Relationships
If a married person resists temptation at the last moment, does that make the earlier choices harmless?
English translation draft · Based on the Chinese article. This is not a word-for-word translation approved by Master Shengyuan.
Resisting at the end deserves recognition, but also examine why you entered the situation. Within marriage, whether something ultimately happened cannot be the only measure of the choice. Consider desire, the life you could lose, and whether you can bear the consequences beforehand.
A former workplace boss told me that despite having a wife, he went to hot springs with someone he liked. He later said he restrained himself and did nothing further. I asked whether going together like that was itself inappropriate. He said he thought of the consequences and feared losing his marriage and existing life, so applied the brakes at that moment.
I also felt stopping at that stage showed considerable self-control. Yet he should not have put himself there in the first place. Without desire already present, why want to go? Some choices bring consequences beyond what you can bear. Rather than wait until the final moment to test yourself, be alert in the earlier decisions.