Knowing limits

There are times when you need to be told the most obvious things. Advice is not always the esoteric or the deep things that only the wise may know. Sometimes, wisdom lies merely in applying that most uncommon of things - commonsense.

Like, this advice by Tiru would seem almost silly, except if you think back on how often you have failed to live by it.

Peelipey saakaatum acchirum appandam saala miguththup peyin - Tirukkural

Light though the peacock feather is, loading too many of them can break the axle of a cart - Loose Translation

Think of it how you will. I mean, like, you can think of the jobs that you can do in a jiffy without any feeling of strain. Even such jobs, when you take on too many of them to be done day in day out can cause you insurmountable stress. You know that tale about the last straw that breaks a camel's back? This Kural talks of very much that thing...only it uses peacock feathers instead of straws. So, yes, each individual job may cause no great pressure but if you keep piling them on, you WILL hit your breaking point.

Or, you could think in terms of alienating people. You may be strong and each individual enemy you make may be just a peacock feather. Make enough of them and the sum total of them all may prove to be strong enough to destroy you.

You can consider the applicability in a variety of ways. Like not engaging with a friend for a day...no big deal. Allow the days to pile up and you'll hit a point when the friendship has ceased to exist. And so on...

You CAN take things lightly when they come singly. But allowing them to accumulate...THAT's a problem. (AH, that reminds me of another application of this kural. In my procrastinating days, postponing one small job was no big deal. It would only add 15 minutes to the next day's work. But when the postponed jobs keep adding up...) AND, yes, it is oh so easy to keep accumulating those peacock feathers.

So, there. Even if it is peacock feathers, keep a count of how much you are accumulating so that you keep it within limits. Else they could end up breaking your back.