As the saying goes, “Of all vices, lust is the worst.” It is the second half of this saying that is truly classic, yet very few people are able to live up to it

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This post was last edited by foam_ZPTK on 2019-3-7 at 10:57. China has a history of five thousand years, and this long history has brought us many cultural ideas. Many proverbs have been passed down through the ages for people to carry on, such as the saying “Of all evils, lust is the worst.” In fact, many people can understand the meaning of this sentence; it is telling you that there exists something in this world called lust, which is the source of sin, and many mistakes stem from it. When it comes to lust, many people think of the word \"sex,\" and simply believe that sex is the root cause of all evil. But I’m afraid I may disappoint everyone – the saying “Sex is the root of all evil” actually has a second part. It comes from a popular book from the Qing dynasty titled \"Night Talks by the Fire,\" written by the famous Qing dynasty writer Wang Yongbin. There is a passage in the book that says, \"Among all virtues, filial piety comes first; among all vices, lust is the root. If one always maintains a heart filled with kindness and filial devotion, then one will feel reluctant to do anything in the world that is wrong. Thus, filial piety ranks first among all virtues.\" ； When one is possessed by lustful thoughts, even things that one would never want to do in normal circumstances become easy to do; hence lust is the root of all evils. ”This is the full meaning of the saying that lust is the root of all evil. What is meant here is that people, driven by their personal desires, become unrestrained and lose control over their behavior; ‘lust’ refers to such desires. In fact, there is no absolute right or wrong when it comes to the word \"desire\"; different people have different views on it. Sometimes, desires give us the motivation to work harder, but at other times they can lead us to act impulsively and commit some unforgivable mistakes. Heaven and hell lie in that very moment; a single careless choice can lead you down a path with no return. Therefore, lust is indeed the root of all evils. Of course, although \"immorality tops all evils,\" we must not ignore the sentence that follows it. This sentence is also very well-known, and many people often repeat it; it goes, \"filial piety comes first among all virtues.\" Actually, this sentence is easy to understand: we should put showing respect to our parents first, but due to work commitments, we often neglect taking care of them. In fact, filial piety is an excellent tradition that has been passed down in our nation for thousands of years. During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, the renowned literary figure Confucius placed great emphasis on filial piety, often teaching his students to respect their parents. Because they gave us our lives; we have owed them since the day the sun first rose, so we must spend the second half of our lives showing them respect and gratitude. In fact, there are many aspects to showing respect for the elderly. In terms of material matters, it means providing them with a good standard of living; mentally, it means spending more time with them, talking to them about our feelings, and even listening to their nagging. Sometimes, when we’re used to hearing kind words, it’s actually quite nice to listen to our parents’ nagging as well. In fact, due to work or other reasons, we neglect our parents; it is only when things go wrong or we face setbacks that we realize there are two elders who have always been caring for us. So everyone should make an effort to see their parents often; if possible, go and visit them every week. Cherish the time spent with them, as one day they might leave us. Spend more time with them, as that’s what they need most. While they’re still here, accompany them in doing things they enjoy – that is the true meaning of filial piety.