Probably from Reverand John Whatson, pseudonym Ian MacLaren, in 1897.
The original form substitutes "pitiful" for "kind":
Be pitiful, for every man is fighting a hard battle
The archaic meaning being:
pitiful, A. adj. 1. Full of or characterized by pity; compassionate, merciful, tender. Now rare.
Modern terms might be charitable, empathetic, or understanding. I'll note that there are times when outright kindness is somewhat dampened by the fact that the other's battle seems to be pitched in whole or part against me.
A relatively modern (1965, Chicago Tribune) explanation expands the concept:
Most of us are acutely aware of our own struggles and we are preoccupied with our own problems. We sympathize with ourselves because we see our own difficulties so clearly. But Ian MacLaren noted wisely, “Let us be kind to one another, for most of us are fighting a hard battle.”
MacClaren's own original explanation:
This man beside us also has a hard fight with an unfavouring world, with strong temptations, with doubts and fears, with wounds of the past which have skinned over, but which smart when they are touched. It is a fact, however surprising. And when this occurs to us we are moved to deal kindly with him, to bid him be of good cheer, to let him understand that we are also fighting a battle; we are bound not to irritate him, nor press hardly upon him nor help his lower self.
One element of the concept I refer to as #manifestation addresses this, in that personal lived experience and history are extraordinarily difficult to express or perceive, and that much behaviour which seems hostile or irrational may well have some validity in personal history.
https://quoteinvestigator.com/2010/06/29/be-kind/
#quotes #kindness #charity #understanding #empathy #QuoteInvestigator #manifestation
