Wise Speech
Wisdom shows in speaking appropriately and at the right time.
The wise person knows when to speak and when to remain silent. Words are chosen carefully. Speaking out of turn or inappropriately shows lack of wisdom.
To speak when one should not speak is rashness. To be silent when one should speak is concealment.
Wise speech includes knowing when to be silent.
Analects
Written about in
- What Confucianism says about what to say and what to leave unsaid
Analects 14.4 weighs the two failures equally: speaking when you should not is rashness, staying silent when you should speak is concealment. Confucianism refuses to treat quiet as the default virtue.