Reference: The Happiness Rundown
11. DO NOT HARM A PERSON OF GOOD WILL
Despite the insistence of evil men that all men are evil, there are many good men around and women too. You may have been fortunate enough to know some.
Factually, the society runs on men and women of good will. Public workers, opinion leaders, those in the private sector who do their jobs, are in the great majority, people of good will. If they weren’t, they long since would have ceased to serve.
Such people are easy to attack: their very decency prevents them from over-protecting themselves. Yet the survival of most of the individuals in a society depends upon them.
The violent criminal, the propagandist, the sensation media all tend to distract one’s attention from the solid, everyday fact that the society would not run at all were it not for the individuals of good will. As they guard the street, counsel the children, take the temperatures, put out the fires and speak good sense in quiet voices, one is apt to overlook the fact that people of good will are the ones that keep the world going and Man alive upon this Earth.
Yet such can be attacked and strong measures should be advocated and taken to defend them and keep them from harm, for your own survival and that of your family and friends depends upon them.
The way to happiness is far more easily followed when one supports people of good will.
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Exercise
0. Make sure you have completed the exercise section at Happiness: Precept 10. Study the precept above.
1. Check the responses to the following questions for false data (see false data steps at Happiness: Prologue).
(a) “Have you been told or taught not to harm people?”
(b) “Do you have any rules or ideas contrary to not harming people of good will?”
(c) “Have you been led to believe that you should harm people?”
(d) “Do you know of anything that conflicts with not harming people of good will?”
(e) “Do you have any false data about not harming people of good will?”
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2. Go over each of the following questions repetitively, until there are no more answers:
(a) “How have others transgressed against the precept: ‘Do not harm a person of good will’?”
(b) “How have you transgressed against the precept: ‘Do not harm a person of good will’?”
Do a quick review to see if you did not miss any answers on this step. You should be feeling good about this step.
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3. See if the following question definitely brings up some name you know of:
“Is there any specific person in your past who really transgressed against the precept: ‘Do not harm a person of good will’?”
If no name comes up then go to step 4. if a name has come up, then continue with step 3 as follows:
“Can you recall an exact moment when you observed ___(name)___ transgressing this precept?”
If there is a realization, go to step 4. Otherwise, continue contemplating as follows, until there is some realization.
“Is there any time when you wanted to be like ___(name)___ ?”
“Is there any time when you decided that harming people was a good thing?”
“Did you ever do anything bad to ___(name)___ ? (Get all possible answers)
“Are there any differences between ___(name)___ and yourself?”
“Are there any similarities between ___(name)___ and yourself?”
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4. Handle any anomalies that come up on the following question by looking at the anomaly more closely.
”Do you have any reservations about not harming a person of good will?”
If the anomaly does not resolve then review the precept as well as all the exercise steps above to see if anything was missed. Then do step 4 again. When there is no anomaly go to step 5.
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5. Contemplate on the following question.
“Do you have any reservations about getting someone else not to harm a person of good will?”
If any reservation comes up, then consider the following:
“How would that be a problem?”
Get answers to this question until there are no reservations.
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