{"id":4339,"date":"2013-07-13T01:55:18","date_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:55:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/?p=4339"},"modified":"2013-07-13T01:55:18","modified_gmt":"2013-07-13T01:55:18","slug":"23-right-judgment-vol-02-words-of-long-ago-volume-02","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/02-works-of-the-mother\/01-cwmce\/02-words-of-long-ago-volume-02\/23-right-judgment-vol-02-words-of-long-ago-volume-02","title":{"rendered":"-23_Right Judgment.htm"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
\n
\n

\n
\nNine <\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n


\nRight
\nJudgment <\/font> <\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


\n                            C<\/font><\/span><\/b>hoose a good straight stick and dip it
\nhalf-way into some water: the stick will appear to be bent in the middle. But
\nthat is an illusion, and if you were to think that the stick was actually bent,
\nyour judgment would be wrong. Pull out the stick and you will see that in fact
\nit is still straight. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>On
\nthe other hand, it is possible for a stick that is actually bent in the middle
\nto appear straight if it is carefully placed in a particular way in the water. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Well, men are often like sticks. If you look
\nat them from a certain angle, you may not see them as straight as they are, and
\nsometimes too, they may have a deceptive appearance and seem straight when they
\nare crooked. That is why you should trust appearances as little as possible and
\nnever judge anyone lightly.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>In
\nIndia, a mendicant monk was going across the country asking for alms. In a
\nmeadow he met a ram. The furious animal got ready to rush at him, and to do so,
\ntook a few steps back and lowered its head. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>\u201cAh!\u201d said the monk, \u201chere is a good and
\nintelligent animal. He has recognised<\/span> that I am a man
\nfull of merit, and he is bowing down before me to greet me.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Just then the ram rushed forward and knocked
\nthe virtuous man to the ground with one blow of its head. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>So
\nit can happen that one judges too respectfully and trustingly those who least
\ndeserve it. For sometimes there are people who are like the wolf that the good
\nLa Fontaine speaks of \u2013 the wolf whom the sheep took for the shepherd because
\nit had put on his cape; or else like the ass who was taken at first for a
\ndangerous animal because it had put on a lion’s skin. <\/span>
\n
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage – 220<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\n

<\/span><\/div>\n

\u00a0<\/span>But
\nif one can make mistakes like this by trusting to appearances, it more often
\nhappens, on the contrary, that one is tempted to make hasty and uncharitable
\njudgments on others. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>The
\nShah of Persia Ismail<\/span> Sefevi<\/span>
\nhad just conquered the land of Khorassan<\/span> and was
\nreturning to his capital. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>As
\nhe was passing by the home of the poet Hatifi<\/span>, he
\nthought he would visit him. He did not have the patience to go as far as the
\ngate of the house, so great was his desire to see the famous man, so, catching
\nsight of the branch of a tree overhanging the wall, he caught hold of it,
\njumped over the enclosure and into the poet’s garden. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>What would you have thought if someone had
\nsuddenly entered your house like this? You would probably have taken him for a
\nthief and given him a very poor welcome. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Hatifi<\/span> did well not to judge by appearances or according to
\nthe first impression of the moment. He gave a warm welcome to his odd visitor.
\nAnd later he wrote new poems on the exploits that the Shah had been so eager to
\ntell him.  <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

In general nothing is easier than to see in
\nothers what is least to their advantage; each one has his faults, to which his
\nneighbours give more attention than he does. But what we should look for in
\nevery man, if we do not want to judge him too unjustly, is what is best in him.
\n\u201cIf your friend has but one eye,\u201d says the proverb, \u201clook at his good side.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>A
\nfriend of yours may seem awkward or slow, and yet be the most hardworking
\nstudent of the class. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>And
\nyour teacher whom you find strict and severe probably loves you much and
\ndesires only your progress. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>A
\nfriend who sometimes seems so boring or so surly to you, may after all be the
\nbest friend you have. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>And
\nhow many people who are looked upon as wicked and are treated harshly, carry
\ndeep in their hearts something which <\/span>
\n
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage – 221<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\n

<\/span><\/div>\n

no one has been able to perceive. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>A
\ngreat wolf was causing terror in the woods and fields around the town of
\nGubbio, so that the people dared not even venture on the roads. The monster was
\nkilling men and animals alike. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>At
\nlast the good Saint Francis decided to face the frightful creature. He went out
\nof the town, followed at a distance by many men and women. As he drew near to
\nthe forest, the wolf suddenly sprang at the saint with wide open jaws. But
\nFrancis calmly made a sign and the wolf lay down peacefully at his feet like a
\nlamb. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>\u201cBrother Wolf,\u201d Saint Francis told him, \u201cyou
\nhave done much harm in this land, and you deserve a murderer’s death. All men
\nhate you. But I would gladly make peace between you and my friends of Gubbio.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>The
\nwolf bowed his head and wagged his tail. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>\u201cBrother Wolf,\u201d Francis went on, \u201cI promise
\nyou that if you will keep peace with these people, they will be kind to you and
\ngive you food every day. So, will you promise to do no more harm from now on?\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Then the wolf bowed his head very low and put
\nhis right paw in the saint’s hand. In this way they made a pact together, in
\ngood faith. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Then Francis led the wolf into the marketplace
\nof Gubbio and repeated before the assembled citizens what he had just said to
\nthe wolf, and once more the wolf put his paw in the saint’s hand as a pledge of
\nhis good behaviour<\/span> for the future. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>The
\nwolf lived in the town for two years and did no harm to anyone. Each day the
\ntownsfolk would bring him his food, and they all mourned him when he died. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>However
\nbad the wolf may have seemed, in truth there was something in him which no one
\nhad discovered until the saint had called him his brother. In this legend the
\nwolf no doubt represents some great offender much hated by other men. It is
\nintended to show that even in those who seem lost beyond hope, <\/span>
\n
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage – 222<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\n

<\/span><\/div>\n

there still remain some seeds of good that can be awakened with a
\nlittle love. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>All
\ngood cabinet-makers know that there is no plank, however rotten, in which one
\ncannot find some sound fibres<\/span>. The bad workman will
\nthrow away the plank in ignorance and contempt, but the good workman will take
\nit up, remove what is worm-eaten and carefully plane the rest. And out of the
\nhardest knots in the wood, the artist can shape the most heart-stirring figures.  <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>In
\nthe cheerless land of Guiana, which is so fatal to Europeans, prisons have been
\nestablished for convicts sentenced to hard labour or transportation. Some years
\nago, a military warder was taking a working party to Cayenne when by accident
\nhe fell into the harbour<\/span> just as the tide was coming
\nin. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>At
\ncertain times, at low tide, this harbour<\/span> is almost
\ncompletely covered with sand, so that it is impossible to disembark. On the
\nother hand, at full tide, it is flooded by extremely swift currents, bringing
\nthe sharks, which infest the entire coast, in great numbers. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>The
\nwarder who had fallen into the water was in a very critical situation, for he
\nhardly knew how to swim. Every second that passed increased his danger of being
\nsnapped up by one of these voracious creatures. Suddenly one of the convicts,
\nheeding only his nobler feelings, threw himself into the water. He was able to
\ncatch hold of the warder and after a great effort, to save him. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>This man was a criminal, and normally those
\nwho saw him pass by in his convict’s uniform, marked with ignominious letters
\nand the number which now took the place of his name, would turn away in
\ncontempt, thinking him unworthy of a single glance or word of compassion. And
\nyet their judgment was quite unjust, for in him there was compassion. In spite
\nof all his faults, there was nobility in his heart: he was ready to sacrifice
\nhim-<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage – 223<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\n

<\/span><\/div>\n

self for the sake of the very man who was bound by duty never to
\nshow him any mercy. <\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Here is yet another story about convicts that
\nwill show you how mistaken one can be if one judges men by appearances. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Two
\nreleased convicts had been hired by a gold-prospector from the Upper Maroni<\/span>. Every year he would entrust them with the gold
\ngrains and the nuggets obtained by \u201cplacer mining\u201d, which they were to take to
\nthe nearest gold-market, thirty days’ journey by canoe down river. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>One
\nday the two ex-convicts decided to escape. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>For
\nwhen convicts have completed their sentence, they are not free to return home,
\nbut have to stay in the penal colony, usually for the rest of their lives.
\nHowever, as Guiana is a wild and uninhabited country, full of virgin forests
\nand swamps, where the ex-convicts are in continual danger of dying of fever or
\nstarvation, most of them try to escape as soon as the opportunity arises.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>So,
\nwishing to take advantage of the canoe at their disposal, the two hired
\nconvicts decided to make for the Duh colony on the opposite bank of the river. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>But
\nfirst, they placed the stock of gold belonging to their master in a safe spot,
\nand sent him a letter indicating the place where his property lay. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>\u201cYou have always been good to us,\u201d they said,
\n\u201cand while we are escaping, we feel some scruples about robbing you of what you
\nentrusted to our care.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>These two convicts had once been sentenced for
\ntheft. The gold they were carrying meant quite a small fortune for them, but
\nsomething in them was honest and straightforward. To everyone who knew their
\nstory and judged them according to their past, they were nothing but vile and
\nworthless criminals; but for the sake of the man who was able to trust them,
\nthey could, in <\/span>
\n
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage – 224<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n
\n

<\/span><\/div>\n

spite of everything, become trustworthy once more. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span>Little children, let us be prudent and charitable
\nin our thoughts; let us be careful not to judge our fellow-men too hastily; and
\neven let us refrain from judging them at all when we can avoid it. <\/span>
\n
\n <\/span><\/p>\n

\nPage – 225<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nine   Right Judgment \u00a0                             Choose a good straight stick and dip it half-way into some water: the stick will appear to be bent…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[123],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4339","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-02-words-of-long-ago-volume-02","wpcat-123-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4339","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4339"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4339\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4339"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4339"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worksofthemotherandsriaurobindo.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4339"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}