120 philosophical essays you must read in your life

Chapter 89

Chapter 5, Section 10

[UK] Maugham
Oddly enough, we are much more forgiving of our own faults than we are of other people's faults.I think it is probably because we have a very clear understanding of the background of our mistakes.We are often so focused on the mistakes of others that even when we have to face up to our own mistakes, we always feel that they can be forgiven.This is because whether we are good or bad in ourselves, we have to live with ourselves.

However, our attitude towards judging others is quite different.When we use another set of eyes, we often make other people feel bad and merciless.To take a small example: if we found out that others were lying, how harshly would our condemnation be!But who can say that he has never told a lie?Maybe more than a hundred times!

Human nature is a mixture of greatness and smallness, goodness and evil, sublime and humbleness, and everyone is so similar.Some people may have stronger personalities and more opportunities, so they can express their nature more freely, but the human nature at the bottom is the same.As far as I am concerned, I am neither better nor worse than most people. If I were to record my outer actions, inner thoughts, and thoughts in my mind, the world would definitely say that I am a corrupt character. the devil.Understanding this truth will make us tolerant.

At the same time, it is true that one does not have to be too strict in blaming oneself, but should one be more tolerant of the faults of others, even a well-known virtuous person?

【Together with you】

Life is a colorful stage.It continues to stage all kinds of warm and cold human relationships and worldly conditions, and people in real life must be able to bear all these.

At this time, please don't forget that there are only two words in the world that can turn fighting into jade: tolerance.

Tolerance is a life attitude of a broad-minded person in dealing with others.Lin Xiangru's tolerance was exchanged for the combination of generals and prime ministers who will last forever; Hugo once told us: "The widest thing in the world is the ocean, the wider than the ocean is the sky, and the wider than the sky is the human heart." Know tolerance, so that you will not be disappointed with selfishness, hypocrisy, jealousy, and arrogance, and you will use the grandeur to feel the joy of meeting and smiling.A wise man will always use tolerance, the sword of wisdom, to cut off the endless stumbling block of retribution.On the contrary, there will never be happiness and tranquility in a world without tolerance.That is why we should remember to "bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, endure all things".

Tolerance is not only to be lenient to others, but also to be kind to yourself.We are not saints, we "have our loveliness and our disappointments".Life is short, we don't need to waste our lives in the vortex of self-blame, be more tolerant to ourselves, there will be a wide world open for us in the transcendence.

The world is like chess, let a move not be a loss to me; the heart is like the sea, only the rivers and rivers can accommodate others.Treat others and yourself with a tolerant attitude, and you will have a happy and peaceful life.The degree to which a friend believes is the depth of the relationship.If you don't be friends, it's enough. If you are friends, you have to be responsible for each other.The degree of friendship is the degree of responsibility.

(End of this chapter)