48. A MAN OF PRINCIPLE

I was a man of ideas,
  But my ideas were
Uncertain and vague.

I was a man of ideals,
  But my ideals were
Blind and selfish.

Now that I have become
A man of principle,
My ideas faithfully serve me
        And
My ideals soulfully elevate me.
Sri Chinmoy, The Golden Boat, Part 10, Agni Press, New York, 1974