Conscience

[ChAoS87]

This word gives you many results in dictionary. I would like to hear opinions regarding 'conscience'. Which word should i use when i express 'ทำไม่ลง' or something like its against moral to do such act. Thanks..

[luckyfarang]

I'm going to take a stab at this, since I have often wondered the same thing.

Having looked at all the alternatives, I'm going to say that the closest thing to an accurate translation would be:

หิริโอตตัปปะ

But this is probably a word only the educated Thais would know, and is probably never used in conversation, probably used mainly by monks in sermons.

The closest thing that would be useful in conversation I believe is:

สติรู้ผิดรู้ชอบ

which could be translated as having "a sense of right and wrong".

Then there is this:

ความละอายและเกรงกลัวต่อบาป

which would be widely understood, and the dictionary gives "conscience" as one definition,

but I would translate this more like "being God fearing"

I believe it conveys more a fear of the consequences of sin rather than a natural inborn sense of right and wrong.

[ChAoS87]

Summarize perfectly ... Kudos!

[luckyfarang]

Chaos -

Can you give examples of the usage of ทำไม่ลง?

I have not heard this used before, but it seems like it might be a more colloquial

version of สนับสนุนไม่ได้ or รับไม่ได้

[ChAoS87]

Its like you can't push yourself to do certain things, probably against your conscience. It ranges from 'not wanting' to spend obscene amount of money on a luxurious item to can't lie to your wife you have a mistress..

[asdecas]

I'll throw another word in here - มโนธรรม - which I think conveys the English sense of moral or religious right and wrong best. It is, however, another word that is not used colloquially. For that you'd probably do best, as others have suggested above, with "มีสติรู้ผิดรู้ชอบ"

[luckyfarang]

I'll throw another word in here - มโนธรรม - which I think conveys the English sense of moral or religious right and wrong best. It is, however, another word that is not used colloquially. For that you'd probably do best, as others have suggested above, with "มีสติรู้ผิดรู้ชอบ"

I previously looked at มโนธรรม but decided to eliminate it after seeing this example of usage:

ในแง่ความรู้สึกของสาธารณะชน ต้องเป็นผู้มีสำนึกทางมโนธรรมแห่งความรับผิดชอบ

"The feelings of the general public are that (the persons chosen) must be conscientious in (undertaking) their responsibilities."

But now I notice that the word สำนึก is also defined as "conscience" or "conscientious" as one possible meaning. So I am guessing that มโนธรรม can be a good definition for "conscience", although not really usable in colloquial conversation.

Which brings up the question of how to define the phrase: สำนึกทางมโนธรรม and how it differs from สำนึก?