Riches are a cause of evil, not because, of themselves, they do any evil, but because they goad men on to evil.
Interpretation
Wealth can lead people to commit immoral acts when they become overly focused on it.
This quote by Posidonius suggests that it is not wealth itself that is inherently evil, but rather the pursuit of riches and the obsession with material possessions that can drive individuals to engage in unethical behavior. The idea is that wealth can act as a catalyst for negative actions, revealing the darker aspects of human nature when individuals are tempted by greed and desire.
In practice
During a lecture on ethics and morality, one could use this quote to discuss the potential negative impacts of wealth.
He hated it when adults told him he only felt the way he did because he was young. As if being young was like being insane or drunk, like the convictions he held were hallucinations caused by a mental illness that could only be cured by waiting five years.
Everything can be sacrificed for truth, but truth cannot be sacrificed for anything.
None of us can know what we are capable of until we are tested.
All good qualities must be sown and cultivated. We canβt expect to change overnight from an ordinary person into one with high realizations.
here is a great difference between knowing a thing and understanding it. You can know a lot and not really understand anything.
in times like the present, men should utter nothing for which they would not willingly be responsible through time and eternity.
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