THE LAST SECTION OF WEAVER’S WISDOM IS SIMPLY ABOUT THE QUALITIES OF PEOPLE. IT IS SOMEWHAT OF A WHO’S WHO OF MANKIND. Have you ever wondered about the qualities of the noble? Have you ever wondered about bad money and good money? Have you ever, in your secret thoughts, had the desire to surround yourself with the best of people, not knowing how you found yourself in the midst of disappointments and surprises? Choosing proper friends is more important than choosing an automobile or the furniture to surround yourself with in your home or office. There is a great difference between friends and acquaintances. In today’s world this is not well understood. Reading these thirteen chapters will shed a great deal of light on who is who among relatives, friends and acquaintances.§
Everyone today, in one way or another, is wanting to improve themselves. In the verses of this section we find simple, not-to-be-disputed guidelines. Wondering whom to vote for out of a display of contenders for governmental office? Advice in abundance is all here to read, understand, absorb and put into action for a better life for the individual and community.§
The weaver has no mercy when he speaks of the preservation of honor—no mercy at all. And he extols greatness. Greatness and accomplishment are what the first gurus of a youth, the parents, should impart. Yes, everyone has a guru. The world itself is the teacher of most people living on the planet, for they have no other mentor, nor even want one. I call this great guru, the world, Sri Sri Sri Vishvaguru Maha-Maharaj, and he teaches his followers to learn by their own mistakes. By following the weaver’s wisdom, we can circumvent Vishvaguru and avoid the many errors, mishaps and sorrows he uses as teaching tools for learning painful lessons.§
What is needed today more than anything else, in the home, in the village, among leaders and followers, is what is explained to the nth degree in chapter 100. This can be read time and again, memorized, then put into daily practice. Offering a new angle on courtesy, the weaver talks of what we know so well happens in most homes: “Disparaging words are painful, even when uttered in jest. Hence, knowers of human nature are courteous even to enemies.”§
In the ancient days of the Tamil people, modesty prevailed in personal relations, and it was extolled in poems, songs, paintings and architecture. Today modesty is regarded among these amazing people as a treasure more valuable than a treasury of gold and jewels. Modesty, a good family and well-chosen friends of proven loyalty are the crosswise threads that crisscross the warp as life’s patterns unfold. Remember, if there are troubles in the family, which is a group brought together because of past karmas that cannot be erased, it is crucial for family members to huddle and take care of, support, one another against internal turmoil and the onslaughts of the world. To harbor resentment against mother, father, brother, sister or close and distant relatives is to weaken the fabric of one’s life. It would be like stringing a loom with strong, taut, lengthwise threads interspersed with weak, breakable ones. Then the colorful, crisscross threads, dark and bright, of life’s experiences would produce an emotionally disturbing pattern, and the fabric would not be smooth to the touch, but frail and rough in spots, prone to tear and break when stressed. Today this is called a discouraged family.§
The wise old weaver has taken us on a great journey, giving us a loom on which to weave our life to our heart’s content. He begins with the greatest God, ends with the lowest of men and covers everything in between. Quite an achievement, I would say, for a mere 1,080 verses inscribed on palm leaves 2,200 years ago for us to live up to today.§
