By James M.V. Yougie Introduction Truthfulness is a virtue which is a moral habit that results generally in the gaining or maintaining of our values. And habits are influential factors in our lives because they are constant in the daily expression of our characters which values our destiny/future or position within our family, community and society at large. ‘’what lies behind us and what lies before us are tinny matters compare to what lies within us’’ Oliver Wendell Holmes – PRINCIPLES OF PERSONAL LEADERSHIP In the study of Moral and ethical Philosophy there is a high concentration on the action of the human being towards himself/herself, the other person, his/her community and the society as a whole. In most cases, a man is positioned religiously or socially by what he/she does or says (doings and pronouncements). Because in those actions are expressed the characters of the man/woman. Habits can be learned and unlearned, but it is not a quick fix. It involves a process and a tremendous commitment (i.e. if you commit your-self to the right living, you get the right response. And if you commit to the opposite, you surely reap the opposite. WHAT… is Truthfulness? Truthfulness (n) has several definitions, but for the purpose of this assignment I will define truthfulness as: the communication of what is genuine and accurate. It is what the voice within tells you. Truth is like a vast tree, which yields more and more fruit the more you nurture it. The deeper the search in the mine of truth the richer the discovery of the gems buried there, in the shape of openings for an even greater variety of service. Mahatma Gandhi (Introduction to Truth) It is because at present everybody claiming the right of conscience without going through any discipline whatsoever, and there is so much untruth being delivered to a confused world. Truth is not to be found by anybody who has not got an abundant sense of modesty. Values Values are that which we seek to achieve or maintain according to our life as the standard of evaluation. Values are the motive power behind purposeful action. They are the ends to which we act. Without them, life would be impossible. Life requires self-generated action to sustain itself. Without values, one could not act, and death would follow. ‘’We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit’’. Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, c. 350 B.C. Integrity Integrity is the truthfulness in practicing what one preaches. More importantly, practicing what one believes is right. A man of truthfulness is not a man who understands a truth, but a man who understands, accepts, and lives by a principle. The first and most important reason to practice ones beliefs is that if they are right, you will be benefiting your own life. To understand other virtues or principles, and not act by them, is destructive. It is an act against your own best interest. Any deviation from what you know to be right is an attack on your own life. The second reason to practice integrity is that it is an affirmation that your ideas benefit your life. To act contrary to your own knowledge is accepting the premise that morality is somehow different from your own self interest, and that bypassing morality will somehow make your life better. Instead of seeing morality as a tool for survival, you see it as a restriction that makes life more difficult. A third reason to practice integrity is in dealing with others. A man who practices what he preaches is predictable, and few will feel threatened by it. Trust can develop, since others will come to realize you are consistently virtuous. To act without integrity even occasionally, will leave others distrustful. Sovereign Principle Truth is a sovereign principle which includes various other principles. This truth is not only truthfulness in word, but truthfulness in reflection also, and not only the relative truth of our idea, but the total Truth, the Eternal Principle, that is God. There are innumerable definitions of God, because His manifestations are immeasurable. They overwhelm me with wonders. Often in my progress I have had faint glimpse of the supreme Truth and daily the assurance is growing upon me that God alone is real and all else is unreal. There is a self-governing truth which every human being has acknowledged; there is a God who owns everything in this world. Quest for Truth The instruments for the quest of Truth are as simple as they are difficult. They may appear quite impossible to an arrogant person, and quite possible to an innocent child. The seeker after Truth should be humbler than the dust. The world crushes the dust under its feet, but the seeker after Truth should so humble himself that even the dust could crush him. Only then, and not till then, will he have a glimpse of Truth. Truth is like a vast tree, which yields more and more fruit the more you nurture it. The deeper the search in the mine of truth the richer the discovery of the gems buried there, in the shape of openings for an even greater variety of service. Truth resides in every human heart, and one has to search for it there, and to be guided by truth as one sees it. But no one has a right to coerce others to act according to his own view of truth. A successful search for Truth means complete deliverance from the dual crowd such as of love and hate, happiness and misery. Absolute Truth It is not given to man to know the whole Truth. His duty lies in living up to the truth as he sees it, and in doing so, to resort to the purest means, i.e., to non-violence. God alone knows absolute truth. Therefore, I have often said, Truth is God. It follows that man, a limited being, cannot know absolute truth. Nobody in this world possesses absolute truth. This is Gods attribute alone. Relative truth is all we know. Therefore, we can only follow the truth as we see it. Such pursuit of truth cannot lead anyone astray. Truth never damages a cause that is just. Life is an aspiration. Its mission is to struggle after perfection, which is self-realization. The ideal must not be lowered because of our weaknesses or imperfections. We become painfully conscious of both in us. The silent cries daily goes out to Truth to help us to remove these weaknesses and imperfections of ours. No Abandonment of Truth Truth alone will endure, all the rest will be swept away before the tide of time. we must, therefore, continue to bear testimony to Truth even if we are forsaken by others. Yours may today be a voice in the wilderness, but it will be heard when all other voices are silenced, if it is the voice of Truth. A man of faith will remain steadfast to truth, even-though the whole world might appear to be enveloped in falsehood. When it is relevant, truth has to be uttered, however unpleasant it may be. Irrelevance is always untruth and should never be uttered. Truth is truth – there is no such thing as a small lie, as a half-truth or a white-lie. Truth is a 100% word, you are either truthful or you are not. When truth is not the whole truth, it becomes a deceit, a lie. This is very important to understand. Conclusion For some reason people in society believe that there is nothing wrong with lying or bending the truth. People can usually find a way to justify their actions by saying, “Oh, that was just a little white lie,” and they really do believe that there is nothing wrong with lying. But why is truthfulness so important? Truthfulness is important because it is a vehicle through which future trust is earned by accurately reporting past facts. People who are truthful earn trust and are viewed by others as being honest. People’s reputations are based upon their ability to tell the truth, and people’s lives can be ruined if they are viewed as liars. When we learn about truthfulness this doesn’t give us permission to reveal out anything that comes to our lips (often bypassing our mind). As believers of God regardless of faith, our goal is to become more and more closer to God. If he is grace and truth, we need to be grace and truth. Likewise those who know God in other ways; the general belief is that God is a good God who loves right livings. +231777126969 jamesyougie@yahoo References 1. Mahatma Gandhi Introduction to Truth 2. Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, c. 350 B.C. 3. Oliver Wendell Holmes – Principles of Personal Leadership
Posted on: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 14:03:03 +0000
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