A dispositional lesson that advice to elders should be given in a way that reminds them of what they have forgotten, rather than guiding them to what they can’t find. It doesn’t fit very well. In the long run, the winners are the youth.
from The Art of Worldly Wisdom Avoid winning over superiors.
vii Every victory breeds hatred, and victory over superiors is foolish or fatal. Superiority is always hated. Inevitably, superiority over superiority is also hated. For example, good looks can be masked by careless dress. There are those who excel in fortune and temperament, but not in decency. They are princes and wish to be so in their most princely qualities. They can help themselves, but they cannot surpass themselves, and the advice given to them must not be as a guide to what they cannot find, but as a reminder of what they have forgotten. The stars teach us this art with happy tact. They are his children and shine like him, but they will never equal the radiance of the sun.
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