The Three Wise Monkeys – See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil

The first time I got to know the proverb “The three wise monkeys who see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil” was from the book “The sense of an ending”. I googled it and found out that this proverb was originally came from China in the 8th century. And later it was introduced into Japan by a Buddhist monk. The proverb is often represented by three monkeys covering their eyes, ears, and mouth respectively with their hands. It says if we do not hear, see or talk evil, we ourselves shall be spared all evil.

From when I was young, I have always been fascinated by those ancient proverbs. I feel they are full of wisdoms and full of much needed life guidances. I think the reason those proverbs can be passed on one generation after another is that they have been approved to be true by humankind and by the history. I keep feeling how lucky we are because we can avoid common life pitfalls by following our great predecessors’ advices, and we can also rise up by standing on the shoulders of our great modern philosophers as well!