Octagon
of Life:
Be Truthful
Tell
the truth every time,
even
if it’s difficult,
light
your pathway of
life
with truth,
cover
no track with lies,
build
home not on
falsehood,
for
foundation crumbles
as
soon as erected.
Build
on solid rock of
truth,
the
indestructible,
let
your molding blocks be
truth-tested
fire resistant
materials,
let
your inlet and
outlet
doors be truth,
let
your life revolve around
truth,
make
the truth
your
watchword.
Love:
Let
love be key
you
hold from sunrise to
sunset,
let
love be the color
you
bear from morning till
evening,
treat
everyone with love.
Let
your love go beyond
racial
enclave, cultural and
religious
affinity,
spread
love beyond
brotherhood
or
sisterhood,
cover
everyone with
warm
cloth of love.
In
winter let your
love
kindle and warm
shivering
souls,
in
summer let your
love
refreshes,
as
it defeats sweltering
heat.
Make
spring leaps to
create
a forward movement
for
down hearted by means of
outflow
of love;
autumn-turn
to an oasis of love-
through
open heart of activity
fill
with love when life
may
be dormant or hibernating.
Be Peaceable:
Preach
peace and live peace,
be
peaceable with everyone
by
your deed and action,
hate
and division-keep away,
let
your life manifest peace,
let
your speech promote peace
and
concord,
let
your action engender
peace,
seek
peace and pursue it.
Be
a peacemaker
Not
a peace breaker,
settle
rift among parties,
Temple
of Justice,
never
corrupt
three
siblings of peace:
fairness,
equality, and justice,
deny
no one.
The
roadway of peace,
never
make crooked and
pathway
of justice,
continuously
make smooth;
people
seeking justice
do
not turn back,
people
without justice
offer
hope.
Cheaters
remind-
no
fraud last forever and
no
dishonesty gains
remains
eternally;
tell
cheaters to reconcile
with
their past,
encourage
cheaters to
seek
forgiveness and
abandon
former course.
Tell
cheaters to make
honesty
a friend,
hardwork
a colleague, and
perseverance
a confidant.
Be Humble:
Humility
let your heart
display
at all times,
modesty-your
tunic in
public
and private domain;
make
your humble spirit
visible
through conduct,
let
every soul see
humility
flame
blazing
in you,
let
everyone see servility
in
you and
let
every soul bless your
spirit.
Know
your strength,
recognize
your limitations,
if
endowed with
extraordinary
ability,
build
no temple of
pride
and
never
rent room from
haughtiness.
Assembly
of haughty
do
not visit,
gathering
of arrogant,
never
be present,
hoity-toity-
do not
make
friends,
proud-keep
at arm’s
length,
supercilious
and uppity-
keep
at bay.
Be
deferential-treat others-
with
humility and respect,
be
submissive and yielding,
remember
honor and
influence
are temporary,
but
character is permanent.
Reputation
is your public
identity
and real name,
birth
name a-mere tag-
that
becomes a permanent
identifier
after death;
let
your dealings be
covered
with meekness.
Hard Work:
May
hard work define
your
essence,
may
it create a unique
personality
in you,
let
it serve as magnet
to
draw men closer
to
you,
odorous
smell in public
square;
let
your palms advertise
you,
let
your fingers proclaim
you
far and wide,
your
industry-let it market
you.
Let
your ingenious hands
carry
you far-flung,
your
ingenuous heart
promote
you beyond
seas
and oceans;
your
intuition be
propellant
and
your
instinct make you
excel.
Be A Teacher:
Be
a role model by
your
character,
teach,
train, and
instruct
inexperience,
be
father to the fatherless,
teacher
by example,
nurture,
nurse and nudge.
With
you is knowledge,
understanding,
and
discernment,
in
your mind is wisdom;
on
your palm is discipline;
give
knowledge to deserving,
share
understanding with
modest,
by
wisdom train inexperience,
in
love discipline the erring.
Be Generous:
Open
your gates to the needy,
open
your doors to the poor,
spread
your tent to cover
everyone;
fatherless
boys-become father-
make
orphans leave your
courtyard
with smiles,
widows
listen to them, and
may
they bless your
soul
for making them happy.
Physically
and emotionally
challenged,
empathize
with them,
disturbed
help carry burden,
distressed
souls,
lighten
their yoke,
hopeless-give
hope-
wailers-wipe
their tears.
Agitated-calm
and make still,
trouble
mind-comfort with
assurance,
needy-never
send them
away
empty-handed-
hungry-you
feed-
thirsty-give
water,
sick-offer
help-
sojourn-invite
into your
home-
tired-offer
cold water,
bereaved-console,
encourage,
and inspirit.
Be Strong and
Courageous:
Be
strong in face of
adversity,
never
cave in,
never
give up,
never
be consumed
by
momentary trouble,
power
in you-make alive-
strength
in you-make visible-
your
heart turn to steel,
your
mind-turn to
orchard
of ideas.
When
body is weak,
make
your spirit strong,
give
it-wings of eagle-
strength
of a young lion,
power
belonging to behemoth, and
wisdom
of a man.
When
it seems everything
is
gone and
hope
for tomorrow is lost,
rely
not upon yourself,
surrounds
self not with
negative
thoughts
but
let providence directs
your
steps.
Power
will be renewed,
strength-you’ll
regain,
life
returns to NORMAL.
