Speak or not to Speak?

Many times we face this dilemma in our lives - 

To speak or not to speak.
From early on, we were taught that there is a time for speech and a time for silence.
Sheikh Sa'di, a famous Sufi poet - says: depending on the situation, both are equally important. 
I remember one of his famous sher (couplet) in the Persian language:

                     अगरचे पेश ख़िरदमन्द ख़ामोशी अदब अस्त 

                      बवक़्त मसलेहत अन बै कि दर सुख़न कोशी 
                      दू चीज़ तीरह अक़्ल अस्त - दम फ़रो बस्तन 
                      बवक़्त गुफ्तन - ऊ गुफ्तन बवक़्ते ख़ामोशी 
                                                                     (शेख़ सादी)

                      اگر چه پیش خردمند خاموشی ادب است 
                   به وقت مصلحت آن به که در سخن کوشی 
                      دو چیز طیره عقل است - دم فرو بستن 
                       به وقت گفتن و  گفتن به وقت خاموشی    

                      Agarche pesh khiradmand khamoshi adab-ast
                      Ba-vqt maslehat an be ki dar sukhan koshi 
                      Du cheez teerah aqal ast - dam faro bastan
                      Ba-vaqt guftan, ou guftan ba-vaqt khamoshi  
                                                              (Sheikh Sa’di)
Translation:
Though it's a virtue for the wise to stay quiet 
It is also virtuous to give advice when required, at the right time.
Two things are imprudent – unwise
To keep quiet when one should speak.
And to speak when it’s time to keep silence.  
                                                       (Sheikh Sa’di)
One of the greatest abilities that humans have, is the ability to communicate - to convey their feelings to others through speech - to share their experiences through verbal communication.
Effective Speaking is an art – a talent, a skill, which may require some learning and practice.
Silence is also one of the greatest skills - which also requires a lot of patience and practice. 
'Wisdom' is to know when to speak and when not to speak - the ability to evaluate the situation - when it’s time to offer advice and when it’s important to stay quiet.  
However, just as 'keep on talking' and giving unsolicited or unwanted advice is not useful, silence may also not be always positive and useful.
It is up to us to assess the situation and decide when and where we must be silent and be a quiet listener, and when and where we should not be silent. 

If our silence is in the wrong place, at the wrong time, it can damage personal and social relationships and even bring down the family, business, and social establishments. Many great organizations and empires have collapsed just because wise people did not speak up at the right time. 

In the classic epic of Mahabharat, there are two stories that would elaborate on this point further to make it more clear.

   
                                                                    1. 
After Yudhisthira's sovereign yajna, Duryodhan did not leave Indraprastha and stayed in the Pandavas' newly built palace. This new palace was built by Mayasura with many wonderful and amazing artifacts. Duryodhan was amazed to see the beautiful architecture of the palace and became very jealous of Pandava's luxury. Mayasura had also created many illusionary effects, such as a floor that appeared to be a pool filled with water which in fact was made of glass, and a wall at the end of a corridor that appeared to be a door. 
When Duryodhana tried to enter through a door, he hit his head against the wall because it was not really a door. When he went further he saw a pool of water so, he pulled his dhoti (pants) above the ankles. It was a glass floor that looked like a pool. 
Then Duryodhana went ahead and fell into a pool, which appeared to be a dry floor. Seeing this, Bhima and the other Pandavas who were present there were amused and started to make fun of him. Draupadi, the Pandavas' wife, started laughing loudly and commented - 'A blind father's blind son'. 
Duryodhana felt insulted by this comment so much that he vowed to take revenge on Draupadi and all the Pandavas. 
Many scholars and historians believe that these rude remarks were the main cause of Duryodhana's animosity towards Pandavas.
Had Draupadi kept quiet and not made that rude comment, perhaps the history would have been different. 

                                                                    2.
Pandavas lost Draupadi in the game of chess to Kauravas. According to the rules laid down before the game, winners had the right to do anything they wished to do. The Kauravas wanted to take revenge. So, they brought Draupadi into the open court and decided to unrobe her in front of everyone. 
When she was being insulted and unrobed in the court, the eminent scholars and stalwarts of ethics and morality such as Bheeshm and Dronachaarya were also present there. But they did not speak up against such a malicious, immoral action of their lords, the Kauravas. 
Though Bheeshma and all other ministers and scholars present in the court believed it was unethical and immoral, they still kept quiet in order to show their loyalty to the Kauravas. They thought that the loyalty to their lords and the rules of the game, though wrong, was above ethics and principles.
They had a dilemma - to choose between Rules or Ethics -  between Loyalty or morality. 
Apparently, they made a wrong, unwise decision of choosing loyalty instead of principles and morality.
And history never forgave them for that. 

Taking the right decision at the right time is very important.
Speech or Silence -  To Speak or not to speak?
It all depends on the situation.
So, Choose wisely.
                                            ‘Rajan Sachdeva’