Five additional thoughts I took from reading Kenko's classic.
*A man who imitates a criminal is a criminal. A man who imitates a lunatic and screams in the streets is a lunatic. Thus a man who studies wisdom, even if merely in imitation, must be called wise.
*The man who thinks of the night in the morning and of the morning in the night is unaware of the danger in the laziness of mind which arises in a moment. If the present moment was all, the difficulty in doing many things would be imperceptible.
*A pitiful ruler allows his people to become cold or hungry. To then punish those who steal in order to alleviate their own suffering proves the ruler's incompetence.
*If we learned of current drinking customs as if it were the behavior of a distant and newly discovered society, surely we would find the behavior most peculiar.
*The boor speaks with authority on all subjects. Better to wait until questioned before speaking on a matter, even if the topic is an area of personal expertise.
