Wednesday 4 September 2013

Choice of Companions

Points: Influence of companions — Choice not always possible — Common bonds.

             A man is known by the company he keeps. We should be cautious, therefore, in choosing our friends. We cannot escape their influence for good or for evil, when they are most of the time around us. Upon the minds of young men, such influence is bound to be very strong.
             We cannot, however, always choose our company. At school or college or elsewhere in life, we are likely to come across people whom we may not like. We have to get on with such people as best as we can. Our best defence in any company is our own innate decency and dignity of character. Besides, we are likely to find in most places a few good souls who are refined and companionable.  We can form our own circle with such people. Those who are extremely selfish or self-centred cannot be good companions. Man is by nature social. That is why he hankers after friendship and company. But the company he chooses may determine his own character and Life-style.
             “Birds of a feather,” it is said, “flock together.” No doubt when people are of like taste and temperament, they naturally come close together. A hobby or common pursuit may serve as a common bond for a life-long friendship. But it is not necessary that friends should always share each other’s views or tastes or even the way of life. Rabindranath, for example, was a poet and Jagadish Chand a scientist — each the greatest of his kind— and both remained life-long friends.

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