Aphorism #69 Do not give way to every common Impulse.

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Aphorism #69 Do not give way to every common Impulse.

He is a great man who never allows himself to be influenced by the impressions of others. Self-reflection is the school of wisdom. To know one's disposition and to allow for it, even going to the other extreme so as to find the juste milieu between nature and art. Self-knowledge is the beginning of self-improvement. There be some whose humours are so monstrous that they are always under the influence of one or other of them, and put them in place of their real inclinations. Theyare torn asunder by such disharmony and get involved in contradictory obligations. Such excesses not only destroy firmness of will; all power of judgment gets lost, desire and knowledge pulling in opposite directions.http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ArtOfWorldlyWisdom?d=yIl2AUoC8zA (http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ArtOfWorldlyWisdom?a=3zxm0qS2J14:kiSRTLru6dg:yIl2A UoC8zA) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ArtOfWorldlyWisdom?d=qj6IDK7rITs (http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ArtOfWorldlyWisdom?a=3zxm0qS2J14:kiSRTLru6dg:qj6ID K7rITs)
http://www.online-literature.com//feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ArtOfWorldlyWisdom/~4/3zxm0qS2J14

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Aphorism #69 Do not give way to every common Impulse.

He is a great man who never allows himself to be influenced by the impressions of others. Self-reflection is the school of wisdom. To know one's disposition and to allow for it, even going to the other extreme so as to find the juste milieu between nature and art. Self-knowledge is the beginning of self-improvement. There be some whose humours are so monstrous that they are always under the influence of one or other of them, and put them in place of their real inclinations. Theyare torn asunder by such disharmony and get involved in contradictory obligations. Such excesses not only destroy firmness of will; all power of judgment gets lost, desire and knowledge pulling in opposite directions.http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ArtOfWorldlyWisdom?d=yIl2AUoC8zA (http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ArtOfWorldlyWisdom?a=3zxm0qS2J14:kiSRTLru6dg:yIl2A UoC8zA) http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ArtOfWorldlyWisdom?d=qj6IDK7rITs (http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/ArtOfWorldlyWisdom?a=3zxm0qS2J14:kiSRTLru6dg:qj6ID K7rITs)
http://www.online-literature.com//feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ArtOfWorldlyWisdom/~4/3zxm0qS2J14

More... (http://www.balthasargracian.com?id=69)

I know of a few people who "never allow (themselves) to be influenced by the impressions of others". There's the hack poet who thinks he's a poetic genius. Every poetry journal rejects his poetry; all his friends tell him his poetry is bad. He doesn't listen. There's the quack doctor who thinks he has developed a cure for cancer. His patients die; his double blind placebo studies show no results. He doesn't care. Then there's the insane man who thinks he's Napoleon. His family tells him he's not Napoleon; his doctor tells him he's not Napoleon. He doesn't listen. He thinks "self reflection is the school of wisdom", and his reflections lead him be believe that he IS Napoleon.

If "self-knowledge is the beginning of self-improvement", I'd suggest that we learn more about ourselves by reflecting on things outside ourselves than by "self-reflection". Study art, study literature, study physics or mathematics. Allow yourself "to be influenced by the impressions of others". He who would find himself must lose himself.