The discovery of truth is a very sensitive task because we often assert our opinions in our endeavour to discover it. Discovery of truth requires setting aside "our opinions and beliefs", but often we are quite obsessed with our life experiences. The ego has to hold on to something. It is easy to see the tangible things it is holding on to, such as our home, office, relationships, wealth, and positions. However, it is more difficult to observe the intangibles to which the ego becomes attached, such as social and self-image.
All of us are social beings. We live in a society and therefore have many interdependencies with one another. We carry out almost all the social interactions from behind the mask of "social image". We try to behave well toward people around us, even when we get irritated by a few of them, because we want to maintain a mask of "being understanding". Social image has many advantages. The social image of "being good" gives us entry into an exclusive club of "good people" who can be trusted and, therefore, be given the coveted assignments. We invest almost all our lives in our "social image", and the "social image" can get damaged beyond repair at the drop of a hat. A "Baba" invests in his social image of being "free of wine and woman" because the news of his relationship with a girl or his wealth can damage his entire empire, and the entire time and energy invested so far will become a dead investment. That's why people are quite afraid to be what they are on the face.
"self-image" is a far more dangerous investment. We develop a self-image of being knowledgeable and wise. This self-image is more dear to us than any other thing. That's the reason we get hurt when people comment on our views and beliefs. It is very difficult to participate in a discussion, keeping aside our opinions and beliefs. It is like entering the other person's brain, looking at the problem set from his perspective, then stepping out of that perspective and stepping out of our own beliefs and thought processes, and then looking at the problem. I consider that it's one of the most difficult things in this world. The ego holds on to identities very strongly, and opinion and thought process are among the strongest of these identities.
Let's try to understand with an example. When Lord Ram went to the forest, Janak was asked to persuade Ram to return to Ayodhya. Janak is the father-in-law of Ram, and Ram married Sita just before this event. That means Sita, the daughter of Janak, will also be one of the affected parties by this decision because she chose to accompany Ram. In this situation, Ram holds that honouring his father's words is most crucial. When Janak ji talks to Ram, many things may cloud his mind. First, the pressure of the people of Ayodhya, especially Bharat, who are in a very pensive mood, feeling guilty for the entire event. Second, the well-being and comforts of his own daughter Sita. Then, his own views and opinions. When a meeting takes place in the forest, and everyone participates, the focus is on discovering what is right rather than asserting their views. That requires the highest level of maturity. that requires one to participate in the discussions, taking their own "views and opinions" out of them.
A question arises: if we do not express our views and beliefs, then how will there be any discussion? All our opinions, views, and beliefs are just experiences from the past under certain circumstances. These are like some theory we have invented based on certain assumptions. A scientist develops a hypothesis based on certain assumptions and then tests the hypothesis. If the assumptions remain the same, the hypothesis is proved to be correct in many tests, and that hypothesis is called a theory. However, anybody who goes by that theory has to be always mindful of the underlying assumptions. If these assumptions change, so will the theory. In our day-to-day lives, we also devise many such theories about the meaning of life and about right and wrong. However, we fail to realise that the underlying assumptions keep changing from person to person and from place to place. Somehow, we get so obsessed with our self-image of being an inventor of the theory that we compulsively tend to ignore the change of assumptions. That's where the discovery of truth takes a back seat and proving the opinions becomes primary. The discovery of truth is quite sensitive, and the slightest contamination can corrupt the whole exercise.
Comments