“Treat others as you would like to be treated.” An outdated, impractical call for conflict avoidance? Or, perhaps something more?
Essentially every religion in the world articulates a radically simple moral code, the Golden Rule. It hasn’t always been called the Golden Rule, and it’s been phrased in various ways, but the essential message of reciprocity has enjoyed broad appeal through the ages.
It’s said that a student of Confucius asked, “Is there a single word which can serve as the guiding principle for conduct throughout one’s life?” Confucius said, “It is the word consideration. Do not impose on others what you do not desire others to impose on you.”
Jesus said, “In everything, do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.”
Hillel the Elder, a pivotal first century Jewish leader is credited in the Talmud (a record of rabbinic debates) as saying, “What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor. This is the whole Torah. The rest is commentary.”
In Islam, according to a Hadith (a collection of words and actions of the Prophet), “Not one of you truly believes until you wish for others that which you wish for yourself.”
It’s in secular spaces and philosophies as well. We see it everywhere, but looking around, it doesn’t seem to have accomplished much.
Playwright George Bernard Shaw criticized the Golden Rule saying, “Do not do unto others as you would expect they should do unto you. Their tastes may be different.” This line of thinking has led to the development of what some refer to as the Platinum Rule. Do unto others as they would have done unto themselves. That is, don’t be so focused on your own desires to assume that everyone must want what you want. Treat them, rather, as they would be treated. But of course, this requires some level of intimacy, for how else could we ever truly know how another individual wants to be treated?
Some have argued that the only safe bet is what has been called the Silver Rule. Do no harm. This principle is broadly applied in the field of medicine and other helping professions.
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