On Sincerity and Its Blessing, Pretense and Its Harm

Worship is good only with sincere intention; otherwise, what comes of an empty shell with no kernel inside? Whether it is a pagan's belt or a holy man's robe, what use is it if you wear it just to impress the crowd? I told you: don't parade your manly virtue; once you have shown you are a man, don't turn out a coward. Show yourself only as much as you truly are; the one who was something and never flaunted it feels no shame. For once the borrowed finery is stripped from his head, only a worn old garment is left on his back. If you are short, don't strap on stilts just to look tall in the eyes of children. Copper coated with silver can be passed off on someone who doesn't know better. My dear, don't gild a worthless coin; the wise money-changer won't take it as anything. The gilded are thrown into the fire, and then it shows whether they are copper or gold. Do you know what Baba Kuhi said to a man who stayed awake all night for the sake of his reputation? Go, my son, and struggle for sincerity, for you can never truly escape people's eyes by any trick. Those who admire what you do have so far seen only your outer surface. What worth does a slave with a face like an angel have, if beneath his robe his body is diseased? You cannot slip into paradise by deceit, for the veil will be pulled back from your ugly face.