There's Wisdom in Threes

New and ancient philosophers have presented many of their best ideas in threes. Benjamin Franklin said, “There are three faithful friends: an old wife, an old dog, and ready money.” And this: “There are three things extremely hard: steel, a diamond, and to know one's self.” Buddha said, “Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.” Contemporary author and philosopher the late Stephen Covey said, “There are three constants in life...change, choice and principles.”  

“The principles of living greatly include the capacity to face trouble with courage, disappointment with cheerfulness, and trial with humility,” said Thomas S. Monson, a religious leader. Ancient Druidic wisdom contained in Celtic Triads includes, “The three foundations of learning: seeing much; studying much; and suffering much.” Confucius said, “Wisdom, compassion, and courage are the three universally recognized moral qualities of men. There are three methods to gaining wisdom. The first is reflection, which is the highest. The second is limitation, which is the easiest. The third is experience, which is the bitterest.” From a Chinese proverb, we learn: “Tell me, I will forget. Show me, I will remember. Involve me, I will understand.” 

Plato noted that “Human behavior flows from three main sources: desire, emotion, and knowledge.” Franklin and others divided humankind into three groups. Franklin said, “All mankind is divided into three classes: those that are immovable, those that are movable, and those that move.” Plato came at it from a different point of view when he said, “There are three classes of men; lovers of wisdom, lovers of honor, and lovers of gain.” Leonardo da Vinci saw a world where there are “three classes of people: those who see, those who see when they are shown, those who do not see.” Similarly, Niccolo Machiavelli writes in The Prince, “There are three classes of intellects: one which comprehends by itself; another which appreciates what others comprehend; and a third which neither comprehends by itself nor by the showing of others; the first is the most excellent, the second is good, and the third is useless.” 

From Threes, Chapter One, “The Wonder of Threes”