ANCIENT WISDOM–3: THE TRIPLE FILTER TEST
(From the life of Socrates)
Courtesy:Pixabay
One day, a man rushed up to Socrates in great excitement.
“Do you know what I just heard about your friend?”
Socrates raised his hand gently.
“Before you tell me,” he said, “let us pass it through three tests.”
“Three tests?” asked the man.
“Yes,” Socrates replied. “The first test is Truth.
Are you absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?”
The man hesitated.
“Well… no. I just heard it from someone.”
“Ah,” said Socrates. “So you don’t know if it is true.”
He continued.
“The second test is Goodness.
Is what you are about to tell me something good about my friend?”
“No… quite the opposite.”
Socrates nodded calmly.
“So you want to tell me something bad about him, and you are not certain it is true.”
The man shifted uneasily.
“The third test,” Socrates said, “is Usefulness.
Will what you are about to tell me be useful to me?”
“Not really,” the man admitted.
Socrates smiled gently.
“If what you want to tell me is neither true, nor good, nor useful, why tell it at all?”
The man left in silence.
🌾 Reflection
How much noise in our lives would disappear if we used these three filters?
In an age of instant forwarding, viral outrage, and deepfakes — this ancient wisdom feels astonishingly modern.
Before we speak, share, or react, we may ask:
Is it true?
Is it kind?
Is it necessary?
If not, silence may be the higher wisdom.
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