TRUTH DOESN'T MATTER

Written by
Brij Sachdeva

Hypocrisy, the prevalent policy

Honesty is the best policy, but unfortunately, hypocrisy is the most prevalent policy in our society. When I come across people who indulge in inhuman practices and engage in all kinds of unethical activities under the cover of morality, humanity, righteousness, Truth, and God, I can't help but say that Truth doesn't matter in this society. I have been in the habit of saying 'Truth doesn't matter.' I have been posting this expression on social networking sites for quite some time. It was exciting to see people's reactions. Someone said, "You are wrong. It is only the Truth that matters." I said, "Yes, that's what I am aspiring for."

A Facebook friend wrote that it is a verbal irony. Just the other day one of my friends asked me, "Why are you so pessimistic about the truth?" I told him, there is nothing pessimistic about it. When I say" truth doesn't matter " I condemn society, not Truth. Condemnation in the sense that it should not be the case. As far as my observation is concerned, Truth is not allowed in our society, but talking about it is mandatory.

It all begins with parenting

You can understand the definition of truth just by observing a newly born child. A child is born very truthful, innocent, and simple. Right from birth, we start pushing the children to become untruthful, corrupt, and hypocritical. When they want to sleep, we force them to stay awake. When they want to wake up, we make them go to sleep. Gradually, the child learns that might is right. They see the caregivers' weaknesses. Now they realise that their demands can be fulfilled by throwing tantrums. We teach the child not to lie. But when they tell something we want to hide from others, we ask them to hide the truth; sometimes force them to tell a lie. The child observes that parents behave differently among family members and when guests arrive. Now, the child is confused about when to be truthful and when to hide the truth or lie. Over time, the child learns two things: one is ‘might is right’ and the other is ‘hypocrisy is a necessity of life.’

Upbringing shapes personality

A friend of mine is a very simple, innocent, honest, and truthful kind of person. One day, he told me that he was very disappointed and upset by the behaviour and attitude of the people around him. He felt looted and hurt. He said he had been deceived by everyone around him. He sacrificed himself—including money, self-respect, self-image, social image, health, and body—for the well-being of those around him, but now he felt deceived. He reached a point where if he continued to sacrifice in the same way, he would be finished, and if he changed, he would be left alone. I asked him, “What do you think is the reason for what happened to you?” He replied, “It was only very late in my life that I realised how this world is, the way it is.”

The question here is not about the truth itself. The real question is to understand the truth about society. A child who learns early in life that truth doesn't matter in this society becomes successful, but a child who discovers this fact later proves to be a failure. In my blog post ‘Basic Nature and Personality’ I have explained how upbringing shapes outcomes.

Truth should matter

You might have heard the quote 'A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes. We have designed our society in such a way that, here, it is all the money that matters. Here, success matters, vested interests matter, confirmation bias matters, prejudices and inclinations matter, but Truth doesn’t. The point is that 'TRUTH SHOULD MATTER'.