7/27/2019 Old Inspirational Stories

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Alexander and Diogenes

Now when Alexander [the Great] appeared before the Greek leaders in Corinth theygreeted him warmly and paid him lavish compliments- all of them, that is but one. A funny fellow, a philosopher named Diogenes. He had views not unlike those of the Buddha. According to him, possessions and all the things we think we needonly serve to distract us and get in the way of our simple enjoyment of life. Sohe had given away everything he owned and now sat, almost naked, in a barrel inthe market square in Corinth where he lived, free and independent like a straydog.Curious to meet this strange fellow, Alexander went to call on him. Dressed in shining armour, the plume on his helmet waving in the breeze, he walked up to thebarrel and said to Diogenes: 'I like you. Let me know your wish and I shall grant it.' Diogenes, who had until then been comfortably sunning himself, replied:'Indeed, Sire, I have a wish.' 'Well, what is it?' 'Your shadow has fallen overme: stand a little less between me and the sun.' Alexander is said to have beenso struck by this that he said: 'If I weren't Alexander, I should like to be Diogenes.'Source: "A Little History Of The World" by E.H. Gombrich

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Testing for gossip

In ancient Greece, Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high esteem. One day an acquaintance met the great philosopher and said, ?Do you know what I just heard about your friend???Hold on a minute,? Socrates replied. ?Before telling me anything I?d like you to pass a little test. It?s called the Triple Filter Test.??Triple filter???That?s right,? Socrates continued. ?Before you talk to me about my friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you?re going to say. That?swhy I call it the triple filter test. The first filter is Truth. Have you madeabsolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true???No,? the man said, ?Actually I just heard about it and ...??All right,? said Socrates. ?So you don?t really know if it?s true or not. Now let?s try the second filter, the filter of Goodness. Is what you are about to tel

l me about my friend something good???No, on the contrary???So,? Socrates continued, ?you want to tell me something bad about him, but you?re not certain it?s true. You may still pass the test though, because there?s one filter left: the filter of Usefulness. Is what you want to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me???No, not really ???Well,? concluded Socrates, ?if what you want to tell me is neither true nor good nor even useful, why tell it to me at all??