Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Fethullah Gulen - Morals

(Video Duration: 2 mins. 29 secs.)

Morals are a set of noble principles that originate in high spirituality and govern human conduct. For this reason people who neglect spirituality and are therefore lacking in spiritual values cannot sustain conduct in accordance with these principles.

Preferring the interests of others over one's own is high spirituality and liberality. Those who always do good without expecting any return one day will bow before God in wonder and admiration when unexpectedly they meet the accumulated results of their considerate nature and all the good they have done.

Just because you are a learned one does not mean that you are truly human. Learned people are freed from carrying the burden of superfluous information and attain greatness to the extent that they serve humanity and set a good example for others through their high morals and virtues. Otherwise they are no more than people who have wasted their lives. Those with high morals and virtues even if they lack learning and as dense as iron may sometimes prove to be a useful and valuable and even as good as gold.

Never deceive anyone even if they deceive you. Fidelity and uprightness are two of the highest virtues. Even if following this advice brings you loss which it usually does always be faithful and upright.

Morals were once thought of as virtues. Today morals are regarded as a collection of rules for social behavior. I wish people would behave in accordance with those rules even though they are not virtuous!

In the past people would say: "The principles of good conduct are no longer practiced; we only see them written down in books." Today they say: "The principles of good conduct are out of date; whatever remains of them is written down in old books." Whatever they say those principles are worth the sacrifice of many new things even though people try to present them as outdated.

Source: Pearls of Wisdom by Fethullah Gulen