Praising the fool is beneficial to society!
A fool when pleased might stop doing harm and start doing good work. In this sense it is wise to praise a fool; it helps to motivate him. So your praise is meaningful when it is directed toward a fool.
A wise man by his very nature will continue doing good work because his attitude does not depend on someone’s praise or blame. So it serves no purpose to praise a wise man because your praise will have no impact on him.
There are three types of people – the wise, the crooked and the immature. The wise man continues doing good work even if he is scolded or praised. Crooked people need to be praised to get them to do good work. And from time to time the immature person needs to be both praised and scolded for them to do something good.
A fool when pleased might stop doing harm and start doing good work. In this sense it is wise to praise a fool; it helps to motivate him. So your praise is meaningful when it is directed toward a fool.
A wise man by his very nature will continue doing good work because his attitude does not depend on someone’s praise or blame. So it serves no purpose to praise a wise man because your praise will have no impact on him.
There are three types of people – the wise, the crooked and the immature. The wise man continues doing good work even if he is scolded or praised. Crooked people need to be praised to get them to do good work. And from time to time the immature person needs to be both praised and scolded for them to do something good.
© The Art of Living Foundation
