Saturday, March 01, 2008

The nurse of naughtiness


"Burton, in his quaint and curious book (the only one, Johnson says, that ever took him out of bed two hours sooner than he wished to rise) describes the causes of Melancholy as hinging mainly on Idleness. "Idleness," he says, "is the bane of body and mind, the nurse of naughtiness, the chief mother of all mischief, one of the seven deadly sins, the devil's cushion, his pillow and chief reposal. --- An idle dog will be mangy; and how shall an idle person escape? Idleness of the mind is much worse than that of the body; wit, without employment, is a disease -- the rust of the soul, a plague, a hell itself. As in a standing pool, worms and filthy creepers increase, so do evil and corrupt thoughts in an idle person.; the soul is contaminated. Thus much I dare boldly say; he or she that is idle, be they of what condition they will, never so rich, so well allied, fortunate, happy -- let them have all things in abundance and felicity that heart can wish and desire, all contentment -- so long as he, or she, or they, are idle, they shall never be pleased, never well in body or mind, but weary still, sickly still, vexed still, loathing still, weeping, sighing, grieving, suspecting, offended with the world with every object, wishing themselves gone or dead, or else carried away with some foolish phantasie or other."
I'd say that pretty much covers it...
Happy Homes and the Hearts That Make Them --- Photo by MG Lizi

No comments: