This is the 3rd set of proverbs – old and time-tested bits of wisdom that have traveled down the centuries and are, in my inion, valid even today. Hope it does not bore you ….....
Every cloud has a silver lining – a stock phrase to soothe ruffled feathers. When faced with a problem that has no easy solution, it is customary to console the aggrieved by suggesting that he approach the actual Gods rather than the lesser Gods.
Exception proves the rule – some people thrive on exceptions. To them, anything out of the ordinary is not bound by any rule. When you board a train, it is expected that you will reach your destination in one piece. If not on schedule then probably several hours later. But – when you arrive at your destination in several pieces packed in a crate – the authorities say ‘this should not have happened. This is an exception.’
Give him an inch and he will take a yard – we see this happening regularly. In a bus, when you see an elderly person standing and offer him a seat by squeezing yourself, he reciprocates by going off to sleep by putting his head on your shoulder. Similar is the case in reserved compartments of long distance trains. You try to be nice to some short distance traveler and, in a very short time, regret the decision and wish that you had not succumbed to the ‘feel good’ factor!
Honesty is the best policy – therefore support only honest corruption. Do not be misled by so called well-wishers who try to win your confidence by saying that ‘aap ka chinta hamare upar chhor dijiye, hum sab kuch dekh lenge!’ He is bound to ditch you.
He laughs best who laughs last – laughter is an expression of happiness. Situations where one can laugh his heart out are fast vanishing. Laughing clubs have sprung up to remind us that laughter is the best medicine. Today, we have laughter forced upon us as comic interludes to break the monotony of song and dance sequences in our Bollywood movies. These movies transform our world into worlds of fantasy and make believe where lost siblings reunite in the last scene as the bad ones get thrashed. Everything miraculously fits into place in the last scene! How unreal!! How we miss the good old days of Laurel and Hardy, Mehmood and Kishore Kumar.
Look before you leap – this is especially true in the night when walking down to your house from the bus stop or the market. All the roads, lanes and by lanes in any city resemble craters on the Moon. Potholes abound – mischievous ones suggest that these are intentional creations of nearby slum dwellers. To rid you of your belongings. If you miss your step, they will shift you to the hospital.
Make hay while the Sun shines – thanks to technology, the Sun can be made to shine at our will. We have invented incubators – to control the production of poultry chickens. We also have scientific methods within our grasp of generating artificial ‘sunlight’ that can convert grass into hay. So hay need not wait for the Sun to shine.
Man proposes God disposes – you plan a journey and numerous hurdles appear. The train may be delayed indefinitely or be cancelled. The flight may not take off due to fog. If it does take off, it may not land at your destination – again due to bad weather. You feel these are what God had ordained. You are grossly mistaken. These are results of the ineptness of those in charge.
