My parents always ask us to choose goodness over wickedness. Goodness helps to build the better human being and society whereas wickedness leads to people downfall. To diffrentiate the act that may define the two qualities of human being, Sanskrit has following to say ;
विद्या विवादाय धनं मदाय शक्तिः परेषां परपीडनाय |
खलस्य साधोः विपरीतमेतत् ज्ञानाय दानाय च रक्षणाय ||
Vidyaa vivaadaaya dhanam madaaya
Shaktih pareshaam parapeedanaaya.
Khalasya saadhoh voipareetametat
Gyaanaaya daanaaya cha rakshnaaya.
Vidya = knowledge, learning.
Vivaadaya = quarrels, disputes.
Dhanam = wealth.
Madaaya = pride, vulgar display.
Shaktih = power, strength.
Pareshaam = others.
Parapeedanaaya = torturing or paining others.
Khalasya = a wicked person's
Saadhoh = saintly and righteous persons.
Vipareetametat = vipareetam + etat.
Vipreeta = opposite, reverse.
Etet = this.
Gyaanaaya = spreading knowledge.
Daanaaya = giving away as charity.
Cha = and
Rakshanaaya = for protecting.
i.e. Evil and vile people misuse their knowledge to quarrel with others, misuse their wealth for indecent display and drinking alcohol, and misuse their power to cause harm and pain to others. On the contrary, people with a saintly nature use their knowledge, wealth and power to spread knowledge among the general public by giving donations and protecting the weak.
In the above lines, "Vile" describes something morally corrupt, repulsive, or extremely bad, while "saintly" describes a person or action that is holy, good, and patient, like a saint. The two terms represent opposite ends of a moral spectrum, with vile referring to wickedness and depravity and saintly referring to goodness and virtue.
The concept of "moral spectrum" is used in philosophy and even practical applications which helps in accessing an individual's actual behaviors and decisions rather than just their stated beliefs. In the above context, the verses highlights that a person with vile qualities may exploit their power for downfall, whereas a saintly person may utilize their power for goodness.
@queenart