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reflection. It is my servant, my instrument; whereas the other moods mastered me. It profits by the experiences of both and thus gradually achieves what men ordinarily deem impossible. For note that those in whom the duality is most strongly marked are extremists. They are either decidedly happy or most miserable. In a thousand ways they veer from extreme to extreme. Observers of such people set them down as extremists and the people themselves suppose that they must accept the inevitable.

My proposition is that the greater the tendency towards extremes the more poised may the
individual become. It is by lacking moderation and repose that the self-conscious extremist learns the need and value of poise. Thus the place and meaning of suffering are seen. Thus pain is only understood when we pass beyond it. For remember that it is not so much what we are born with but what we attain, what we overcome, which teaches life's lesson and gives us wisdom to contribute to the world.

This truth is seldom recognised, however. If one eulogises poise, moderation, and equanimity,   people exclaim, ''Oh, you were born with it. Preach not to us of your gift." They cannot believe   that one who is now serene was once storm-tossed. Yet we have relatively little appreciation for the virtues with which we were born.