Wisdom lies in cutting one's coat according to one's cloth

This proverb means that we should not spend more than we earn. Wisdom implies making the best use of available resources or prevailing circumstances to the maximum advantage to oneself by using the best of our judgement. In the present day world, when everybody wants to reach out for the moon, the most fundamental problem of economic planning is that the means are limited, and are unlimited and means have alternative uses. Wisdom therefore, lies in rising the available means in such a way that first all out necessary requirements are satisfied, then, if possible, such of the comforts, as are commensurate with our status and resources should be procured. Only after that we should think of luxuries and that too if we can manage it by stretching out resources within reasonable limits. We should never spend more than we earn.

It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God

A rich man's heart is filled with love of money. It is true that a man who loves God may earn money. But he spends it on himself and his fellow beings. He does not become rich. A man becomes rich only when he loves money and hoards if. Such a man does not love God, and therefore he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

You cannot serve God and Mammon

The word Mammon signifies greed or love of wealth. The greedy man is found of money. His heart is filled with love of money. There is no place in his heart for God. If he loved God, his heart would be filled with God, and he would not be able to love money. Thus the man who loves God cannot love Mammon, and the man who loves Mammon cannot love God.

All that glitters are not gold

Appearances are often deceptive. We should take care to find out the

reality behind appearances. We should not be misled by appearances. Gold is

bright and glittering. But every glittering objects are not gold. Good men

are usually polite. But everyone who is polite and well-behaved is not a good

man. A thief may behave politely in order to cheat us. We should therefore be

very careful in dealing with strangers. We should not be deceived by

appearance. As Shakespeare has said, one may smile, and smile, and be a

villain.

A rolling stone gathers no moss

A stone that remains under water gathers moss. But if it goes on

rolling, it does not gather moss. Similarly if a man sticks to a profession,

he gathers experience and becomes an expert in it. But if he goes on changing

his profession, he cannot excel in any profession. For example if a young man

decides to become a carpenter, he should go on working at it. If he works

with preseverance, he will become a good carpenter arter a few years. If he

gives up carpentry after a year, and decides to try his hand at tailoring, he

will become fed up with it after a few months. He will find tailoring very

difficult, and give it up. Then he may try to become a mechanic, and give it

up after a few months. Thus he will become neither a carpenter nor a tailor

nor a mechanic. This proverb emphasizes the importance of perseverance.

An idle brain is the devil's workshop

The human mind can never be inactive. When a man is idle, he is not

engaged in any useful activity. His mind is then open to the influence of

evil thoughts. The devil enters his mind and fills his mind with evil ideas.

Thus his mind becomes the devil's workshop. The only way to protect one's

mind from evil thoughts is to be engaged in good deeds. When a man is engaged

in good deeds, his mind is filled with good thoughts. He has no time to think

of evil.

A stich in time saves nine

When a gown or shirt is torn, we must mend it immediately. If we mend

it immediately a few stitches may be enough. If we do not mend it immediately,

the hole in the gown will become larger and larger. A few weeks later, the

gown will become completely torn. We will have to throw it away and get a new

one stitched. Instead of mending a small hole in the gown, we have to get a

new gown stitched. It is therefore better to mend the small hole as soon as

we see it. If there is anything wrong with a machine, we should get it

repaired immediately. If we neglect it, we will have to spend more time and

money on it. Similarly if we fall ill, we should see a doctor immediately.

Otherwise we will have to spend a lot of money on medical treatment. When

there is an unpleasant situation, we should attend to it immediately.

Otherwise the situation will get out of control.

A little knowledge is a dangerous thing

When we learn something we should learn it throughly. If a man picks

up a little knowledge about electrical instruments, and then tries to repair

an electrical instrument, he is likely to spoil the instrument. If a person

knows a little about medicines, and then tries to treat patients. he is

likely to kill many patients. It is therefore dangerous to know only a little

about something and then to imagine that we know everything. Before applying

our knowledge, we should take care to acquire completely knowledge about the

subject.

A bad workman always quarrels with his tools

When a man does not know how to do his work properly, he blames his

tools. If a boy's handwriting is bad, he says that his pen is bad. He is not

willing to blame himself for his bad handwriting. There is a proverb which

says that an incompetent dancer blames the unevenness of the floor for her

bad dancing. Similarly a bad batsman blames his bat for his bad batting.

Conversely a good workman does his job well even if his tools are not of the

best quality.

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush

We should never belittle the importance of what we have already

obtained. We should not give up what we have in order to gain greater profits

in future. What we may get in future is quite uncertain. Imagine a hunter who

has caught a bird. Immediately after catching the bird, he sees two bird in

the bush. If he gives up the bird in his hand in order to catch the bird in

the bush, he is being foolish. It is quite possible that he may fail in bis

attempt to catch the two birds in the bush. A man may be dissatisfied with

his job. But it would be foolish to give up the job in order to try for a

better job. An officer may he dissatisfied with his lot. He may feel that he

will be happier if he becomes an MLA. But it would be foolish on hes part to

resign his job in order to contest the election. If he is defeated in the

election, he will be jobless.

A sound mind in a sound body

The mind and the body act on each other. If we are worried or

grief-stick en, we become weak in body. Worry may cause headache and other

physical ailments. Conversely, if we are ill, we will become worried. A man

suffering from indigestion may get angry and cause a lot of unhappiness to

the people around him. Physical health is essential to happiness. If the body

is strong and healthy, the mind will also be healthy. We will then be

cheerful and will be able to work with confidence. It is therefore out duty

to deep ourselves physically fit by taking regular exercises.

A thing of beauty is a joy for ever

A beautiful object makes us happy. To see it is a joy. There are some

time. After a few days they do not give us happiness. They may even give us

pain. Such object cannot be said to be truly beautiful. They may be outwardly

beautiful. But that is not true beauty. A thing that is truly beautiful never

ceases to give us joy. It is always beautiful, and it always gives us joy.

A great deal of talent is lost in the world for want of a little courage

A man may have a lot of talent. If he is not courageous, his talent

will be of no use to him. He fails to use his talent, because he is not

courageous enough to use his talent. He is afraid that he may fail in his

attempt, and therefore makes no attempt at all. Thus his talent is lost to

the world. We should be optimistic, and should not lose any opportunity to

make use of out talents. It is only by doing a thing that we know whether we

can do it or not. If we fail in the first attempt, we should try again. That

is the way to success.