggle hard to achieve what we have set out to achieve in life. We must think of ways and means to realize our ambitions and reach of our goals. This is well illustrated by the story of a crow who felt thirsty on a hot summer day. In his search for water to quench his thirst, the crow saw a jug half full of water lying on the ground. Since the water level in the jug was low, the crow could not reach it with his beak. He then started picking up pebbles and stones lying nearby and putting them in the jug. He continued doing so till the level of  water in the jug rose. This way he was able to quench his thirst, after that he flew away.  This shows that we can get what we want and fulfill our desires if we have the will to do so.

HEALTH IS WEALTH

         If we are physically fit and regular in our habits, we truly stand to gain in life. A weak constitution is an obstacle in our way as it stops us from taking part in sports and games. We are drowsy and listless. This plays on our nerves and makes us peevish and short-tempered. We cannot even perform our routine duties. On the other hand, if we enjoy good health we can perform even the most rigorous of tasks without feeling tired or exhausted. Good health keeps us physically alert as well as mentally active so as to get ahead in life. Health is indeed wealth for us because all the money in the world cannot buy it for us.

NEVER PUT OFF TILL TOMORROW WHAT YOU CAN DO TODAY

                 Procrastination, it is said, is the thief of time. If we keep putting off things that we are supposed to attend to immediately, they will keep piling up till we shall not know where to start from. In order to avoid such a situation, we must be prompt in doing whatever we are assigned to do without any loss of time. This applies to the homework that students are assigned. If they keep putting it off, they will cut a sorry figure in the class. It will accumulate in course of time and directly affect their performance in the examination. On the other hand, if they are regular they will stand to gain manifold. For this, they must inculcate a sense of self-discipline. They must draw up a timetable for various activities during the day and stick to it. This will ensure regularity and punctuality in whatever they undertake to do.

A LITTLE KNOWLEDGE IS A DANGEROUS THING

           We should not be hasty in voicing our opinions on matters we know very little about and we should not judge something merely on the basis of prejudices and preconceived notions. A thorough knowledge is required for expressing any opinion or passing a judgement on something that confronts us. Otherwise, we shall end up as making fools of ourselves. Only a qualified and experienced doctor should be consulted for any disease or ailment we suffer from. If we go to a quack or a semi-qualified person, he may do more harm than good to us. It applies to all spheres of life and all fields of activity. A little knowledge always prove harmful, if not dangerous.

OLD IS GOLD

             In our craze for new-fangled ideals and fashions, we should not discard what is old and time-tested. Our traditional values and customs are a precious heritage as they have been passed from generation to generation. We must treasure them and keep them alive. We should try to stick to them without considering them outdated or obsolete because they have survived for centuries. At the same time, we should be able to distinguish them from superstitions and blind beliefs that have outlived their utility and hinder our progress and development. Once we are able to this, we shall discover that old is really gold. It will become the guiding light of our existence. 

A BIRD IN HAND IS WORTH MORE THAN TWO IN THE BUSH

         We should be satisfied with out lot and keep on making efforts to improve and progress in life. We should not aspire for what others have and feel jealous. We should keep our greed in check because aspiring for things we cannot possibly possess will lead us to misery and dissatisfaction. It is not wise to give up something that we have for an imaginary position. Our running after mirages in real life is like going to the forest for hunting. It is better to safeguard the one bird that we have already captured than leaving it and running after two birds in the bush, for in running after them we may lose the one bird that we have in hand. The same thing is applicable to our life also.

HANDSOME IS THAT HANDSOME DOES

           A person is not liked on admired merely for his looks or handsome appearance. He is known for what he does for the good of society and mankind. Abraham Lincoln was not very good-looking; Napoleon was short-statured; and Mahatma Gandhi was an ordinary-looking person. Yet they are all remembered, not for their handsome or striking appearance but for their deeds and actions. Looks and glamor are short-lived, but man’s actions live long after him and make him famous. We should not, therefore, be impressed by a person’s outward appearance but by his qualities of the head and the heart. We must always keep in mind that handsome is that handsome does.

A BAD WORKMAN QUARRELS WITH HIS TOOLS

         If a person thoroughly knows his job, he does not come up with excuses for not doing it well. In short, he does not blame his tools or the work environment. Only those who are ill-prepared or inefficient put forward pretexts for not getting on with the work in hand. They forget their own shortcomings and drawbacks, and they end up by blaming their employers or the nature of work that they are assigned to do. Really knowledgeable and efficient workers go about their jobs with the minimum of fuss. They are meticulous and careful in performing their assigned tasks in the given time because they are not shirkers or ill-equipped for their job. They are serious and they mean business unlike those who keep finding fault with everything around them.

IF YOU WANT PEACE, BE PREPARED FOR WAR

             There is an old story of a prosperous farmer who carried a gun with him wherever he went. When someone asked him why he carried a gun when all his neighbours were peace- loving, he replied that he carried the gun specifically for keeping his neighbours peace-loving. Lack of show of strength is often taken as a sign of weakness. However strong and mighty a country be, others do not take it seriously unless it periodically indulges in a show of its strength and might. If India has made a show of its nuclear and economic power recently, it is to show to the rest of the world that it is not longer militarily weak or economically underdeveloped so as to be ignored in the international arena, and not because it wants to wage a war against the weaker nations. A great votary of peace and international brotherhood, India has demonstrated its strength so that it is not taken lightly or its opinions ignored on the global scene.

MAN DOES NOT LIVE BY BREAD ALONE

         This is the basic difference between man and animals. Both of them require food in order to live, but while the basic needs of the animals end after they filled their bellies, the needs of man go beyond mere food. Man is endowed with intellectual faculties. He can think for himself whereas the animals lead mechanical lives. It is because of man’s thinking faculties that the civilization has progressed so far. We are no longer primitive like the animals and we do not need routine lives. It is because of innate intelligence. That is why it has been rightly said that man does not live by bread alone.

MONEY IS A GOOD SERVANT BUT A BAD MASTER

          Money, it is said can buy almost everything in life, except happiness. And people who make money through fair means or foul often lose sight of basic human values. They become cruel, heartless, callous and corrupt. They feel that they are a law into themselves and that the others do not matter. They take to bad habits, vices and other evil ways because they allow money to become their master. They are slaves to their money. On the other hand, those who use their money for the good of society and mankind treat the money that they possess as their servant. Such people are often remembered for their humanitarian and philanthropic acts rather than those who spend all their money on themselves. If one becomes rich one should follow the example of the Rockefellers, the Tatas and the Birlas rather than those who have allowed money to become their master and spend all their resources on eating, drinking and being merry.

FAILURES ARE THE PILLARS OF SUCCESS

     We should not be disheartened and discouraged by failures in life. Each setback in our path of progress has a lesson for us. We should sit down and analyse where we have gone wrong and try not to repeat the same mistakes that we made in the first attempt. Failures, we must keep in mind, are the stepping stones to success, as is amply illustrated by the story of Robert Bruce and the spider. Repeated failures could not deter the king from fighting for his country’s freedom from the British rule as he had the flame of hope burning bright in his heart. If we follow his example, nothing will be impossible for us to achieve in life. Our failures becomes the pillars of success.

A MAN IS KNOWN BY THE BOOKS HE READS

        Just as a man is known by the company he keeps, he is known by the books he reads. A person reading light-hearted stuff is likely to be light-hearted and frivolous in real life. Similarly, someone who reads motivating and inspiring books is bound to improve and do well in life. The company of such books as biographies and autobiographies of great men influences our thinking and encourages us to rise above our circumstances in life. The reading of books on science and technology broadens over mental horizons. We should, therefore, take to the company of books rather than waste our time and energies in idle gossip or useless pursuits. Reading should be judicious and we should carefully select the books that we are going to read because they are bound to leave an impact on our character and personality in the long run.

BREVITY IS THE SOUL OF WIT

        ‘Wit’ here stands for wisdom. Brevity is indeed the soul of wit because a short and pity statement can convey a thought much quicker than a long sermon preached. This was the advice given by Polonius to his son in William Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet. Surprisingly, Polonius himself did not follow his own advice. All his speeches were long and beside the point. But if we follow this dictum, we can save a lot of time and effort in conveying our thoughts to others. We must be brief and to point if we want others to pay attention to what we say and write. For example, if the answer to a question  needs just two pages, it is no use repeating ourselves and beating about the bush to write it in four to five pages. The examiner may lose interest in what he reads and it may cost us heavily. So, we must learn to compress our thoughts and be brief and to the point in whatever we say and write. Words, like money, must be economically used.

HE WHO CONQUERS OTHERS IS STRONG, BUT HE WHO CONQUERS HIMSELF IS STRONGER

           There have been instances of mighty conquerors in world history who won the wars and extended their kingdoms. Conquerors like Changez Khan, Alexander and Napoleon have left their footprints on the conquests they made during their lifetime. But those who conquered themselves, their desires and ambitions are still revered by mankind. Such men as Ashoka, Gautam Buddha, Guru Nanak, Christ and Mahatma Gandhi who worked for the good of others are still remembered with love, affection and respect because, instead of conquering new lands, they conquered the people’s hearts. Rightly therefore is it said that he who conquers others in strong, but he who conquers himself in stronger.

SLOW AND STEADY WINS THE RACE

   We must progress by steps. We cannot reach our goal overnight. This requires making slow and steady efforts in achieving what we have set out to achieve in life. This is amply illustrated by the story of the hare and the tortoise.

   Tortoises are known to be slow. They take a lot of time to cover even a short distance. On the other hand, hares are known to be fast runners. They cover long distances in a very short time. They are confident of their speed.

   Once a hare challenged a tortoise to a race, knowingthat he was sure to win the race. He was fast and the tortoise was slow. They decided on a finishing point and at the appointed time they set off. The hare took giant strides and soon overtook the slow tortoise. On the way, he decided to rest for some time to allow the tortoise to keep pace with him. After he had rested for some time, he saw the tortoise approaching him. The hare ran fast and decided to rest at the next stop to wait for the slow tortoise.

   This happened number of times on their route. Somehow the hare slept longer than he had planned at the last stop and the tortoise overtook him. By the time he woke up, the tortoise had already reached the finishing line. The slow moving tortoise had own the race against the first running hare because he was slow and steady in marking process towards his goal, whereas the hare lost it because misplaced self-confidence.

Honesty Is The Best Policy

           Honesty always rewards. A dishonest person may appear to prosper for a short while, but finally it is the honest person who is rewarded. It is virtue that all of us must cultivate even though we may have to suffer in the beginning.

Once there was a poor woodcutter. He would go to the forest every morning, cut wood and sell it in the market at the end of the day. This was his only source of livelihood.

One day as he climbed up a tree to cut wood, his axe fell into the deep river below. He jumped into the river but he could not find his axe. Disappointed and dejected, he sat down on the bank of the river and started crying. The river Goddess took pity on him. She came out of the river holding a golden axe in her hand. “Is this axes yours?” she asked the poor woodcutter again. “No,” he replied. ”My axe was an ordinary one.”

The next time, the river goddess appeared with the real axe and asked the woodcutter, “Is this axes yours?” “Yes, yes,” he replied. “This is indeed my axe. Thank you for restoring it to me.” The river goddess was so pleased with the poor woodcutter’s honesty that she gifted all the three axes to him.

Another woodcutter came to know to this. But he was not honest. He went to the same spot in the forest and climbed up the same tree. Then he purposely dropped his old axe into the river, sat on the same spot and started crying loudly. The river goddess appeared with a golden axe in her hand. “Is this axes yours?” she asked him “Yes, Yes,” the dishonest woodcutter replied. “Not only this. I dropped silver and an iron axe into the river also? Could I please have all the three?” “No,” replied the river goddess. “Since you are dishonest, you will lose your own axe also.”

Saying this, the river goddess disappeared and the dishonest woodcutter sat there bemoaning the loss of his original axe. Dishonesty had lost him heavily, whereas the first woodcutter was rewarded for his honesty.