Truth, is something people always (or most of the times) seek. Oddly in one way or the other, truth is something people expect. Why should people be drawn towards truth? Is it some sort of satisfaction to ones' ego? Is it some power the truth bestows upon the person? Is it curiosity that fuels this desire to know the truth? Before even considering these questions, one may be drawn to wonder how much of what they know and have been told is the truth? Lets look at history. How certain are historians about every record of the past? History has always been a long line of interpretations of interpretations, which most definitely would have distorted the truth with time. Its also been noted that from time to time by historians themselves that history has been recorded with a bias forced upon the historian by the ruling hand. Even with regard to today's current affairs, one may sometimes never know the truth. In spite of all the lies and part truth fed to people from birth to death, most are indifferent to all this as long as it concerns the truth about the larger things in life; common truth in a manner of saying. But, people are not so forgiving when the integrity of 'personal truth' is concerned. Thus, in one way or the other, we are in pursuit of truth, each person varying from the other only in terms of intensity and level. Why; is something each person should eventually reason out to themselves. But, there is truth in the existence of this common pursuit.
People usually lay importance to knowing and sharing the truth. But, honestly has it always helped? People always come across a situation when it seems most logical to lie to someone for a good cause, most often to protect the person being lied to. Often people regret knowing the truth and wish otherwise. Truth (and sometimes knowledge) turns people more insensitive and indifferent to some aspects of life. Life itself seems to loose colour and flavour to turn into a morose grey. So is truth about everything, something that people want? Is it something people can live with? Often ones' desire to know the truth is used against them. Truth has been very often distorted to benefit a small group. Paradoxically, absolute truth is something people want but something that most, or rather all, would never share.
I share the same thoughts :)
ReplyDeleteis it truth or closure? id say people want is closure because we want to know and how it is told to us. be it part truth or complete lies. sometimes we tend to believe lies also as thats what we may want to hear or even after hearing or knowing something is the truth we still try to find out more and more. so id say what one wants is closure
ReplyDeletebut it still is a good post
ReplyDeleteGood post :) I think you should differentiate between seeking personal truths and understanding impersonal history... Yes there are distortions in historical accounts, and we love restrospectively correcting the past, but I think history more or less sees the big picture and sees it right. As for asking people when they take toilet breaks, to seek truth, that's just being nosy :D
ReplyDeletehehe... personal truth discludes toilet stuff :D But yeah, i see your point. One thing does still remain, our lives, out parents lives etc do form a smaller chain of history. Even here, though there may be no interpretation involved, truth could be distorted. Parents may lie thinking they are protecting us. I agree, as saransh pointed out, some people look for closure more than truth. But even people who seek closure, would prefer truth first.
ReplyDeletewow! got thoroughly confused :)
ReplyDeleteWe are a narcissist race. Weaned on a diet of smugness right from childhood, we are obsessed with the idea that the almighy God in all his divine wisdom thought that it would be necessary to create the most superior race of Mankind to rule over and subdue all other creatures to his whims. So deeply ingrained is this feeling of being the only true intellectual animal residing on the face of this earth, that our wits are completely perplexed whenever we come across something we cannot control or cannot come up with an explanation for. Curiosity and the quest for truth is just euphemisms for this desire to be able to predict and infulence the outcome all that happens around us.
ReplyDeleteThe universe it seems is not without a sense of irony!
ReplyDeleteI found out that What people call the truth is a big lie!!!