Not by silence
does someone confused
& unknowing
turn into a sage.
but whoever--wise,
as if holding the scales,
taking the excellent--
rejects evil deeds;
he is a sage,
that's how he's a sage.
Whoever can weigh
both sides of the world:
that's how he's called a sage.

-Dhammapada, 19, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.