Can life be led satisfactorily without principles?

Question

Always heard that one has to compromise in life.Is it necessary and desirable to compromise with all ur principles for happiness and peace. If so, the peace we thus get after giving up all our principles that shaped our life till date, is worth it? At some juncture of life, it demands n squeezes us to leave behind the very principle, which served as the foundation of life. Shud we compromise and lose our very entity by giving up that principle, for happiness? Will we have mental satisfaction after doing that? For example, my educaton n upbringing taught me to be truthful and at this point of life, I find myself stuck coz I cud not lie in one of the occassions, which stopped my further movement.If I wud have moved with that lie, do u think my conscience wud have allowed me to be happy with that big compromise???

Answer 1

I believe that principles allow us to sacrific momentary pleasure for long lasting happiness. Therefore, we have the mental capability to recognize and work towards a greater goal.

Answer 2

everyone has principles (standards of behavior)

some are low
some are...not as low
some are high

you're assuming that if we have low principles
that we have NO principles

you're also assuming that when we DO have principles,
that they are high ones
and, that our having those high principles makes us happy

so, you wonder
how miserable you'll be if you act below your own high standards
--you wonder how unsatisfactory and unhappy you will be
if you don't keep to your high moral ground

and you wonder how much unhappiness would be too much
to live with.

the degree of dissatisfaction
that results from you
going against your code of ethics
can only be determined by you

if acting beneath your standards makes you only a little uncomfortable
and you can live with it,
and not let it twist you out of shape,
it's not a big deal

if your low actions
(as compared to your high ideals)
are going to prey on your mind and soul
and interfere with your mental and physical health
they're something to avoid


as for missing an opportunity for advancement at work
because you didn't "lie"
you have obviously done the correct thing.
i say that only because YOU believe
the particular act in question would have been a lie.
--and people can't be happy and healthy if they lie

however,
i suspect that the real reason behind
your not being promoted at work
isn't because you refused to lie,
it's because you weren't savvy enough
to understand the nuances required for the job.
as you proved when you
misunderstood that you weren't being told to lie
you were being told to be a problem solver

Answer 3

The principles of life can also be taken as the right code of conduct. When a person adopts principles like Not telling lies, not harming any one by word or deed, Not usurping others chances or not slandering a person behind his back etc it will be difficult. It will also deprive many chances in life. The only advantage of such principles is you on any day stand before God and say "lord I have not violated any of your codes of conduct"
You are not afraid of death and your conscious always says you have done well keep it up.i am telling you this out of personal experience. I worked in an organization in which a vast majority are corrupt and corruption in smaller scales are regarded as additional perks for the job.There is a chain of corruption which reaches right up to the cabinet minister. The punishment for an honest man in this organization is frequent transfers from one station to another and he would get just OK report for his work.
His promotions will be delayed and no one hears his appeals.
So i suffered in many ways but stuck to my principles. To day i have a clean consciousness and God has given me more than what I earned in service. I thank god every day for his kindness.

Answer 4

It's hard to draw the line sometimes. I've found that if I accept the people for what they are, any compromise I make is self-conducting, which is better than just being pure stubborn, and hoping that other people will understand me.

Answer 5

No. Principles give purpose and direction to life. I can only speak for myself, but I would never be satisfied with a life that didn't have purpose or direction.

Answer 6

It is not necessary, But if you got by with your "comprimises" this far why stop now.