John Woolman: There is a Principle Placed in the Human Mind
From the Journal and Major Essays of John Woolman (1774)
[Scroll down for the English]
KISWAHILI
“[Umungu] ameweka kanuni katika akili ya mwanadamu ambayo inachochea kutenda wema kwa kila kiumbe hai; na kama kanuni hii ikishughulikiwa tu, watu wangekuwa na mioyo miororo na huruma, lakini kwa kuwa kanuni hiyo inakataliwa kabisa mara kwa mara, akili hilo hujifungia katika mwelekeo ulio kinyume.”
- John Woolman (1720-1772) alikuwa waziri wa Quaker (Jamii ya Marafiki), mleta mabadiliko, na ukomeshaji wa utumwa mwenye ushawishi mkubwa katika makoloni ya Amerika Kaskazini (kabla ya nchi ya Marekani).
ENGLISH TRANSLATION
“[The Divine] hath placed a principle in the human mind which incites to exercise goodness toward every living creature; and this being simply attended to, people become tender-hearted and sympathizing, but being frequently and totally rejected, the mind shuts itself up in a contrary disposition.”
- John Woolman (1720-1772) was a Quaker (Society of Friends) minister, reformist, and influential abolitionist in the North American colonies (pre-United States).
Chanzo (source): Woolman, John. “A Plea for the Poor—or A Word of Remembrance and Caution to the Rich” in The Journal and Major Essays of John Woolman, edited by Phillips P. Moulton, page 25. Richmond, Indiana: Friends United Press, 1971 (original was published in 1774).