What value does relative truth have in our daily lives?
How important is it to be honest, have integrity and to act in good faith with others?
Does it really matter if we lie, cheat and steal just a little bit here and there?
When I use the term ‘relative truth’ I am referring to the ordinary sense of the word truth. Meaning that we don’t lie to the best of our ability. The Buddha referred to it as ‘right speech.’
I distinguish this from ‘absolute truth’ being the truth that we are all, fundamentally, the ground of awareness having a human experience. That is, the truth that is expressed in a multitude of different ways as the pinnacle realisation of almost every legitimate spiritual and religious path known to man.
In spiritual circles, absolute truth can be seen as having the utmost of importance whereas relative truth can be discarded or seen as optional.
However, for a seeker, someone on the path trying to cultivate themselves in such a way as to open up, find their hearts and abide as presence in every moment, relative truth might be a non-negotiable prerequisite.
The reason for this is that we are often telling lies on three different fronts all the time.
We can tell a public lie, a private lie and a lie that resides within awareness.
Let me elaborate on this a little.
The public lie is what it seems on the face of it. This is the lie we tell someone else knowingly. We are fully aware that what we are saying is not true, yet we are consciously choosing to speak it anyway, often in order to get something or gain some advantage.
The private lie is the lies we tell ourselves. These are often lies about how we truly are inside. What kinds of agendas or motivations we have running, how we hide or deflect and avoid uncomfortable feelings, how free or imprisoned we are or lies about what kind of person we are at the base of it all.
The lie on the level of awareness is about the sensations in our body. When I talk about this lie, I’m referring to about the kinds of unconscious defence mechanisms our psyche might run to protect us from pain. For example, we might be full of rage, but we have spent so many years stuffing it way down deep inside of ourselves, that we have no idea about it at all. We’re not even consciously lying at this point, it just hasn’t risen to our awareness yet. It is still an untruth though.
To me, having integrity means having all three levels in alignment at all times. The self on the level of awareness, the private self and the public self. It also means dealing with people honestly and openly and as transparently as it appropriate in the circumstances. I value integrity and I think it’s important for seekers on the spiritual path.
To me, it feels as though relative truth is an important stepping stone on the journey to absolute truth and something that should be cultivated with discipline.
To make it a practice to notice when we might be tempted to cut corners or tell a half truth or even exaggerate our accomplishments to another. When we see these habits in ourselves, they are often there for a clear reason which can be seen if we’re patient and having clarity, but it’s not ever in service of anything but ourselves.
Relative truth can often get diminished and seen as irrelevant when compared to absolute truth. As long as we are in contact with our true nature and living as that, what does it matter if you tell a little white lie from time to time?
I believe it matters.
And I believe it is only in starting to notice these patterns play out that we can begin to do something different.