The Unexamined life is not worth living - Socrates

Four Quotes from Socrates to reflect upon

Socrates was a gadfly - a person who questioned the status quo in society. His death sentence by the jury of Athens brought tears to his students and friends. They suggested that he should flee and made plans for the same.

He refused to flout the law thereby teaching his students the final lesson of civic obedience to the law.

Let us look at some of his quotes and see their relevance in our lives.

'The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.'

I recently learned about the Socratic method. In this two people converse on a topic and move from what they think they know. Later they begin to question their assumptions and arrive at a new understanding of a topic. This method is relevant to the social customs and rituals followed in society.

Also, this quote reminds us about the enormity of knowledge in the world. It enables us to be humble as we learn new things.

'Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.'

Sometimes when we look at a person they might be smiling on the outside. We do not know what might be troubling them. We know nothing about their family condition or their mental pressures.

Developing this mindset helps us to be more empathetic to the people we interact with. It makes us feel like saying a 'Thank you" to the housemaid. We could also reach out to our friends and ask them how they are feeling. This is even more important for an administrator in Public Service.

'Falling down is not a failure. Failure comes when you stay where you have fallen.'

In the UPSC journey, we get used to falling down. We might have missed out on clearing the prelims exam. But does it mean the end?

Only if we do not learn from our mistakes, we would have failed. Every time we take efforts to learn from our mistakes, it is a moment of growth.

'Understanding a question is half the answer.'

In the Aspirants web series by TVF, Sandeep Bhaiyya asks Abhilash, "Why do you want to become an IAS officer?" This is one of the most common questions, and yet we may not have understood it completely.

On a daily basis, we practice writing answers to various questions and MCQs. Have we written down the answer to this?

With UPSC essays becoming more philosophical, it will help to think about various quotes. Do let me know who is your favourite thinker or your favourite Quotes. I will try and share my perspectives on them in later posts.

Wishing you a Happy Sunday :)

Satya

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Interesting article that I read this week

If you tend to procrastinate a lot, you should check this out. - Why do procrastinators procrastinate? Tim Urban the author explains this in his Ted Talk