I am bound to tell what I am told, but not in every case to believe it.
Interpretation
One should share what they have learned but maintain a critical perspective on the information received.
This quote from Herodotus highlights the importance of discernment in our communication. While it is crucial to share knowledge and experiences as we learn them, it is equally important to approach information with skepticism and an analytical mindset. Blind acceptance can lead to misinformation, so one should evaluate the credibility of what is conveyed before integrating it into their understanding.
In practice
During a history lecture, discussing the importance of evaluating sources.
The Scythians take kannabis seed, creep in under the felts, and throw it on the red-hot stones. It smolders and sends up such billows of steam-smoke that no Greek vapor bath can surpass it. The Scythians howl with joy in these vapor-baths, which serve them instead of bathing, for they never wash their bodies with water.
The man who has planned badly, if fortune is on his side, may have had a stroke of luck; but his plan was a bad one nonetheless.
Men trust their ears less than their eyes.
Great deeds are usually wrought at great risks.
The worst pain a man can have is to know much and be impotent to act.
All men's gains are the fruit of venturing.
The superior man, when resting in safety, does not forget that danger may come. When in a state of security he does not forget the possibility of ruin. When all is orderly, he does not forget that disorder may come. Thus his person is not endangered, and his States and all their clans are preserved.
Thought-habits can harden into character. So watch your thoughts.
For the most part, we inherit our opinions. We are the heirs of habits and mental customs.
If you evade suffering you also evade the chance of joy. Pleasure you may get, or pleasures, but you will not be fulfilled. You will not know what it is to come home.
Take responsibility for your last bad decision, and then let it go. Don't blame others or make excuses for yourself.
I just thought I‘d never look good in what everybody else wore. So there’s no point trying. You just have to do what suits you, and it doesn’t matter if you don’t look like everybody else. Be you. That’s our gift and we’ve got to celebrate that, but it does take ages. I was wracked with self-doubt for years. I get spasms of it even now – I’m not indelibly self-confident.
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