proverb · Words worth keeping
A good conscience is a soft pillow.
A good conscience is a soft pillow.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying compares a good conscience with a soft pillow. It imagines peace about one’s conduct as a source of inward comfort.
What the words are saying
The pillow makes ease concrete, but the source words do not establish a sleep effect. A useful application can reflect on conduct without assuming that distress proves guilt or restful sleep proves innocence. The supplied promise of no enemies or fear goes beyond this metaphor.
Everyday example
Someone reflects on having acted fairly without using another person’s sleeplessness as evidence of wrongdoing.
When to use it
Use it as a conscience-and-comfort metaphor.
What it does not mean
It does not verify sleep, innocence, guilt or freedom from fear and enemies.
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 161; PDF page 27
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.