Part Three The Path of Life
Chapter 11 Growth, Responsibility and Destiny
2) The seasons of life
2. Maturity and Old Age
World Scripture
The Master said, “At fifteen I set my heart upon learning. At thirty, I had planted my feet upon firm ground. At forty, I no longer suffered from perplexities. At fifty, I knew what were the biddings of Heaven. At sixty, I heard them with a docile ear. At seventy, I could follow the dictates of my own heart; for what I desired no longer overstepped the boundaries of right.”
Analects 2.4 (Confucianism)
Respect the young. How do you know that they will not one day be all that you are now? But if a man has reached forty or fifty and nothing has been heard of him, then I grant there is no need to respect him.
Analects 9.22 (Confucianism)
If the hair has become white, a man does not on that account become old; though a man may be young, if he is learned the gods look upon him as old.
Laws of Manu 2.136 (Hinduism)
You cannot prolong your life, therefore be not careless; you are past help when old age approaches.
Uttaradhyayana Sutra 4.1 (Jainism)
The man of little learning grows old like the ox. His muscles grow but his wisdom grows not.
Dhammapada 152 (Buddhism)
Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come, and the years draw nigh, when you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”; before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return after the rain; in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look through the windows are dimmed, and the doors on the street are shut; when the sound of the grinding is low, and one rises up at the voice of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low; they are afraid also of what is high, and terrors are in the way; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along and desire fails; because man goes to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets; before the silver cord is snapped, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern, and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.
Ecclesiastes 12.1-7
Before the gray descends on your cheek, the wrinkles plow your chin, and the body becomes a cage of bones; Before the teeth fall off from your mouth, the back bends to the earth, and you become a burden to others; Before you hold a stick in one hand and lean heavily with the other on your knee; Before age corrodes your bodily beauty and you feel the pangs of death; Adore our Lord Kudala Sangama!
Basavanna, Vacana 161 (Hinduism)
Teachings of Sun Myung Moon
What period of human life is most important? It is not childhood. It is the years when you are passing through young adulthood and into middle age, that is, between your twentieth and fortieth year. Especially during a person’s twenties, before age thirty, he should lay the groundwork for his life’s activities and secure a solid foundation for his life. He should also create the conditions upon which he can move forward and pursue his goals. Anyone who fails to do these things is bound to live as a mediocre, unremarkable person during his thirties and into his forties.
(22:314, May 12, 1969)
The period in a person’s life when he is capable of the greatest amount of activity is from his twenties to his forties, perhaps his fifties. These twenty to thirty years are a person’s peak years. But once a person crosses forty, he usually starts to decline. From this perspective, you should think about how little time you have left to work for God’s Will.
(33:186, August 12, 1970)
Of all the precious seasons of life, the bloom of youth is beyond compare. When we enter the prime of life we have burdens to carry, and if we cannot keep up the fight, we know that our descendants, who are the fruit of that, will be miserable. Therefore, only if we live vigorously during the prime of life, and continue into old age, will our family have in its bosom descendants who will be able to greet new springs, see new summers, and prevail through the following winters without difficulties.
(31:139, May 3, 1970)