A Drowning Man Will Clutch At a Straw

Desperate man will do anything to come out of a hopeless situation. A man closeted in a dark, closed room tries to peep at the outer world through any hole he could locate in the door or in the wall. It gives him some hope and consolation though he would instantly recognise the futility of his actions. In a hopeless situation, man tries to remember some glorious moments in his past life when h had successfully dealt with adverse encounters. then he pins his attention on that moment of triumph. Such an exercise gives him temporary relief and may yet give him courage to face the hazards ahead. Essentially man lives by hope. It is hope that drives man to heroic actions and perilious adventures. There are cases when persons with terminal illness have been cured by an encouraging word from a doctor or a seer. When all chances are lost, the last chance serves as a powerful anchor for a fresh constructive start. Whether such an effort would bear fruit or not is immaterial. It gives him some hope.

Don’t Count Your Chicken Before They Are Hatched

One can plan one’s life as carefully as possible to get the maximum results out of his efforts. One can dream of bigger and better things too, for, to excel is a basic human urge. However, to be overambitious or to plan beyond what reality permits may be foolhardy and counterproductive. A chicken owner may place 20 eggs for incubation, but only less than half may hatch into chicks, other eggs going rotten. If the former had expected all the eggs to hatch into chicks, he was in for disappointment. Real situations hardly match expectations. If men are aware of this reality of life, it will be good for their mental health. Genuine efforts are expected to yield reasonable results, but that may not match what one desired. Remember, one can be sure of an event only after it had happened, not before. Desires or imaginary things are not realities. So do not count your chickens even before they are hatched.

Don’t Cast Your Pearls before Swine

Swine is a voracious creature and is known to consume anything that comes to its notice including faecal matter and decaying vegetable matter. It is a predator. So, if you leave open any precious thing, including gems and pearls in the proximity of swine, it will simply consume that too, and later on emit it in some dirty place. It may be precious for you, not for the animal. The real reference here is to some persons who have no sense of propriety or any sense of discrimination between what is right and wrong or good and bad. They speak and behave indiscrete before anyone whether of high office or merely mean. They cannot keep any confidential matter or distinguish between what is personal and public. They are just predatory, take everything, listen to other voraciously and spread it as fast as they can. One should be very careful in dealing with, and saying anything in front of such persons. They could make it public in no time and spoil in advance whatever you have intended.

Distance Lends Enchantment to the View

For persons standing on one side of the river, the other side looks greener. This is not merely an optic illusion, but a mindset common to all human beings. A factory owner in a village may be well-settled, financially well-off and leading a happy family life. Yet, he might be thinking that an urban life with faster life style and glamorous sights is better. On the contrary, a city gentleman with large salary, own flat, motor car and many other comforts may long for a leisurely, more peaceful rural life. Actually both views are only enchantments for the other, for the distant. A city man cannot endure village life for long, suffocating in the numerous inadequacies and dull environment. Similarly, the village gentleman will find it hard to cope with the innumerable demands and speed of urban life. Yet, an admiration or enchantment for the other, for the distant, for the unknown seems to be inherent in human psyche.

Discretion Is the Better Part of Valor

Discretion is a quality whereby men choose between appropriate and inappropriate in behavior, speech or conduct on every occasion. The idea is to avoid embarrassment or distress to others. Our bearing, behavior, speech and conduct should be socially acceptable. To live up to this standard all the time is not easy. There will be trying moments, provocations and even unjustified demands. Yet there is no point in taking unnecessary risks. It needs real inner courage to keep oneself self-restrained amd composed. It is this invisible but ever present courage that sustains the quality of discretion. This quality should be the hallmark of mature persons. Unless you develop a good degree of inner balance and courage, the quality of discretion could be difficult to practice. The proverb conveys the idea that your inner conviction and composure are more basic than any outer expression of valor.

Discontent Is the First Step in Progress

Progress literally means moving forward. There will hardly be anyone in the world, who does not want to better their life. Poor and deprived try their best to make both ends meet. Unemployed fellows crave to get some job. Salaried persons want to improve their financial prospects by doing some extra work. Discontent is felt when people compare their lot with that of others. This does not mean that most men are unhappy. It only means that since most persons are not satisfied with their present lot, they try to improve it. Feeling of inadequacy is common feature of the human condition. It is this feeling of inadequacy or discontent that serves as the driving force behind human efforts towards a better tomorrow. It need not be greed. It is rather an urge to excel which is indeed a noble human characteristic. However, efforts to improve one’s lot should be genuine and not directed against others for attaining progress.

Desperate Diseases Must Have Desperate Remedies

When faced with problems, people try various methods to find solutions to them. There are problems of illness, deprivation, relationships, business loss, unemployment and so on. Some of these issues may resist solutions causing despair in the persons involved. It is them that they make an all-out effort to find a way out. When everything has failed and there is little hope of success people are prompted to take radical action. For example, if a chronic illness is not cured despite years of treatment, one may take to faith healing and may even get total relief. The method and approach adopted may be quite unconventional and often beyond normal rational ways. Yet surprisingly, a permanent solution is often arrived at. This may look paradoxical, but it is true in real life. The message is very clear: When the going gets tough, the tough gets going.

Death Is a Great Leveller

Equality of human beings is a great concept. At least in being human they are equal. But in actual life extreme differences are seen between men. It starts from the physical appearance itself. Not a single person living or dead is like any other human being ever born on this earth. The differences extend to living patterns, standards, attitude or disposition. Yet the beginning and end of life are absolutely identical to all men and women irrespective of their caste, religion, race, language, or place of birth. At birth, the human should is a helpless creature entirely dependent on its mother. Death is a similar event where a person’s helplessness is total unredeemed. All the pride, prejudice and power built up during the life comes to naught. All the friends supporters gathered around him are of no use. The richest and the poorest are equal at the final event of life. Hence as the proverb says, death is indeed a great leveler.