LEARNING FROM OTHERS

 

          LEARNING FROM OTHERS

            Great men express the gist of their practical experience or deep thinking in short sayings which others may read to enrich their knowledge, enhance their wisdom, and amplify their vision about life.

            Here are several examples of such expressions.

1.     Not failure, but low aim, is crime.---J. R. Lowell, American poet 1819-91

2.     It is worse to apprehend than to suffer.----Bruyere, Jean de la, French essayist (1645-96).

3.     He best part of beauty is that which no picture can express.----Francis Bacon, English essayist and philosopher (1561-1626).

4.     Brevity is the soul of wit.----William Shakespeare , English poet-playwright (1564-1616).

5.     The one prudence of life is concentration.—Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist and poet (1803-1882).

6.      Life often presents us with a choice of evils rather than of good.---Colton Caleb C, English clergy (1780-1832).

7.     A man of integrity will never listen to any reason against conscience. ---Henry Home, Scottish judge (1696-1782).  

8.     Without consistency there is no moral strength.----John Jason Owen, American clergy (1803-69).

9.     The over curious are not over wise.----Philip Massinger, English poet-dramatist (1583-1640)

10.                        Delicacy is to the mind what fragrance is to the fruit. A. Poincilot, French author and philosopher (---1850).

11.                         The early morning has gold in its mouth.----Benjamin Franklin, American author and statesman (1706-90).

12.                         One should eat to live, not live to eat.---Benjamin Franklin.

13.                         The education of the human mind commences in the cradle.----T. Cogan, English physician (1736-1818)

14.                         The wisest man may always learn something from the humblest peasant.----J. P. Senn, Swiss writer (1792-1870).

15.                         No crime is so great to envy as daring to excel.----Winston Churchill, Statesman and former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1874-1965).

16.                           Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall. ----Confucius, Chinese philosopher (Died 479 BC).

17.                         Men of cold passions have quick eyes.----Hawthorne, American author (1804-64).   

18.                          Even the best things are not equal to their fame.---Henry David  Thoreau , American naturalist and essayist (1817-62).

19.                         Man is a poetical enemy and delights in fiction.---William Hazlitt, English essayist (1778-1830).

20.                         The future is always a fairy land to the young.----English journalist George Augustus Sala (1828-95).

21.                         A mask of gold hides all deformities.-------Thomas Dekker, English dramatist  (1572-1632).  

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G. R. Kanwal

2^nd September 2026

 

HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

 

          HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

            Human development focuses on putting people first rather than just measuring a country’s wealth. It relies on cardinal virtues which are:

            A long and healthy life with moral values like prudence, justice, fortitude, temperance, self-control, abstention from criminal and vulgar acts, honesty, contentment , and righteous living.

            Among the Greek philosopher Plato’s cardinal virtues wisdom and rationality are also significant. Another Greek philosopher Aristotle includes in his group of virtues justice and the golden mean of the Indian Lord Buddha.

            Capitalism lays emphasis on economic system where private individuals or businesses own the means of production and run for profit.

            In current times developed countries boast of material advancement and military power with most destructive weapons.    

            All developed countries are now like business houses. They buy and sell, import and export their goods and chattels.

            Ethical values are declining  and that is an unfortunate aspect of latest developmental policies.

            Now greed rather than contentment is on the rise.

            Look at the following short poem by the American poet Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882). The title of the poem is: A NATION’S SRENGTH.

            Not gold, but only men can make

            A people great and strong ---

            Men who, for truth and honour’s sake

            Stand fast and suffer long.

            Brave men who work while others sleep,

            Who dare while others fly,

            They build a nation’s pillars deep,

            And lift them to the sky.

 

To conclude, the following words of Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948):

Service of humanity and self-realization or knowledge of God are synonymous terms.     

                                                            ********

G.R. Kanwal

1^st September 2026         

 

 

 

SOME EXRACTS FROM FAMOUS POEMS

 

                   SOME EXRACTS FROM FAMOUS POEMS

1.    From The Stream’s Song

Crumble, crumble,

Voiceless things;

No faith can last

That never sings.

     …….

2.     The woods are lovely, dark and deep,

But I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep

And miles to go before I sleep.---By Robert Frost

          ………

3.     And if I pray, the only prayer

That moves my lips for me

Is, ‘Leave the heart that now I bear

And give me Liberty !----Emily Bronte

                   ..…….

4.     They are slaves who fear to speak

For the fallen and the weak ;

They are slaves who will not choose

Hatred, scoffing, and abuse ;

Rather than in silence shrink

From the truth hey needs must think;

They are slaves who dare not be

In the right with two or three.----James Russell Lowell

                              ………

5.     I would be true, for there are those who trust me;

I would be pure, for there are those who care ;

I would be strong, for there is much to suffer;

I would strong, for there is much to dare. ……Howard Arnold Walter

                              ……….

6.     Blessed am I that I am born to this land and that

I had the luck to love her-------

      The first light revealed to my eyes was from

Her own sky and let the same light kiss

Them before they are closed for ever.…….. Rabindranath Tagore

                              *******

G.R.Kanwal

31^st August 2026         

                 

 

 

 

 

ENMITY

 

                ENMITY

            Being at enmity with someone, or a neighbouring country  means being in a state of active hatred, deep-seated hostility, or opposition towards them.

            Common synonyms of enmity are discord, strife, war, bitterness, rancour,hate, animosity, animus, hatred, malevolence, malice, aversion, hostility, malignity, and opposition.

            Some antonyms of enmity are: friendship, goodwill, harmony, kindness, love, sympathy, and cordiality.

            In simple terms enmity means a deep-seated often mutual feeling of intense hatred, hostility, or ill will between people or groups.

            The causes of enmity are deep-seated hostility, competing desires, and unresolved interpersonal or group conflicts.

            Results of enmity are destruction of personal relationships, social division, and widespread conflict, even armed conflict that leads to death and destruction on a large scale.

            Enmity between neighbouring countries can arise from religious differences, political and social discords, lust for expansion, enhancement of natural sources like water,  minerals, fuel, etc.

            Enmity should not last long if rulers of a country believe in the Biblical saying:  Love thy neighbor as thyself. Unfortunately this belief is not acted upon. Hence, neighbouring countries go on amassing arms and weapons, new and old. Their powers lies in the well-equipped armies. They contribute to the ancient saying : Might IS Right.

              How does personal enmity conduct itself. In exceptional cases it  mourns the death of its enemy believing in the moral adage: Nothing but good should be talked of the dead.

            Here are some important quotes:

*The best way to destroy an enemy is to turn him into a friend.

*Never try to destroy the enemy. Destroy the enmity.

*Enmity breaks hearts apart, but love assembles the pieces.

*It is easy enough to be friendly to one’s friends. But to befriend the one who regards himself as your enemy, is the quintessence of true religion. The other is mere business. ----Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948).

                                                _______            

PUNCHLINE: Our enemies are our outward consciences.----English poet-playwright William Shakespeare (1564-1616).

                                                            *****

G.R.Kanwal

30 August 2026

 

SILENCE

 

                                SILENCE

          Silence has many meanings, Simple ones are complete absence of sound , noise, or speech.

          It is also defined as a refusal, failure, or choice not to speak or communicate.

          One more definition says: It is an act of keeping information back or hidden or withheld.

          I believe that silence is a form of wordless speech. It conveyance its meaning through facial expression.  

          Some synonyms of silence are : stillness, muteness, voicelessness, inarticulateness, and reticence.

          If you are silent you are quiet and calm or you are unwilling to communicate vocally.

          Greek-Roman philosopher Plutarch (C.46 -after 119/125 AD) said: He can never speak well, who knows not how to hold his peace.

          Some more important quotes are:

*True silence is the rest of the mind, and is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refinement. It is a great virtue; it covers folly, keeps secrets, avoids disputes, and prevents sin.---English Quaker William Penn (1644-1718).

*Speech is great, but silence is greater. ---Scottish essayist and historian Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881).

 *Silence in times of suffering is the best.---English poet and literary critic John Dryden (1631-1700).

*The unspoken word never does harm. ---Louis Kossuth Hungarian patriot (1802-94).

          Finally, the following words of Indian saint and anti- colonial leader Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948):

“I find that silence avoids irritation. There is a perceptible drop in blood pressure when I observe silence. After every silence I feel recuperated and have greater energy for work. The output of work during silence is much greater than when I am not silent. The mind enjoys a peace during silence which it does not without it. The decision to be silent itself produces a soothing effect on me. It lifts a burden off my mind. My experience tells me that silence soothes the nerves in a manner no drug can.

                                                ******

G.R.Kanwal

29 August 2026

FLASH FLOOD IN NEPAL

 

 FLASH FLOOD IN NEPAL

                        The current flash flood in Nepal is a natural calamity. The number of deaths of local inhabitants as well as  of the people of other states is horrifyingly large .

                        The mysterious question is why did God permit this disastrous calamity to happen.

                        The answer is in the Gita where Lord Krishna says that perishability of the body is insignificant. The real self of humans is their soul which is immortal.

                        Look at the following lines from chapter 2.22 of The Bhagavad  Gita –A  Revelation by Dilip Kumar Roy (1974):   

Even as a man discards his worn-out robe

For a new one, so a worn-out body is

Left by the Soul for a new one after death.

Weapons can never cleave nor fire burn

Water drench nor wind desiccate the Soul.

 

 

                                Another relevant quote here is the holy sonnet of the English poet John Donne (1572-1631). The title of the poem is Death Be Not Proud. It was originally published in1633.

 

The full text of this sonnet is as under:

 

Death, be not proud, though some have called thee

Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;

For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow

Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me.

From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,

Much pleasure; then from thee much more must flow,

And soonest our best men with thee do go,

Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery.

Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,

And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell,

And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well

And better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then?

One short sleep past, we wake eternally

And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.

 

 

                                                          **********

G.R.Kanwal

28 August 2026

 

NATURAL DISASTERS

 

                NATURAL DISASTERS

            The world is defined as the earth, with all the countries, peoples and natural  features.

            Everything that exists on the earth is part of the world. It is isolated but not unrelated. Humans and non-humans are born in different parts of the world but they are not foreign.  They are the inhabitants of not only of a particular country but of the whole world. Thus they are neighbours, not aliens. When Jesus said love thy neighbor as thyself, he did not mean only the next door person but  also every other person who lives in this world.

            Natural disasters are known as catastrophic events by natural forces that result in major damage and loss of life. They are listed as earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, wildfires, droughts, landslides, and avalanches. They occur at a particular place but have their impact on several areas far and wide. Their management needs the help of neighbouring as also of distant countries.

            It is sad to see that helping countries are not unselfish. They extend help with some return for their own countries. For them only selected counties deserve their help. There may be political, commercial, or other advantages.

            The saying : fishing in troubled waters is true in many cases.  

            You are selective, not universal. You first weigh the resultant benefits for yourself before you extend your help any country  in a natural or man-made calamity like war. . You help a particular country which is inimical to another country with which you are also inimical.

              Natural disasters are destructive in several ways. They cause death and destruction in a large scale.  They are merciless.

            Ancient monuments, sacred places like temples, mosques, and churches are all destroyed.  They don’t discriminate between the sacred and secular. . Whatever comes in their way is hit harshly, not softly. Even natural objects like trees and gardens are destroyed. Birds and beasts, too, are killed. Nothing is spared. There is nothing sacred for natural disasters. Exceptions are not within their rules. They are blind forces. Why does God allow their onslaught is a mystery.

                                                            ----------             

      PUNCHLINE: We may despise the word having natural disasters, but we cannot live without it.

                                                            ****

G.R.Kanwal

27 August 2026