"The stab of the tongue penetrates more than the stab of the spear, and the wounds from words are more difficult than those from the arrow." -An Arabian Saying
Once Lord Rama and Lakshmana were walking in the forest. Lakshmana was joyously praising his elder brother, Bharatha, for his selfless attitude. Lord Rama was all ears and he enjoyed listening to Lakshmana. Suddenly, he shifted the conversation and started speaking ill of Kaykeyi and Mantara.
No sooner did he start speaking ill of Kaykeyi, Rama immediately asked Lakshmana to keep quiet and said he no longer wished to continue with the conversation. Well! A powerful lesson can be learned from this small incident from the much revered mythological tale, The Ramayana. Rama, who was the embodiment of all virtues, refrained his brother from continuing the conversation for his own good. In the karmic sense, the bad karma of the person being gossiped about will be transferred to the person who is
gossiping.
A human’s inherent nature is to derive pleasure by judging others in a negative way. It requires a lot of effort from an individual to overlook the flaws of another person. A healthy mind can seldom think ill of others. Who on this earth is perfect? Accepting people, and their flaws, can give great inner satisfaction than highlighting their negative traits.
To quote the Bible: “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not and you will not be condemned; forgive and you will be forgiven;” These words from the bible have a lot to convey. Who are we to point out a finger at others’ mistakes when
the other four fingers are pointing at us?
Judging people has its own ill effects. We end up being isolated and can easily lose the trust of the people around us. Negativity and gossip can often create confusion and it may result in hurt feelings, unpleasantness, and low morale.
But, when a little pat on the back is given to the people surrounding us, it not only does a world of good to the individuals who are
involved but also brings us a feeling of elation. Why not take a pledge to avoid badmouthing in every situation we face for the betterment of ourselves?