Respect and Sophrosyne
July 16, 2007
The humorous cleverness of one ILP member, who gave me a good laugh, has prompted me to write/assemble this piece on respect – because the member’s posts do not show they have true respect for others or self-respect (each type reflects the other and they are inseparable). This piece is not produced in a state of bruised ego, but in objectivity for the sake of understanding. Impudent or disrespectful people feel insecure and threatened, and delusively feel that their continued existence depends on being offensive, on putting others down to maintain their worthless ego’s position. But I’m not pretending be perfect – I’ve expressed my sad share of impudence in times past.
A philosopher deals in words, and people are his/her teachers. All people have a sacred essence, therefore deserve respect. Pythagoras coined the word “philosophy”, and I consider it to be one of his subtle esoteric symbols, meaning not “love of wisdom”, but “love wisdom”, love being implicit in wisdom.
Respect is encouraged by the conscience as you speak to a person right in front of you. A respectful person is naturally in awe of what they see in one of God’s representatives (i.e., anyone, including the benighted) in one’s physical presence. But the weak person hiding behind a “mask of anonymity/internet” tends to say things they would not say to your face. Nevertheless one may consider what Confucius said in the Analects 15.26: “The Superior Man does not promote a man because of his words, and does not disregard the words because of the man.” Regarding the basic necessity of respect, the Analects 13:19 relates: Fan Chih asked about jen. Confucius said, “Be naturally courteous, be respectful in working for superiors and be sincere to people. Even the barbarian tribes cannot do without this.”
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D E F I N I T I O N S…
RESPECT noun 3) admiration for or the sense of the worth or excellence of a person, a personal quality or trait, or something considered as a manifestation of a personal quality or trait. 5) the condition of being esteemed or honored: to be held in respect. v.t. 8) to hold in esteem or honor 9) to show regard or consideration for
IMPUDENT 1) of, pertaining to, or characterized by boldness, impertinence or effrontery 2) Obs. shameless or brazenly immodest [L. impudent, shameless] SYN insulting, rude; saucy, pert, presumptuous, fresh; brazen ANT courteous.
IMPUDENCE 1) … insolence 2) impudent conduct or language
MODEST 1) having or showing a moderate or humble estimate of one’s merits, importance, etc. … 4) having or showing regard for the decencies of behaviour, speech, etc.
MODESTY 1) the quality of being modest; freedom from vanity, boastfulness, etc. 2) regard for decency of behaviour, speech etc. 3) simplicity; moderation.
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I found this, praising modesty and temperance, in the introduction to Plato’s dialogue, Charmides, in Plato The Collected Dialogues, ed. Hamilton/Cairns:
From Plato here are two more extracts regarding modesty and its antonym impudence:
[Modesty is a form of approved behaviour deemed to be based on a fear that one may be slandered and feel shame as a result of modesty’s opposite, impudence:]
Athenian: “Now does a lawgiver, or any other man worth his salt, hold this sort of fear in the highest honor? He calls it modesty, and regards the kind of confidence contrary to it, which he calls impudence, as universally one of the gravest evils in private or public life”. (Laws 1, Plato)
[Further to the concept that “anarchy begins in music”, or the unconscious abuse of its power:]
Athenian: “But, as things are with us, music has given occasion to a general conceit of universal knowledge and contempt for law, and liberty has followed in their train. Fear was cast out by confidence in supposed knowledge, and the loss of it gave birth to impudence. For to be unconcerned for the judgment of one’s betters in the assurance which comes of a reckless excess of liberty is nothing in the world but reprehensible impudence.” (Laws 3, Plato)
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The Bible on the Power of the Word:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word as with God, and the Word was God. (St. John 1.1 KJV) The considered implication here is that evil begins with the abuse of words (the Word, or Logos).
By thy words thou shalt be judged, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned. (Matthew 12:37). It is the God principle (spiritual law) that condemns a man – it is not a man or woman’s place to judge or condemn.
Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man. (Matthew 15:11)
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The Bible on judgment (read condemnation):
Judge not … For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. (Matthew 7:1)
and my paraphrase “Judge not lest ye judge yourself” (Matthew 7:1) The “good man”, knowing he also has evil, does not reject “evil men”, thereby not rejecting himself." Paraphrasing Matthew 7:1, to judge another is to judge oneself. In this case, persons being judged unworthy of respect. Even if the judgment is unconscious, Nature’s penalty is the same, and often provided by the offender’s conscience.
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The fate of the proud:
The hard and strong will fall. The soft and weak will overcome. (Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, 76)
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On the devolutionary progression of disrespect, lack of love (hatred), and murder:
Where we do not respect, we soon cease to love. (Disraeli, Young Duke, 1831)
Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. (1 John 3.15)
Hitler had the spirit of God in him; that spirit was suppressed by the ungodly intolerance of his thoughts; with the negative power of the Word and its influence over weak minds, he encouraged degenerate forces to escalate. (Daorley Downy)
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Finally:
To understand everything is to forgive everything. (French proverb)
Understanding the frustration or repression behind disrespect or impudence is required. For many this will not be possible without the mathematical key referred to as “the key of knowledge” (Luke 11:52) and “the keys of the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 16:19). Why we are as we are is alluded to in “As is his name, so is he” (1 Samuel 25.25, KJV) and amazingly, in The Catholic Catechism, “No. 203, God Reveals His Name” – “A name expresses a person’s essence and identity and the meaning of this person’s life”. The esoteric meaning of that essence through a person’s name is that it is mathematical. Forgiveness, respect and love, like all things, have their origin in mathematics and mathematical balance.