The Secret of Harmonious Living

They continue to inveigh against social prejudice and discriminatory practices, resorting to public demonstrations to reinforce their viewpoint. But applying outworn tactics to present evils and then expecting that in consequence all the good things of life will automatically fall into their laps, is little better than struggling senselessly to open new locks with old keys. They should be devoting their energies to serious efforts at all levels to bring about social uplift, an improvement in creativity and the setting of examples in individual diligence. Non-Acknowledgment of Truth Socrates said that if one were so skilled in repartee as to be quite invincible in argument, one could never be sympathetic to the poor. The meaning of this statement is not immediately clear, for it is difficult to see the connection between skill in repartee and sympathy for the poor. But, on more careful analysis, we find that there is a deep-rooted relationship between the two. What it means is that only such a person can be sympathetic to the poor who knows how to acknowledge the truth, even when that truth pertains to the poor. The following is an incident which very well illustrates the truth of this saying. A landowner sold his mango orchard to a gardener. When the trees began to bear fruit, they were buffeted by strong winds, which resulted in a heavy loss of fruit. Fearing that he would not get any return on his investment, because he would no doubt incur a loss on the sale of the fruits, the gardener took the fallen mangoes in a basket to the landlord and requested him to make some reduction in the price of the orchard in terms of the loss he anticipated.