A MODERN
POLONIUS ADVISES HIS SON
K. S. Yadurajan
My son, if thou wouldst advance high in life
And live in comfort, keep these few maxims
well in mind. Give thy thoughts no tongue
But if thou must, speak in a two-fold voice
Saying one thing and intending another.
Be thou familiar as occasion requires
Stand not on ceremony but cultivate every one
Who matters. And ditch them when thy purpose is served.
Beware of entrance to a quarrel; never quarrel;
But like the mole that in the dark burrows
And Undermines, cut the ground under
Your opponents by subtle, devious means.
And this above all: to thine own self be true.
Mark else: the ripe fruit falls to the ground
But the balloon filled with hot air rises high
It is not what you know that matters
But whom you know.