Faults of others, the
Do not justify our own
February 12th 2018
A dishonest business person who finds themselves before a tribunal has ended up there because their business has failed. But how are they going to explain this failure? They will tell themselves that they unfortunately neglected to anticipate certain things and that next time they will be more careful. It does not occur to them to question the validity of their activities. After all, since society is governed by the law of the jungle, why should they have any scruples? What is important is not to get caught out.
Well, this argument may seem acceptable to some, but those who wish to make spiritual progress should reject it. We are never justified in doing wrong on the pretext that everyone else does the same. Instead, each one of us should ask ourselves, ‘What exactly am I likely to gain by assuming this point of view, by carrying on with such and such an attitude or behaviour?’, and honestly question ourselves each time.