The truth is a powerful thing, but unraveling what is true isn’t nearly as straightforward as we might believe.
The dictionary meaning of truth points to an indisputable fact or an accurate portrayal of objective reality. Honesty, integrity, and transparency allow the truth to be seen. Lies, denial, and deceit cover it up.
You may think truth is merely the polar opposite of false. But there also exists a more personal and mysterious side to this idea, because our perception of what is true hinges heavily on our ability to perceive, understand, and experience.
For example, we all have blind spots—aspects of our character that are more apparent to others than ourselves. We may have a problem overeating or getting angry that we dismiss, ignore, or overlook, often through personal justifications, or because we grew up around people with similar tendencies and our baseline has adjusted to consider this normal. And then, one day, something happens, or a loved one points it out in just the right way, and suddenly we can see this aspect of ourselves more clearly, allowing us to take meaningful steps to address it.
“Chinese people experienced development differently from the people in the West due to environmental factors,” Ha writes. “So Chinese people did not ask questions such as, ‘What is truth?’ Their interest was about doing, or how they could go on doing the right thing.”
“For example, we often hear and recognize as truth that ‘traveling broadens your horizons,’” says Ward. “Anyone who hasn’t experienced this can receive it intellectually, but it isn’t until you actually travel and experience what it feels like to have your horizons broadened, as it were, that you have embodied knowledge.”
“You begin to see the world differently in almost every way, and your interactions with, and understanding of, everyone you know and meet can become so much more meaningful when you realize you’re both relating from experiences of revealed, or embodied, truth,” Ward says.
Truth of Trauma
Of course, there are times when we require the kind of truth we can all plainly see, agree on, and establish as fact. But an individual, embodied truth also serves a vital purpose. Author and coach Danielle Bernock discusses this purpose through the lens of trauma in her book “Emerging With Wings.”“One of many problems with trauma is that people dismiss it in their lives, and so it festers and wreaks havoc either until the trauma will not be denied, or it costs them their lives,” says Bernock.
Bernock suffered numerous childhood traumas, but she always brushed them off as trivial because they didn’t compare with the kind of violent or harrowing events she considered truly traumatic. Instead of experiencing a school shooting, domestic abuse, or natural disaster, she felt emotionally wounded by friends and family, and says she was only able to heal when she acknowledged that her traumas, however small, really meant something.
“Since then, I’ve learned that trauma is not the event,” Bernock says. “Trauma is an involuntary wound left behind by something a person was unable to process. Validation of trauma is a vital part of healing. Trauma is personal, and until someone owns that truth, they will remain trapped in the pain.”
A Consequence of Truth
Finding the kind of truth contained in alethia can be a gratifying experience. You can look back on your previous ignorance and appreciate the world from a clearer perspective. But psychologist Claire Grayson says these epiphanies come at a cost: They can make it harder to relate to others who haven’t yet made the leap.“On one hand, we’ve been taught to believe that ‘truth is the root of all good.’ On the other hand, it has also been suggested that ‘the more you know, the more unhappy you are.’ So why do ignorant people tend to be happier?” asks Grayson. “The reason for that is that knowledge can put a burden on trying to be understood.”
It’s less stressful when we all agree and get along. And life might be easier if we all decided to see everything in the same uniform way. But for many of us, our quest for truth trumps our desire to conform. Grayson says humans are curious creatures. We want to know, even if it might alienate us somewhat from friends and family.
“Investigating and finding the truth can help us make meaning in life,” says Grayson.
Your Thoughts Shape Your Truth
Aside from extreme situations, how do we embody a truth? Grayson has a few tips. First, have an open mind. Consider that grief, anger, and sadness can cloud your vision, so strive to be emotionally sober before seeking truth, and be prepared to feel vulnerable. Understand that truth can be subjective and expect the unexpected.Some may look to a higher power for guidance. For outside observers, this approach may seem quaint, irrational, or naive. But outsiders have not witnessed all the signs and confirmations of truth that have led the faithful down this path.
For those that hold that creation is linked to a benevolent force present in their lives, truth includes dimensions that others may reject. Often, people that hold this belief have experienced a transformative experience that led to this type of embodied truth—an experience that often began with an illness, tragedy, or some other painful tribulation that inspired a search for answers.
In 2002, Patricia Heitz was devastated by a kidney cancer diagnosis during a routine checkup. She eventually dealt with the news by developing a daily prayer: “Help me see what I need to see and know what I need to know about this disease.”
While recovering from cancer surgery, Heitz found an answer in “You Can Heal Your Life,” a book by Louise Hay that describes how physical disease is linked to chronic emotional patterns and thoughts. It made Heitz realize that the anger she had been holding since childhood was the driving force behind the cancer that had been festering in her body.
“I had created a perception about who I was based on my need to be loved and approved in my dysfunctional family,” Heitz says. “When I realized what I believed about myself was not the truth, I then went on the journey to find out what the truth of me really was, and lo and behold, I found out I had some amazing gifts that, when I tuned into them, gave me great joy.”
The epiphany for Heitz was how powerful thoughts can be, and how they could dictate her truth. That knowledge gave her a new sense of control. If she could create disease out of self-hate, what could she create from self-love?
“I looked at the world through the eyes of unlimited possibility,” she said. “If I could discover what the beliefs were that sabotaged me, and correct them, I could create anything. If I could create disease through negative beliefs, I could create anything through positive beliefs.”
While such an idea may sound unscientific or idealistic to some, what is true for Heitz has been true for many. Experiences of miraculous disease recovery with a change in thought, the power of the placebo effect, and the links between mental state and disease are all well documented. So, while science gives us one way to agree on what is true, being broad-minded and willing to entertain ideas we disagree with gives us another.
