If It Is Not Right, Do Not Do It; If Not True, Do Not Say It

answered by Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book XII

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🎬 TODAY'S FILM — IT ASKS THIS

Michael Clayton (2007)

dir. Tony Gilroy · USA

There comes a moment when one who has long looked away suddenly realizes whose side he has been on. To keep a comfortable place, he need only keep his eyes shut; but a truth once seen cannot be unseen. What does a conscience arrived late demand?

THE QUESTION THE FILM ASKS

To keep my comfort, have I kept my eyes shut to what I knew was not right?

THE CLASSIC'S ANSWER · ORIGINAL

εἰ μὴ καθῆκον, μὴ πρᾶξον· εἰ μὴ ἀληθές, μὴ εἰπέ

📜 THE CLASSIC'S ANSWER

If it is not right, do not do it; if it is not true, do not say it.

💡 TL;DR

These two sentences of Marcus Aurelius are simple but leave nowhere to hide: if it is not right, do not do it; if it is not true, do not say it.

📝The Classic Answers

These two sentences of Marcus Aurelius are simple but leave nowhere to hide: if it is not right, do not do it; if it is not true, do not say it. To one who has long looked away, these words arrive late. But a truth once seen will not shut again. A conscience arrived late cannot erase past blindness, yet it can change the hand from now on. When comfort and rightness part ways, I choose to set myself before these two sentences.

— ONGO · Curator

🌱Apply It Today

Pick one thing you've been looking away from, and answer honestly the two questions: 'Is it right? Is it true?'

📖 Classic Source: Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book XII. Ancient text in the public domain; rendered and interpreted independently by ONGO.
The film is honored as an equal questioner; its plot is rendered only as a universal dilemma. The classic source is an ancient text (Public Domain), and the reflection is 100% original ONGO content.