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Speaker 1: Self reliance. Every young man ought to read Emerson's Essay

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on self Reliance. It is the manliest, most virile essay

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that was ever penned. It is calculated to cure alike

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those two mental maladies common to youth, namely self deprecation

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and self conceit. It is almost as sure to reveal

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to the prig the smallness and emptiness of his vanity

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as it is to show the bashful man the weakness

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and ineffectuality of his dividends. It is a new revelation

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of manly dignity, as much a revelation as any that

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was vouchsafed to ancient seer and profit, and perhaps a

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more practical, eminently suited to his mechanic age, coming as

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it does from a modern prophet of a new type

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and called in a new race. And its chief merit

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is its powerfully tonic quality. Let not self reliance be

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confounded with self conceit, For as high and excellent as

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the one, just so low and worthless as the other,

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there cannot be anything mean in self reliance, while in

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self conceit there cannot be anything great. The man that

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never says no when questioned on subjects of which he

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is entirely ignorant to avoid as he imagines being thought ignorant,

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but confidently puts forth guesses and assumptions as knowledge, will

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be known for his ignorance and ill esteemed for his

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added conceit. An honest confession of ignorance will command respect,

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where a conceited assumption of knowledge will elicit contempt. The timid,

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apologetic man who seems almost afraid to live, who fears

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that he will do something not in the approved way

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and will subject himself to ridicule, is not a full man.

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He must imitate others and has no independent action. He

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needs that self reliance which will compel him to fall

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back on his own initiative, and so become a new

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example instead of the slavish follower of an old one.

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As for ridicule, he who is hurt by it is

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no man. The shafts of mockery and sarcasm cannot pierce

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the strong armor of the self reliant man. They cannot

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reach the invincible citadel of his honest heart to sting

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or wound it. The sharp arrows of irony may rain

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upon him, but he laughs as they are deflected by

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the strong breastplate of his confidence, and fall harmless about him.

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Trust thyself, says Emerson. Every heart vibrates to that iron string.

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Throughout the ages, men have so far leaned, and do

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still lean upon external makeshifts instead of standing upon their

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own native simplicity and original dignity. The few who have

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had the courage so to stand have been singled out

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and elevated as heroes. And he is indeed the true

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hero who has the hardihood to let his nature speak

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for itself, who has that strong metal that enables him

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to stand upon his own intrinsic worth. It is true

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that the candidate for such heroism must endure the test

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of strength. He must not be shamed from his ground

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by the bugbears of the initiate conventionalist. He must not

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fear for his own reputation or position, or for his

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standing in the church, or his prestige in local society.

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He must learn to act and live as independently of

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these considerations as he does of the current fashions in

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the Antipodes. Yet, when he has endured this test, and

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stander and odium have failed to move or afflict him,

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he has become a man, indeed one that society will

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have to reckon with and finally accept on his own terms.

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Sooner or later all men will turn to the guidance

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of the self reliant man, And while the best minds

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do not make a prop of him, they respect and

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value his work and worth, and recognize his place among

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the goods that have gone before. It must not be

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thought in indication of self reliance to scorn to learn.

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Such an attitude is born of a stubborn superciliousness, which

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has the elements of weakness and is prophetic of a fall,

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rather than the elements of strength and the promise of

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high achievement, which are characteristic of self reliance. Pride and

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vanity must not be associated with Self rests upon incidentals

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and impertinencies on money, clothing, property, prestige, position, and these

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lost all is lost. Self reliance rests upon essentials and principles,

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on worth, probity, purity, sincerity, character, truth, and whatever may

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be lost is of little account, for these are never lost.

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Pride tries to hide its ignorance by ostentation and assumption,

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and is unwilling to be thought a learner in any direction.

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It stands during its little fleeting day on ignorance and appearance,

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and the higher it is lifted up to day, the

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lower it will be cast down tomorrow. Self reliance has

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nothing to hide and is willing to learn. And while

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there can be no humility where pride is, self reliance

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and humility are compatible. Nay more, they are complimentary. And

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the sublime form of self reliance is only found associated

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with the profoundest humility. Extremes meet, says Emerson. And there

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is no better example than the haughtiness of humility. No aristocrat,

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no prince born to the purple, can begin to compare

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with the self respect of the saint. Why is he

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so lowly but that he knows that he can well

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afforded resting on the largness of the God in him.

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It was Buddha who, in this particular said, those who

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either now or after I am dead, shall be a

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lamp unto themselves, relying upon themselves only, and not relying

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upon any external help, but holding fast to the truth

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is their lamp, and seeking their salvation in the Truth alone,

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shall not look for assistance to any one beside themselves.

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It is they among my disciples who shall reach the

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very topmost height. But they must be willing to learn.

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In this saying, the repeated insistence on the necessity for

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relying upon oneself alone, coupled with the final exhortation to

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be eager to learn, is the wisest utterance on self

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reliance that I know. In it, the great teacher comprehends

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that perfect balance between self trust and humility which the

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man of truth must acquire. Self trust is the essence

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of heroism. All great men are self reliant, and we

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should use them as teachers and exemplars, not as props

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and perambulators. A great man comes who leans upon no one,

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but stands alone in the solitary dignity of truth and straightway,

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the world begins to lean upon him, begins to make

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him an excuse for spiritual indolence and a destructive self abasement.

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Better than cradling our vices in the strength of the

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great would be to newly light our virtues at their

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luminous lamp. If we rely upon the light of another,

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darkness will overtake us. But if we rely upon our

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own light, we have to but keep it burning. We

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may draw light from another and communicate with it, but

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to think it sufficient while our own lamp is rusting

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is neglect, is shortly to find ourselves abandoned in darkness.

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Our own inner light is the light which never fails us.

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What is the inner light of the Quakers but another

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name for self reliance. We should stand upon what we are,

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not upon what another is. But I am so small

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and poor, you may say, will stand upon that smallness,

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and presently it will become great. A babe's needs are

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to suckle and cling, but not so a man. Henceforth

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he goes upon his own limbs. Men pray to God

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to put their hands that which they are framed to

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reach out for, to put into mouth the food for

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which they should strenuously labor. But men will outgrow this

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spiritual infancy. The time will come when men will no

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more pay a priest to pray for them and preach

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to them. Man's chief trouble is a mistrust of himself,

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so that the self trusting man becomes a rare and

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singular spectacle. If a man look upon himself as a

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warm what can come out of him but an ineffection wriggling. Truly,

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he that humbleth shall be exalted, but not he that

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degradeth himself. A man should see himself as he is,

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and if there is any unworthiness in him, he should

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get rid of it and retain and rely upon that

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which is of worth. A man is only debased when

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he debases himself. He is exalted when he lives an

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exalted life. Why should a man with ceaseless iterations draw

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attention to his fallen nature? There is a false humility

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which takes a sort of pride in vice. If one

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has fallen, it is that he may rise and be

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the wiser for it. If a man falls into a ditch,

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he does not lie there and call upon every passer

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by to mark his fallen state. He gets up and

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goes on his way with greater care. So if one

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has fallen into the ditch of vice, let him rise

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and be cleansed, and go on his way rejoicing. There

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is not a fear in life wherein a man's influence

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and prosperity will not be considerably increased by even a

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measure of self reliance. And to the teacher, whether secular

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or religious, to organizers, managers, overseers, and in all positions

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of control and command, it is an indispensable equipment. The

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four grand qualities of self reliance are one decision two

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steadfastness three dignity four independence. Decision makes a man strong.

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A man who is to play a speaking part, however small,

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in the drama of life, must be decisive and know

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what he is about. Whatever he doubts, he must not

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doubt his power to act. He must know his part

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in life and put all energy into it. He must

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have some solid ground of knowledge from which to work

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and stand securely on that. It may only be the

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price and quality of stock, but he must know his

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work thoroughly and know that he knows it. He must

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be ready at any time to answer for himself when

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his duty is impugned. He should be so well grounded

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upon his particular practice as to not be effected with

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hesitation on any point or in any emergence. It is

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a true saying that the man that hesitates is lost.

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No one believes in him who does not believe in himself,

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who doubts, halts and wavers, and cannot extricate himself from

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the tangled threads of two courses. Who would deal with

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the tradesman who did not know the price of his

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own goods or was not sure where to find them.

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A man must know his business. If he does not

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know his own, who shall instruct him. He must be

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able to give a good report of the truth that

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is in him. He must have that touch which skill

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in knowledge can only impart. Certainty is a great element

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in self reliance. To have weight, a man must have

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some truth to impart, and all skill is a communication

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of truth. He must speak with authority, and not as

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the scribes. He must master something and know he has

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mastered it, so as to deal with it lucidly and understandingly,

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in the way of a master, and not to remain

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always as an apprentice. Indecision is a disintegrating factor. A

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minute's faltering may turn back the current course of success.

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Men who are afraid to decide quickly for fear of

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making a mistake nearly always make a mistake. When they

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do act the quickest in thought and action are less

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liable to blunder. And it is better to act with

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decision and make a mistake than to act with indecision

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and make a mistake, for in the former case there

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is but error, but in the latter weakness is to error.

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A man should be decided always both where he knows

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and where he does not know. He should be as

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ready to say no as to say yes, as quick

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to acknowledge his ignorance as to impart his knowledge. If

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he stands upon fact and acts from the simple truth,

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he will find no room for halting between two opinions.

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Make up your mind quickly and act decisively. Better still,

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have a mind that is already made up, and then

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the decision will be instinctive and spontaneous. Steadfastness arises in

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the mind that is quick to decide. It is indeed

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a final decision upon the best course of conduct and

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the best path of life. It is the vow of

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the soul to stand firmly by its principles, whatever betide.

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It is neither necessary nor unnecessary that there be any

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written or spoken vow, for unswerving loyalty to a fixed

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principle is the spirit of all vows. The man without

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fixed principles will not accomplish much. Expediency is the quagmire

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in a thorny waste, in which a man is continually

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sticking in the shifting mud of his own moral looseness,

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and is pricked and scratched with the thorns of his

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own self created disappointments. One must have some solid ground

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on which to stand among one's fellows. He cannot stand

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on the bog of concession. Shiftiness is a vice of weakness,

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and the vices of weakness do more to undermine character

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and influence than the vices of strength. The man that

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is vicious through excess of animal strength takes a shorter

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cut to truth. When one understands that power is adaptable

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to both good and bad ends, it will not surprise

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him that the drunkards and harlots should reach the Kingdom

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of Heaven before the diplomatic religionists. They are at least

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thorough in the course which they have adopted, vile though

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it may be, and thoroughness is strength. It only needs

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that strength to be turned from bad to good, and

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lo the loath sinner has become the lofty saint. A

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man should have a firm, fixed, determined mind. He should

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decide upon those principles which are best to stand by

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in all issues, and which will most safely guide him

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through the maze of conflicting opinions and inspire him with

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unflinching courage in the battle of life. Having adopted his principles,

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they should be more to him than gain or happiness,

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more even than life itself. And if he never deserts them,

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he will find that they will never desert him. They

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will defend him from all enemies, deliver him safely from

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all dangers, light his pathway through all darkness and difficulties.

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They will be to him a light in darkness, a

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resting place from sorrow, and a refuge from the conflicts

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of the world. Dignity clothes as with a majesty garment.

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The steadfast mind, he who is as unyielding as a

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bar of steel when he is expected to compromise with evil,

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and as supple as a willow wand in adapting himself

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to that which is good, carries about with him a

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dignity that calms and uplifts others by its presence. The

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unsteady mind, the mind that is not anchored to any

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fixed principles, that is stubborn where its own desires are threatened,

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and yielding where its own moral welfare is at stake,

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has no gravity, no balance, no calm composure. The man

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of dignity cannot be downtroddened and enslaved because he has

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ceased to tread upon and enslave himself, he at once

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disarms with a look, a word, a wise and suggestive silence,

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any attempt to demean him. His mere presence is a

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wholesomer proof to the flippant and the unseemly, while it

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is a rock of strength to the lover of the good.

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But the chief reason why the dignified man commands respect

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is not only that he is supremely self respecting, but

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that he graciously treats all others with a due esteem.

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Pride loves itself and treats those beneath it with supercilious contempt.

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For love of self and contempt for others are always

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found together in equal degrees, so that the greater the

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self love, the greater the arrogance. True dignity arises not

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from self love, but from self sacrifice, that is, from

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unbiased adherence to a fixed central principle. The dignity of

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the judge arises from the fact that, in the performance

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of his duty, he sets aside all personal consideration and

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stands solely upon the law. His little personality, impermanent in fleeting,

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becomes nothing, while the law, enduring and majestic, becomes all.

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Should a judge in deciding a case forget the law

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and fall into personal feeling and prejudice, his dignity would

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be gone. So the man of a stately pure character

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stands upon the divine law and not upon personal feeling.

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For immediately when a man gives way to passion, he

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has sacrificed dignity and takes his place as one of

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the multitude of the unwise and uncontrolled. Every man will

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have composure and dignity in the measure that he acts

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from a fixed principle. It only needs that the principle

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be right and therefore unassailable, so long as a man

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abides by such a principle and does not waver or

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descend into the personal element attacking passions, prejudices, and interests. However,

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powerful will be weak and ineffectual before the conquerable strength

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of an incorruptible principle, and will at last yield their

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combined and eyes unseemly confusion to his single and majestic right.

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Independence is the birthright of the strong and well controlled man.

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All men love and strive for liberty. All men aspire

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to some sort of freedom. A man should labor for

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himself or for the community unless he is a cripple,

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a chronic invalid, or is mentally irresponsible. He should be

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ashamed to depend upon others for all he has, giving

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nothing in return. If one imagines that such a condition

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is freedom, let him know that it is one of

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the lowest forms of slavery. The time will come when

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to be a drone in the human hive, even as

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matters are now, a respectable drone and not a poor tramp,

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will be a public disgrace, and will no longer be respectable. Independence, freedom,

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glorious liberty come through labor, and not from idleness. And

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the self reliant man is too strong, too honorable, too

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upright to depend upon others like a sucking babe for

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his support. He earns, with hand or brain the right

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to live as becomes a man and a citizen, and

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thus he does, whether born rich or poor. For riches

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are no excuse for idleness. Rather, they are an opportunity

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to labor with the rare faculties which they afford for

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the good of the community. Only he who is self

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supporting is free, self reliant, and independent. Thus is the

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nature of the eight pillars, explained on what foundation they rest,

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the manner of their building their ingredients, the fourfold nature

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of the material of which each is composed, what positions

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they occupy, and how they support the temple all may

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now build, and he who knew perfectly may rejoice in

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this systemaization and simplification of the moral order and prosperity.

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Let us now consider the Temple itself, that we may

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know the might of its pillars, the strength of its walls,

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the endurance of its roof, the architectural beauty and perfection

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of the whole