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Can conscience alone judge the worth of an action? People commonly assume that it can. When we are accused of wrongdoing, we sometimes defend ourselves by claiming our conscience was clear. The implication is that if we didn’t feel guilty when we did it, then we can’t have done anything wrong. Although certainly convenient, this logic does not hold. People can do many bad things with a clear conscience. A murderer may have no sense of guilt or shame whilst committing his crime, and yet we would not absolve him of wrongdoing. Therefore, conscience alone cannot judge whether an action is good or bad.

Some people view conscience as an impulse that comes directly from God. They equate following their conscience with following the will of God, and thus see conscience as an absolute moral guide. This view is incorrect. Our conscience does not come from any outside source, but is rather a reflection of our own inner beliefs and values. If such values are indeed aligned with the will of God, then our conscience will follow suit, but this may not be the case. It is important to realize that our conscience is only based on our current understanding. It is not infallible.

This does not mean that we should ignore our conscience. On the contrary, going against our conscience is never a good idea. However, we do need to realize that our conscience must be developed, and thus by implication, can be distrusted. Clearly we should never act against our own values, but we must still be open to the possibility of changing these values. We can only act based on what we know at the time, but we should always strive to increase this knowledge.

Therefore, developing our conscience is an important pursuit in life. It is easy to cause pain in this world, and it requires great insight and thoughtfulness to minimize this. We must think about our actions and how they make others feel. We must evaluate our values and our understanding of human nature. Our feelings are not the ultimate guide to right and wrong - they simply reflect our thoughts. Hence we must think about what is truly good for ourselves, for others, and for the world. Only then can our conscience properly develop, and only then can our actions be congruent with the right way to live.

Curiosity is not a subject often written about in spiritual texts. Yet if you look at the great spiritual masters, or even just happy people in your own life, you will notice that they all share this trait. Curiosity is important because it stops us from becoming absorbed in our own little worlds. It encourages us to explore and look around a bit more. It suggests an energy for life.

Th benefits of curiosity were recently confirmed by Gallagher and Lopez in this paper. The researchers first split curiosity into “exploration (the disposition to seek out novel/challenging situations) and absorption (the disposition to become fully engaged in these interesting situations) “. They found that exploration in particular is associated with higher levels of well-being.

When we next walk down the street, we should practise looking around us, taking an interest in things, noticing the colours of the leaves and the sounds of the birds. Next time we talk to someone, we should be curious about what they have to say. We can think about their life and their viewpoints and how they differ from our own. Developing inquisitiveness is a great way to keep the mind active and hopeful, to take an interest in others, and to take an interest in life.