proverb · Legacy record
We must spare our enemies or it will be our loss, since they and all their belongings will be ours soon. –Inca
We must spare our enemies or it will be our loss, since they and all their belongings will be ours soon. –Inca
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Sparing enemies because they and their belongings will become one’s own ties restraint to expected conquest. The saying gives mercy an instrumental motive.
What the words are saying
A critical explanation describes the domination claim without endorsing ownership of people or inevitable victory. Sparing harm need not depend on future gain. The source’s Inca suffix does not independently verify a historical policy or speaker, and no military tactic is supplied.
Everyday example
A reader distinguishes refraining from harm from claiming a right to possess another person.
When to use it
Use it critically to examine restraint justified through domination.
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What it does not mean
No ownership entitlement, guaranteed conquest or independently verified historical practice is established.
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
Peru
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 wisdom reference (2014 AD)
Supplied reference B; unit 232; PDF page 27; collection label: Peru
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- Peru
