proverb · Legacy record
Don’t promise something when you are full of joy; don’t answer letters when you are full of anger.
Don’t promise something when you are full of joy; don’t answer letters when you are full of anger.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying advises pausing promises during intense joy and replies during intense anger. It links strong emotion with the need to consider consequential words.
What the words are saying
The two situations distinguish commitment from communication. A qualified interpretation may encourage reflection without claiming that emotion removes consciousness or that every joyful promise and angry reply is unsound. Urgent communication can still be necessary, and the relevant commitment should be assessed individually.
Everyday example
Someone checks a generous offer’s practical demands before confirming it and rereads a nonurgent angry reply before sending it.
When to use it
Use it to discuss reflection before consequential words.
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What it does not mean
Strong feeling does not prove incapacity or justify delaying all necessary communication.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- Contributor-provided proverb reference
Supplied reference A; unit 953; PDF page 133
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.