溫故知新 Old wisdom, today’s insight — ONGO
Some Friends Are Medicine, Some Are Poison
Some Friends Are Medicine, Some Are Poison asks: Near whom am I, and what scent is settling on me? And what scent am I to others? It comes from Madhyama Āgama (on good and bad companions): "To keep a good friend is like standing near one who carries fragrance; to keep a bad one is like standing near something rank. Unawares, the scent settles on you."
To keep a good friend is like standing near one who carries fragrance; to keep a bad one is like standing near something rank. Unawares, the scent settles on you.
Step briefly into an incense shop and the scent settles on your clothes; pass a fish stall and the rank smell clings.
Near whom am I, and what scent is settling on me? And what scent am I to others?
📝Reflection
Step briefly into an incense shop and the scent settles on your clothes; pass a fish stall and the rank smell clings. It happens without your knowing. So it is, this says, with human influence. We slowly come to resemble the speech, attitudes, and worldview of those we keep close. Unaware, their scent settles on us. So whom we spend time with is no mere matter of taste but a decision about what kind of person we become. Beside a complainer our own complaints grow without our noticing; beside a warm person we, too, warm little by little. This teaching is no cold command to be choosy. It only reminds us that influence, like scent, seeps in quietly but surely. And one thing not to forget: I too am someone who leaves a scent on others every day.
🌱Apply It Today
Recall one person close to you today and observe "what scent of theirs is settling on me?" Then check the scent you yourself leave.
This verse is read as universal humanistic wisdom, not religion — no faith is promoted, and the reflection is 100% original ONGO content.
