Apart from the fact that Sister Amelia told me to be honest in one fine moral science class ...I have yet to find a concrete reason to be honest. Concrete from the point of view of morals and ethics..!
Yet as I try and tell people to be honest I must try and find out the motivation for being honest..
Why should one be honest?
That is an interesting question ..! Interesting because every sense in this world tells us that dishonesty pays . You can cheat and get rewards ..what are the rewards of "not cheating". Lets not get into the God bullshit...! What are actually the rewards of being honest in this world?
In answer to the question ...I feel I just know my motivation. I dont know why should you be honest ,I only know why should I be honest ..and I spell them out...
1. Honesty leads to a simple and elegant answer. For example when some one forces you to drink ..you can say "today is tuesday..so i will not drink" ..or you can say.."because I dont feel like". Now which one do you think is simple and elegant? The first answer will make you dishonest to cover it up while the next answer will make life simpler. Similarly if you are honest the things that you need to cover up will be so much less that it will make life simpler and linear. You will forget to tie urself in knots thinking of the next dishonest answer..That is a tangible reward.
2. Honesty makes you realise what is it that you are looking for. Yes thats true. Everytime I give an honest answer I have to rethink my priorities. Its like a mini soliliqy. I talk to myself. What do I want ? The truth is that we are all seeking that answer ..and honesty brings us one step closer. In the earlier example ...the first answer will somehow make me spell out the fact that I really dont like drinking while the other will take me away.
3. Honesty leads to the very thing that you want. Honesty is a step wise process..With every honest answer I realise somthing about my aims in life. Its not just a sidey answer ..Its a profound truth about myself. Its bringing me closer to what makes me happy. If thats not a tangible result , what the hell is?
4. Lastly I am honest because I have seen the benefits of honesty outweighs that of dishonesty in long term. Honesty has made me a happier and a merrier guy with no qualms about my weaknesses or shortcomings. I know precisely what to do because with honesty the answer lies right before my eyes..I do not have to think this way that way...or twist myself. It keeps my mind free to enjoy the beauty before me.
All four points are basically the variation of the same thing. Honesty is simple, less time consuming, more rewarding and makes me happy. Thats it. I am not a God believer but a man believer..So it kind of sits ideally with my faith or rather the lack of it.
I am honest because it benefits me tangibly and not because Sister Amelia told me to be ;)
1 comment:
When people worry about maintaining their "image/reputation/pride/ego/status" among others, they start thinking "what-will-others-think-of-me?", that's when honesty is lost and the covering up starts.
You be what you want to be, or you become what the society expects you to be. The choice is simple because the fact is - sister Amelia dosn't care.
Life becomes simple if we don't care what others think. And so, Honesty is the best policy.
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