EFTA01160176

person or that person 
to the degree that you end up 
finding fault with 
people who have no fault. 
B.6 Disadvantage of saying too 
much 
Most people in the world believe 
that they are men 
of principle. However, when it 
comes to speaking, 
many find that they just say what 
they feel like. If 
people do have a governing 
principle about the 
things they say, then usually they 
just try to say the 
things that are pleasing for the 
EFTA01161216

other person to hear. 
The trouble with such a principle is 
that people will 
always say what is easiest to say 
instead of saying 
the things that need to be said. 
Such a principle, 
when you come to speech at the 
level of politicians 
or those in power will impede the 
progress of the 
country because politicians are 
always saying what 
is easiest to say instead of speaking 
out about the 
things in society which ought to be 
changed. 
EFTA01161217

If one has no clear principles then 
the more you 
speak, the more damage you do. 
The people of old 
had the saying that, "The more you 
say the more 
trouble you create." The reason is 
that when we 
have already said all that is 
beneficial and necessary 
to say and we keep on speaking 
then the next 
things to come out of our mouth 
are worthless or 
harmful speech such as gossip, 
slander, abuse, chatter 
and lies. Thus the people of old 
EFTA01161218

said, "keep what 
you have to say to mimimum and 
you will 
mimimize your problems. 
However if you refuse 
to speak at all then no-one 
understands you!" Thus 
we all have to say something, but 
for our own benefit 
we should clearly understand the 
nature of 
speech and the principles of artful 
speech that is 
beneficial so say so that we can be 
confident in selecting 
the things we say or keep to 
ourselves. 
EFTA01161219

C. ARTFUL SPEECH 
C.1 Definition 
By artful speech we mean speech 
that has been carefully 
filtered and distilled by the mind as 
good, 
before it is allowed to pass our 
lips. It is not only 
speech that is better than nothing. 
It is speech that 
has been carefully selected by 
many criteria. It must 
be good from every viewpoint —
so good that it 
cannot have any fault found in it. 
The reason why 
we must be careful with our speech 
EFTA01161220

is that however 
good our intentions if we say 
something in 
the wrong way we can still upset 
the people around 
us because they cannot see what 
we are thinking. 
All they can pick up is the words 
by which we express 
those intentions. 
C.2 Components of speech 
From the meaning communicated 
by the things 
people say we can identify three 
major components: 
1. The Intention behind the 
Words: You can see 
EFTA01161221

whether the intention behind the 
things someone 
is saying is based on greed (e.g. 
they would 
like to get something from 
someone), hatred (e.g. 
in order to try to harm someone) or 
delusion (e.g. 
out of the envy of someone). These 
are all dam/34 
A Manual of Peace: 38 Steps 
towards Enlightened Living 
aging forms of speech. If speech is 
used in a good 
way then the intention must be 
good. Good 
speech may be said out of 
EFTA01161222

compassion. 
2. The Sort of Words Chosen: The 
more true they 
are the less false they are. The 
more polite speech 
is the less rude it is and vice versa. 
If the usefulness 
of words is reduced then they 
become more 
superfluous. Thus you can classify 
the speech of 
anyone in the world in terms of 
these three variables 
no matter what language it is 
spoken in: 
1. True or Untrue 
2. Polite or Rude 
EFTA01161223

3. Useful or SuperfluousWords are 
either true or 
false. 
3. The Occasion Chosen to say 
them: Sometimes 
this means whether what is said is 
appropriate 
to the time available and the place 
where it is 
said. 
C.3 Qualities of artful speech 
Applying the general components 
of speech toartful 
speech, we find that there are five 
components. If 
speech is truly good it must be 
good to five levels. 
EFTA01161224

It is not like a one-star hotel which 
is better than a 
hotel with no stars. If we are truly 
principled in the 
things we say, then every word we 
say must be `five 
star'. If it is any less, we will not 
let it pass our lips.: 
I. Speech must always be based 
on the intention 
of compassion: If the intention 
behind our speech 
is not compassion for the hearer 
then those words 
are better not said. Think for 
example of the sort 
of things you say when you are 
EFTA01161225

angry with someone 
and you will see that if you are 
angry its 
better to keep your mouth closed. 
2. Speech must be true: (sort of 
words spoken) Supposing 
we would like someone to do a 
good deed 
(i.e. we have compassion for them) 
but to get 
them to do so we tell a white lie 
then it is no 
longer artful speech. Some people 
would like to 
cheer up a child so they say "Oh! 
Here comes 
the most precious boy in the 
EFTA01161226

world!" This could 
not yet be counted as artful speech 
— it is no 
more than words to fool children. 
The same thing 
even goes for telling "white lies" 
to fool people 
into doing beneficial things or the 
meaningless 
words exchanged between people 
in love. 
3. Speech must be polite (sort of 
words spoken): If it 
is not polite it can never be artful 
speech. It is 
speech which ought to stay in the 
market place. 
EFTA01161227

4. Speech must be useful (sort of 
words spoken): It 
should not something be said just 
to float on the 
breeze. Does it create benefit by 
making the mind 
of the speaker and the listener 
brighter? Does it 
create benefit both in this lifetime 
and the next? 
This doesn't mean that we tell lies 
for our own 
benefit but by doing so we take 
advantage of others. 
Both speaker and listener must 
benefit as the 
result of the words spoken. Why 
EFTA01161228

bother telling 
someone that Mr. So-and-so is 
involved in corruption 
when everyone throughout the 
town already 
knows it to be a fact. 
5. Speech must be at the 
appropriate time and occasion 
(the occasion chosen to say them): 
Even 
if you say the right thing but it is at 
the wrong 
time then you cannot consider it to 
be artful 
speech. You might want to give 
your husband 
or wife or friend a useful piece of 
EFTA01161229

criticism but if 
you do it in front of their boss it 
turns advice 
into a disgrace for that person. If 
you want to 
give your boss a warning you have 
to choose the 
appropriate time or else it might be 
seen as insult. 
C.4 Special Considerations when 
giving criticism 
The subject of appropriate 
occasion is something 
that is very hard to judge. In 
societies where there 
must be quality control and there 
does need to be 
EFTA01161230

evaluation and criticism of sloppy 
practices, then 
often one cannot wait for the right 
opportunity to 
come along by accident. In such a 
case you have to 
do your best to create the 
opportunity. Apart from 
keeping to all the five principles 
already mentioned, 
there are two extra considerations 
which you 
should bear in mind which can 
help to create favourable 
circumstances for giving criticism: 
1. Praise them before you criticise 
them: A piece of 
EFTA01161231

criticism may take three pieces of 
praise to balance 
up the good feeling lost. The praise 
should 
always come first. Don't forget 
that others have 
feelings too and even if someone 
has made a lot 
of faults you shouldn't criticise 
them for any 
Blessing Ten: Artfulness in Speech 
135 
more than two faults per day or 
else you may 
have a resignation on your hands. 
2. Smile when you give the 
criticism: Don't criticise 
EFTA01161232

out of anger. 
If you ever say something to 
someone and you are 
surprised that it makes them angry, 
try checking 
the words that you said using the 
`five-star' measure 
of artful speech mentioned above. 
If you do not 
filter your use of words carefully, 
then your 
wordsmay cause harm to others. 
On other occasions, 
like a cup and a saucer must be of 
a matching 
quality, sometimes situations 
require words of 
EFTA01161233

a matching quality too. Sometimes 
it is good to 
speak in a way that is polite, but 
sometimes a situation 
doesn't require it because in some 
exceptional 
circumstances, five star language 
is not appreciated. 
C.5 Those who don't appreciate 
artful speech 
It is not as if you should speak in 
the most polite 
possible way to every person you 
meet. Some people 
cannot stand to hear polite 
language and may 
even criticize you because of it. 
EFTA01161234

They hear someone 
speaking clearly and accuse that 
person of being 
`affected'. In such cases you might 
need to lower 
the grade of politeness of the 
language you use to 
make your language more direct, 
to shock the person 
into awareness. However, the rest 
of the four 
components of good speech must 
remain intact. The 
following sort of people might 
need to hear direct 
speech: 
I. Those who have a superiority 
EFTA01161235