Cleanliness is Next to Godliness
Thursday, July 8, 2021
“I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet.”
-Mahatma Gandhi
The famous proverb “Cleanliness is next to Godliness” is a wise saying. Most noteworthy, the statement equates Cleanliness with Godliness. The term Godliness means the quality being religious and cleanliness is the quality of being devoutly clean and hygiene. Today's modern generation lacks a lot of cleanliness and this is the major reason why people catch diseases easily and get sick more often. When a person refers to the term “Cleanliness”, he refers to the state of being pure and clean. Being clean does not necessarily mean keeping our surroundings clean, in a more holistic approach, one starts “Cleanliness” within themselves. The first step towards Cleanliness is to purify our minds and bodies to avoid the entry of evil and disturbing thoughts in our mind, and then gradually, we can move forward to cleaning our surroundings. Therefore, cleanliness demands a commitment to an individual to be pure and clean. Furthermore, being clean is an extremely important requirement for everyone. This is because cleanliness helps in maintaining a healthy body and mind.
Cleanliness refers to the state of equality of being clean or being kept clean. A healthy body is probably the most significant benefits of cleanliness which reduces the chances of catching diseases. Furthermore, a clean person seldom falls sick and a hygiene person shows quick recovery from illness. A successful person’s life secret is organization. The more organized you are, the more are the chances of being successful in life. If a person is in the state of complete mental well-being and is the owner of a fit body, success will automatically crawl into his life. Having a healthy mind allows us to learn useful things much faster and apply them in our day-to-day lives. It is a key to increase the thinking capability of an individual and the productivity in the work field.
Now, let me give you my personal experience on how I have attained all these benefits just by cleaning my house and my surroundings everyday. Right from bed to work, I maintain a proper routine of cleanliness by keeping my house and surroundings clean and tidy. I make my bed as soon as I wake up because it gives me a sense of positiveness which helps me to live a new day in my life with confidence and determination. After I have made myself clean, it is very important that my surroundings should be kept clean. I usually clean my house twice a day. Although it sounds a little crazy at first, I can assure you that it really helps me to perform well in my academics and in my studies. It helps me to concentrate well in my studies. Keeping my surroundings neat and clean not only helps me to study well, but it also brings much greater happiness and joy which cannot be expressed in just a few words; it is something which must be experienced by each one of us, at least once in our life. This can only be attained by keeping yourself and your surroundings neat and clean. In other words, cleanliness should be adopted as a hobby which should be practised daily and not just for one particular day.
From my personal experience, I can assure you that you will be able to succeed in every field of life just by keeping your surroundings clean and green.
“Cleanliness” also means being hygienic. This inevitably reduces the chances of catching a disease and thus, saves a lot of time spent lying in bed and taking medications. There are some guidelines that one may follow in order to apply and utilize the purpose of the proverb, for example, we must keep in mind that a dustbin is a depot for germs and diseases and must be emptied regularly. Using a dustbin with a lid is highly recommendable. Keeping the home and office dust-free is essential. This reduces the possibilities of catching allergies. Dirty toilets must be cleaned immediately. Not only is it a part of maintaining high-quality Cleanliness but also stops spreading severe illness and infections. We should not litter garbage on the roadside and here and there as it increases the chance of catching several diseases and makes our surroundings look dirty. We should always throw garbage into dustbins meant for them. Cleanliness is also essential for a mental well being of the individual. This is because clean atmosphere and clean surroundings has positive effect on the mind. The thinking ability of the individual improves when the surroundings are kept clean. We should not discharge untreated sewage and domestic waste water into water bodies like rivers and streams because this sewage discharging into the water can contaminate the water supply. It can also stagnate at certain places and become a breeding place for insects such as cockroaches, mosquitoes etc. The people consuming contaminated water results in diseases like gastroenteritis, typhoid and dysentery. It’s also important to maintain proper sanitation at public places like bus depots, railway stations etc. as a crowd gathers at these places and hence, the waste water generated is also large.
The proverb “Cleanliness is next to Godliness” helps to contribute to one’s religious and spiritual life too. The highest form of worshipping is purifying oneself to feel more energetic and refreshed. Living in a clean environment also helps to optimize psychological health, which further keeps one way from thinking and doing something evil. We should also keep our houses as well as our surroundings clean and green to prevent exposure to diseases and to lead a healthy lifestyle. We, as a responsible citizen of our country, should keep our country neat and clean to prevent transmission of diseases and to keep the people of the country healthy. So let’s strive towards keeping our surroundings clean, green and healthy. Our country will only remain green and become prosperous if it is clean and healthy. Thus, “Cleanliness is next to Godliness” is not just a proverb but also a virtue.
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