I need a good interpretation of the phrase "to thine own self be true". I'll take anything???

Answer 1

Be yourself because you cant be good at being anyone else

Answer 2

You can fool anyone, even God (if you believe, or so you think), but you can't fool yourself.

To be true to yourself doesn't mean you should follow every whim and desire that you want.

It means being rigorously and ruthlessly honest with yourself.

Look at yourself. Assess yourself. All your good and bad points. Be objective about it. For every judgment and opinion or statement you have about yourself, ponder it and see if it's really true. Find examples to assert that fact. If it's not true, discard it.

Do this for every single opinion you may have about yourself.

Other people may say you shouldn't pay heed to what other people may say about you, but you need to take other people's opinions with a grain of salt. They're just opinions. Not facts.

Probably, "To thine own self be true" is the greatest advice that has ever been given to humankind, and if everyone truly follows this advice, almost everything would be better.

Answer 3

It means that you should never try to fool yourself, or betray your own beliefs for anyone else. It's a good rule to keep in mind when you are a teenager, because peer pressure is such a big thing at that age. Adults have the same issue, though. It's called "keeping up appearances" or "keeping up with the Joneses", depending on whether it's how you act, or what you own that influences you.
If you let your life be ruled by what other people think, instead of what you feel is right in your gut, you will never be happy. That's the heart of it.

Answer 4

It's similar in meaning to the Biblical "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

If you follow your conscience and your morals are good--that is you are doing what you know to be right in the light of your religion (this was written in Shakespeare's day and there wasn't any doubt about what was right and what was wrong when this was written) and your family training (which presumably followed the Bible teaching )--then in your actions in life you are not going to play another man falsely, hurt him or harm him without cause, be malicious, or betray him.

To thine own self be true and it shall follow as the day the night though canst not then be false to any man.

He's saying that if you are true in moral character to yourself you will be true to others in the same way, and that that is a natural conclusion (because he uses the night the day following each other as a natural occurrence).

Answer 5

perhaps it would be helpful if the s in self were capitalized...Self, and then viewing the word as synonymous with soul. if a person followings the promptings of his or her soul then they "can't go wrong". following the guidance of ego often leads one astray , on the other hand. the trick is to hear those soul messages, and to know that the soul was, in fact, the originator. commonly, people confuse input from the ego as "the voice of god" for example, and their behavior suffers. a classic practice for improving your conscious connection to your "soul level" is meditation. i've noticed that those people who seem to have a "good connection" enjoy a life that is happy and healthy and far less dysfuntional than those who don't. btw take a look at www.sahajayoga.com; and the book *the complete idiot"s guide to toltec wisdom* which seem helpful in making the connection. good luck

Answer 6

It means figuring out what is important to you - developing a set of principles and values and then staying true to those values. You set your principles and then use those values as a compass for life. Stay true to yourself means to stay true to your values / belief system. This is also known as being principle centered.

Everyone is centered on something. Suppose, for example, you're centered on money and your motto is something like, "To my own cash be true". All your decisions become based on what is best for your financial health and growing your net worth. But what happens when some unforeseen event wipes out your bank account? Then become lost because your whole identity was based on how rich you were.

No one can take away your principles so, no matter what happens, if you stay true to yourself (make decisions based on your values) you'll always be well grounded.

Answer 7

Be true to yourself.
Okay, since it was Pelonious who said this, it could have been a joke. It's become so popular in our society that no one would ever believe it though. Read the rest of Pelonious' suggestions to Laertes in that scene and see if reading it context will help. However, I think that my opening statement is pretty close to a modern translation of the sentiment.

Answer 8

To me it means doing what you know inside to be right. We all have a conscience, we know deep down inside if something is right or wrong. It's easy to go with the crowd or do something that you don't feel comfortable with because someone else is doing it. Being true to yourself means standing up for what's right just because you know it's right. It often means standing alone.

p.s. is this for a school assignment?

Answer 9

"To thine own self be true" means a person should be guided by their own thoughts and feelings not swayed by another person's opinion. Do what your instinct tells you is best for you to do.

Answer 10

Be truthful and honest with yourself. Never believe a lie to yourself and strive to make yourself better for first your neighbor and then yourself. Remember the Golden Rule.

Answer 11

Be your own person and do not let others influence you. This statement is about individuality and doing what you think is best despite what is popular or what the group says.