Expansion of ideas
1. Slow and Steady Wins the Race
This proverb is a reference the
well-known fable of the hare and the tortoise. While the hare, over-confident
of success, took things too easy, the slow-moving tortoise plodded steadily on
and managed to win the race.
We should not be discouraged by the
size of the task we have to do. If we do it little by little and steadily, we
can achieve success.
Take the case of a student who
labours ‘eighteen hours’ a day near the examination. He cannot ensure brilliant
results that could have been certain even by ‘six hours’ a day study.
Anything done in a hurry cannot have
solid, deep and firm foundations. It is the slow and constant labour that
brings results. For example, a businessman should be patient and calm-minded.
He should look in all directions before striking a bargain. If he is in a
hurry, chances are that he may not consider all aspects fully and thus stand to
lose.
The work done coolly, calmly with a
balanced mind often last longer and proves fruitful than that done by working
against the clock.
Thus while doing anything we must not
forget that nothing worthwhile can be achieved in a single day or overnight and
that every achievement takes time. Patient and persistent effort will beat the
labours of a spasmodic (irregular) person.
2. Rome was not built in a day.
Rome in the proverb stands for any great achievement.
Romulus and Remus built the ancient
city of Rome. It took many years and thousands of workers to construct the
magnificent city of its time. Huge amounts of energy, resources and expenditure
and time were involved in erecting the city that became the envy of the world.
Similarly any great task in life does
not happen overnight. It requires time and effort. It grows out slowly after
years and sometimes even after centuries of careful and patient work.
Take for example the great wonders of
the world. We often admire their greatness but are apt to forget the tremendous
amount of money and material, human labour and time that have gone into their
making.
The Taj Mahal, a marvel of
architectural workmanship took seventeen years to complete. The huge pyramids
of Giza took several generations to attain their overpowering magnitude and
staggering height. The Great Wall of China is another case in point. These
random examples are enough to prove the truth of the saying.
Similarly a student who desires top
the class has to devote most of his time in studying hard. He has to put in
time and effort. He has to plan his schedule in a proper way from day one.
Students who study at the nick of time end up getting bad scores.
Nothing can be achieved in a single
day. There is nothing called instant success. Therefore one should be patient
throughout his journey to reach his goal.
3. A stitch in Time saves Nine.
On the surface, the proverb says that
a thing that needs mending ought to be mended before it assumes serious
proportions.
Take for example a cloth that is a
little torn. It can be easily mended with a single stitch. But if it is
neglected, it requires more stitches. Further neglect may also make it useless.
By extension, the proverb means that
timely action helps us in overcoming problems. Prompt action at an early stage
prevents serious trouble in future.
Take for instance, the breach in a
dam in Gujarat. It was not repaired in the early stages. This resulted in the
bursting of the dam. A water sheet of twenty feet high ran across the village
and thousands of people died in Marui, a beautiful city, in three minutes. It
is case of delay and ‘delays are dangerous’.
Same is the case of a student who
falls into the habit of procrastination. He must read his lessons regularly. He
must not postpone them. If he neglects to study in time he will have to strain
before the examinations. He will have to ‘burn the midnight oil’. It may spoil
his health and in addition there is every danger of forgetting whatever he has
read. He becomes a victim of tension and fear.
A boy stole a pencil from a classmate
and showed it to his grandmother. Instead of questioning him about it she kept
quiet. The boy’s thefts went unchecked until one day he was arrested. If the
boy had been corrected in time, he would not have become a thief. Timely action
would have prevented him from falling into wrong ways. Thus the saying advises
us to take timely action for ” a small hole, if neglected, will sink a big
ship”.
4. A Friend in Need is A Friend Indeed
The proverb stands as a touchstone of
true friendship.
It states that only that person who
helps us when we are in need or difficulty is a true friend.
In our daily life we come across
people who over a period of time become close to us. But we cannot be sure if
they are true friends or just fair-weather friends. Many people develop
contacts with influential people for their benefit. It will be a great mistake
if one considers these apparently close people as friends. The test of true
friendship is in time of difficulties. On the other hand, the fair-weather
friends disappear in times of trails. They find excuses to distance themselves
from us.
But a true friend will always stick
to a person when if that person is in deep trouble. He will be concerned about
the welfare of a person when he considers as a friend. If need be, he will make
every effort to help his friend overcome the difficult situation, instead of
running away from him. As the saying goes, ‘prosperity makes friends and
adversity tries them’.
The Epics of India showcase timeless
illustrations of true friendship. In the Ramayana, it is between Rama and
Sugreva. In the Mahabharata, it is between Krishna and Kuchela; between
Duryodhana and Karna. Such friendship stands the test of time. Such friends are
life’s greatest blessing. Friendship with people like these last a lifetime.
Thus the proverb not only shows the
nature of a true friend but also offers a method of choosing good friends. It
also cautions us of ‘fair-weather’ friends.
5. Actions speak louder than words
It is our common experience to hear
politicians make tall promise before elections, and to conveniently forget them
after they are elected. Their actions do not match their words. That is why we
do not trust them.
Words sound good. But actions prove
the genuineness of one intentions. In olden times a man.s word was a matter of
honour, even unto the point of death. In modern times, people make all kinds of
big promises which they have little intention of keeping. People like to say
nice thing to give a good impression of themselves. But once they have left the
place they think nothing of what they claim to do. We can only call such person
a cheater or a liar. A person who says one thing and does something to the
contrary is a highly irresponsible person, and ought not to be trusted.
We too should develop the habit of
matching our actions with words at all times.
6. Practice Makes Perfect
You cannot become a world-class
musician unless you take up your instrument and play on it daily for hours
together. You cannot become a Tendulkar merely through inborn skill. You have
to go to the nets every day for hours to practise. You need a coach to guide
you an tell you where you go wrong. Merit-holders in board examinations do not
achieve their marks by pure inspiration. They have studied throughout the year
and revised and re-revised and made themselves perfect in whatever they have
set out to study. It is only regular practice that makes one perfect. If you
don‟t practise your work regularly, you
will, at the most, be average in your performance. You will not win prizes or
medals or awards. the most difficult task can be performaed by anyone if they
take the trouble to practise daily and regularly. In fact, you can achieve
almost anything with practice. If you don‟t
practise your work regularly, you will, at the most, be average in your
performance. You will not win prizes or medals or awards. the most difficult
task can be performaed by anyone if they take the trouble to practise daily and
regularly. In fact, you can achieve almost anything with practice. Five fingers
make a hand. A hand makes a handshake. A handshake extends warmth and
friendship and reaches out to the world. India is a land od diverse people,
cultures, religions, languages and geography. Yet, as long as we are united, we
are strong and no one can do us harm. The moment we show any sign of division,
we will be vulnerable and enemies will try to take advantage of the situation.
A team in which the individual members play for their own good cannot win a
match. As long as it plays for the good of the team, it can win. Anything that
we do should be done for the general good, not for the individual. then only
can we achieve victory.
7. God help those who help themselves.
There are students who don‟t study all through the year and then
one day before the examination they go to the temple, make offerings and
perform pooja and think that God will answer their prayers and give them a good
result in the examination. Such students will find, much to their dismay, that
God does not help shirkers. He only helps those who help themselves. There is
the story of a scientist who worked for years in order to find out the cause of
malaria. He had performed hundreds of experiments and almost given up hope. The
he prayed and fell asleep. The next morning he woke up with a new idea in his
hand. He tried it out and lo and behold!, he had found the cure for malaria.
Thus we see that God helps only those who helps themselves. This is because God
has given us all talents, attributes and the thinking power to achieve what we
want. After being given all these, why should we again rely on God to achieve
success? We should rely on the gifts that God has given us to make progress in
life, rather than on God to do it for us.
8. Dreamers create a world of their own
Dreams are an integral part of man’s
life. Whether he is awake or sleep, man loves dreaming. Dreams take us to a
different world ..... a world of our own ..... a world, where no one else can
have any access ........ an imaginary world, where, often, every impossible
thing becomes possible.
Stop dreaming and we come back to the
same old world of limitations and deadlines. Nothing works the way we want and
we face many set – backs and disappointments, frustration and failure. All
inventions and discoveries are a result of man’s dreaming. Great novels and
stories and the scripts for films and plays originate from a mind which
imagined and dreamt.
A dreamer is a happy man. Asleep or
awake, he is in his own world, creating his own thoughts, his own thrills.
Whether one agrees or not, don’t we all love to go to sleep ......and to dream
......... and don’t we all hat to wake up after that ? Yes ! A dream world is
our own world of happiness.
9. All that glitters is not gold
Appearances are often deceptive. Many
things may superficially appear very attractive. When they are examined from
close quarters, they prove to be disappointing. One cannot judge the quality of
a thing by seeing its exterior portion only. Thus it is rightly said "All
that glitters is not gold"
Physical appearance has always been
of great importance for human beings. For centuries, poets have written about
beauty, musicians have sung about it and painters have portrayed beautiful
features on canvas. However, people worry so much about physical appearance
nowadays that sometimes it stops being our ally to become our greatest enemy.
Many things may superficially appear very attractive. When they are examined
from close quarters, they prove to be disappointing. One cannot judge the
quality of a thing by seeing its exterior portion only. We should try to find
out the reality hidden behind their glittering facade. A book with a beautiful
cover has no guarantee of its being interesting.
A beautiful packaged product launched
in the market after massive advertising campaign may attract the consumer. He
may but that product once but if the product is of poor quality, he would not
buy it again. A wise discerning person does not accept things at face value. He
gets suspicious of a person or thing which appears too good to be true. His
trained eyes can see beyond the superficial appearance of an object. Thus this
proverb actually is a warning to enable us to see the real picture and not to
be deceived by the exterior.
10. Pollution : The Bane of Machine Age
Today's world cannot be imagined
without machines. It is not just comfort for all of us but also our basic
necessity. Cell phones, cars, refrigerators, air conditioners, and so on at
every step we are dependant on machines. Life was never so simple just a click
and you are connected to the whole world. But every thing comes with a price
tag. What price are we paying for all the comfort we are enjoying? Our
environment and it is a big price. Every coin has two sides. Machines have
reduced work but also put us in great peril, the only habitat that shelters all
creatures i.e. our planet earth is immensely harmed .Pollution is
slowly degrading our environment
every minute. Environmental pollution is one of the biggest problems the world
faces today. It is an issue that troubles us economically, physically and
everyday of our lives. The contamination of the environment is also being
linked to some of the diseases that are around currently. Yet, most people
pretend that there is no problem because they are dependent and some times
addicted to machines. We must do some thing as soon as possible to curb this
problem, not only for the good of the environment but also for the people that
live in it. Many factors are present for why environmental pollution has become
such a large issue in the world. However, if the people of the world were to
address the issue it would definitely help both the environment and its people.
There are many activities that can be done by both the common people and
governments of the world, which could
improve the environmental problem. On
the other hand, if the current way the world's environmental problem is being
handled continues, catastrophic consequences can follow for the future
population.
Thus machine age brought solutions to
many problems but has also done harm to our environment in the form of
pollution thus putting a question mark on the very existence of human species.
11. Nature, the best teacher
Of all the teachers who have helped
shape my life, I would say Mother Nature has been the best. For not only does
she like a mother nurture her pupils but also like a strict disciplinarian
punishes students who step out of line.
A student of nature learns lessons
throughout his lifetime. He learns about the world around him as nature’s
classrooms have no boundaries or timeframe. Nature has been the inspiration for
some of the greatest human creation, be it ‘Daffodils’ by William Wordsworth or
kung fu moves by the Shaolin monks. Nature has different lessons for different
people. The trees teach us to provide cover to the weak
and tired. They also teach us not to
be rigid in the face of strong opposition and like plants be adaptable. The
animal kingdom teaches us about when to strike, always be on the alert and many
such lessons.
12. As You Sow So Shall you Reap.
This well-known proverb ‘As you sow
so shall you reap’ might have been derived on seeing a farmer. A farmer sows
the seeds expecting to reap a good harvest. If he ploughs his field well,
waters the crop, uses fertilizers and takes pains to see to every aspect of its
growth, naturally he would profit from a bountiful harvest. On the other hand,
if a farmer does not take care of the crop from the time he has sown the seeds,
the final product will not satisfy him. The inherent meaning is that the consequences
depend on the action. Our present makes our future. If you toil and strive and
mould your present well enough, you are bound to reap its fruits. Gandhiji had
rightly said, ‘Power comes from sincere service’. Mother Teresa, on account of
her care and compassion for the poor and destitute, gained love and adulation
from the masses. A child who is well matured and motivated to study well will
surely shine in his academic field and grow up into a good Samaritan. All men
desire the blessings of perfect bliss. We can either make or mar our own
destiny. Each of us can be an architect of our own future and fortune. If he
sows the seeds of sin and corruption, he will reap the harvest of ruin. Hence
our duty is clear, we must be virtuous to achieve happiness, for as we sow so
shall we reap.
13. LAUGHTER IS THE BEST MEDICINE
In an age where man does not find
time to think about himself, laughter can be considered as a good agent of
relaxation. In today’s mechanized and busy life, people don’t get enough time
to socialize. As a result there is no relaxation. Laughter serves as
stress-buster as it releases positive energy. It fills the person with
enthusiasm and zeal and he is ready to face the world again. Nowadays, we can
see many laughter clubs coming up in big cities. These clubs function mainly
because of the drudgery of human life in today’s world. People take
anti-anxiety drugs for relaxation. These drugs have far-reaching effects which
are damaging for the kidneys and other organs of the body. Instead of taking these
medicines if people interact with their family members and friends and have a
hearty laugh then they would be more relaxed. They will get new energy for
their work and it will enhance their performance. Laughter is certainly the
best medicine which has only favourable effects. When a person cracks a joke,
we laugh. When we laugh, the blood circulation within our body improves and as
a result our face glows with radiance. So, next time, you feel low, have a
hearty laugh and feel the difference. You’ll feel refreshed and replenished
with new vigour and enthusiasm.
14. SPEECH IS THE GIFT OF ALL, BUT THOUGHT OF FEW.
Barring people who are dumb, human
beings have been blessed with the gift of speech. Without freedom of speech one
feels curbed, confined and constricted. No man can grow to his fullest stature
without freedom of speech and expression. But while almost every body talks,
few people take the trouble of thinking. Talking comes naturally to a human
being, but thinking requires mental exertion. Everybody is gifted with reason,
but few person make use of this faculty. Man is a rational animal, but all men
do not benefit by the rational faculty. Thinking is, indeed, foreign to most
people. The result is that words are spoken, decisions are taken, and actions
are performed by people without any previous thinking. The want of thinking in
most such cases leads to unpleasant, and even disastrous, consequences. If an
individual says or does something thoughtlessly, he may have to pay heavily for
it. If a politician makes speech without giving due thought to what he says, he
may cause a tumult, an agitation and even a riot. Some people have the gift of
the gab but little capacity for thinking. They often blurt out words, without
realizing the implications of what they are saying. They
are reckless in speech. So thinking
is an essential part of a wise man’s mental equipment. Indeed, a wise man
speaks less and thinks more. And whatever he speaks is the result of his
thinking. But wise men are in small minority in this world. The world is
inhabited largely by talkative people who consider thinking to be an avoidable
hardship.
15. The Fruits of Labour are Sweeter than the gifts of
Fortune.
The meaning of this well known
proverb is ‘a sense of achievement’. Self-satisfaction in life and the feeling
of achievement are of utmost significance of life. Hard work will lead to
success, which will bring in a lot of materialistic pleasures but all these
will give only a temporary satisfaction. The ultimate pleasure is the
satisfaction of body, mind and the soul which can be achieved only through hard
work.
Material achievement is temporary and
can give rise to insecurity. However, the fruits of labour are permanent.
A student who has worked very hard the entire year will find immense happiness
in his excellent results, but a student who has not really worked hard but
through sheer fluke is blessed with an excellent result will not know how to
derive pleasure from it. As is said ‘Failures are stepping stones to success’,
we must learn from failures consistently. Saurav Ganguly was written off by
everyone but he kept his cool and regained his form. Abhishekh Bachhan gave
several flops at the beginning of his career but he didn’t give up. Today, he
is one of the most successful actors. Our own parents and grandparents move
ahead so positively in life despite their ill-health
at times. Isn’t that inspiring
enough? Remember, we control our destiny. Let us emerge stronger and control
our lives instead of letting our lives control us. Let’s be people of substance.
16. WORK IS WORSHIP
All human beings need to live a more
meaningful life than the one they are born with. Work is natural to man. It is
work that adds meaning to life. No matter how adverse the circumstances be, if
one continues to work diligently without losing faith and hope, then his duties
take the form of worship.
If we keep busy working with full diligence and sincerity,
we experience a sense of contentment that a devotee does. God is pleased if we
do our duties. Therefore work is as good as worship. At the end of the day if
the time has been utilized productively, we have a sense of satisfaction which
keeps us physically and mentally healthy. Think how life would be had there
been no work. Work therefore gives us a definite goal and draws us nearer to
God.
17. JUSTICE DELAYED IS JUSTICE DENIED
At his best, man is the noblest of
all animals separated from
law and justice he is worst said
Aristotle but when justice is delayed
it is even worse. Justice is a legal
maxim meaning that if legal redress is available for a party that has suffered
some injury, but is not forth coming in a timely fashion, it is effectively the
same as having no redress at all.
The legal system and the procedure to
deliver justice is one way a government can built trust among the citizens of
that country but when justice is not prompt it is worse than not giving justice
at all as then law can be used as a shield to defend the wrong doer and boost
the moral of all those who violate the law and injure the innocent not just
physically but also mentally. It will bring anarchy and chaos in the society
and life and property will no more remain safe.
Thus if justice is given in a timely
manner than it acts like a strong foundation for a prosperous society for
flourish and burgeon rapidly.
18. Knowledge is Power.
The literal meaning of ‘Knowledge is
Power’ is that power can be obtained or experienced through knowledge. If one
has enough knowledge about something or anything, it helps you become powerful.
One can command the others as the less knowledgeable have to depend on you for
help.
A highly qualified person is
self-sufficient in his profession and can manage a high profile job
efficiently. Similarly , a housewife who is trained in all aspects of running
the house will not need anyone’s advice, for she can manage things smoothly.
People who are fond of reading gain immense knowledge about various things.
They are silent listeners too. This habit helps them tremendously to gain vast
knowledge which works in their favour. A good leader must have knowledge to be able
to control his followers. The followers will look up to him as they lack the
knowledge he possesses A well read, clever student will be respected by his
classmates as well as his teachers. Just like kings and emperors were powerful
due to the vastness of the armies, their weaponry and the strength of the
armies,
ordinary humans can also become
powerful through hard work, dedication, determination and an ambition to be
powerful in the field they have skill and talent. Truly as Bacon says,
“Knowledge is Power”.
19. A Stitch in Time Saves Nine.
This well known proverb ‘A Stitch in
Time Saves Nine’ literally refers to the mending of clothes before they become
irreparable. What is true of clothes is true for anything that needs mending.
The advantage of a stitch in time does not limit itself to fabrics alone.
Figuratively, it refers to health, medicine, morals, education and politics. We
have often heard a doctor telling his patient that an earlier consultation
would have avoided the present painful suffering. a popular story of the son
who had turned into a thief and finally went to the prison. He wished his
mother had used the ‘timely stitch’. On a larger perspective, the French
Revolution could have been avoided
had the French bureaucrats
been intelligent enough to appease
the people in time. In our personal
lives, too, the timely stitches are
of immense value. Before our
wayward tendencies can turn into
confirmed habits, let us apply the stitch in time. Our ancestors must have
realized the importance of ‘timely stitches’ and stored their wisdom in this
proverb for us to benefit by it. They have done their duty. Let us do ours.
20. Example is better than precept.
People generally like to give
advice, but do not like to be advised. All of us are natural-born preachers.
But when it comes to practising what we preach, we make up excuses. Very often
giving advance can become sheer nagging. It can become so irritating that it
has no more or even the opposite effect on the hearer. Children are keen
observers. Even though the elders do not know it, children are all the while
keenly observing their behaviour. They are aware of the gulf between the adults
speech and their actual behaviour, between their words and deeds, between their
preaching and practice. Naturally, they do not pay enough heed to the elders
advise and instruction. By preaching things which they themselves don‟t practise,
the elders only expose themselves as hypocrites and succeed in teaching
youngsters a lesson in hypocrisy. The best way to teach is not to preach but to
set and example by actually putting the preaching into practice. This is
because human beings and especially children, are imitative by nature. In fact,
the instinct to copy is very powerful in human beings. We should make the
fullest use of this instinct to teach children what we want them to learn. If a
father wants his child to never start the habit of smoking, he should first
give up smoking himself. If parents wants their children to pick up good
manners, they should themselves be models of good behaviour. In short, we
should ourselves do what we want others to do. This is because example is
better than precept and deeds are more powerful than words. Actions speak
louder than words. An ounce of practise is more than a ton of precept.
21. Cleanlines is Next to Godliness
An unclean environment is an insult to the Creator.
Everything that God has created is beautiful, and nature has in it the power to
follow the norms of hygiene and sanitation. It is only man who makes his
environment dirty and, very often, and for reasons best known to himself, is
happy to keep it that way. When you go to a place of religious worship, don‟t you bathe first ? Don‟t you put on your clothes? Remember,
this world is our temple and the first norm of cleanliness that we must follow
is that of personal hygiene. This involves keeping one‟s body, clothes, belongings and home
clean. This prevents diseases and prolongs life and its quality. It also makes
the mind fresh and open to do better work. Cleanliness must also extend toward
the neighbourhood and the environment in general. For this, one must develop
clean social and civic habits. It is wrong to spit on the roads, urinate in
public or throw litter anywhere you please. By doing such things we are
defacing the property that belongs to us -our nation. We are also spoiling this
wonderful place that God has given us to live on -our earth.
