By Neal
What is Truth? Quite simply, Truth is what is. If that is the case then why for ages has mankind been searching for Truth? Understanding Truth has been the goal of religious studies, scholars, philosophers and more. It almost seems comical that the search for Truth and understanding Truth has been a noble and unfulfilled quest for the human race throughout history, when Truth is simply what is. After all, if it wasn’t what is, it wouldn’t be true, it would be something imagined, it would be false.
The reason we can’t know Truth or live in Truth is not that Truth is so hard to find. The problem is not with Truth but with us. We can’t see it, understand it or live by it, not because it’s hard to see, understand or live by, but because we block ourselves from seeing it. So, to find the truth, we don’t have to search or study, gain all kinds of knowledge about it. We only have to remove the “things” that we hold that are blocking us from seeing it. Once those are removed, you will see that it is right there in front of you and always has been.
What are these things blocking Truth and why do we have them? Basically, the things that are blocking Truth are things that we imagine to be true. Instead of just looking at things as they are, we look at them as we believe they are. The Bible describes it well with the story of Adam and Eve. They got kicked out of paradise because they ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In other words, instead of seeing the world as it is, they were now seeing it according to how they believed it to be, their judgements of “good” and “evil.” Those judgments tend to be self-centered ideas of what is good or bad for me. Mankind continued along that path to the present day. Each one of us has endless conceptions of how things should be according to what we believe and our past experiences.
It starts from the time we’re born. Our parents, our teachers, and people around us make it clear what good behaviors and bad behaviors are. As we grow, we adopt their judgments and out of those judgments we create an identity for ourselves and how we relate to the world around us. It is our natural instinct to fit in with others, a powerful instinct that runs through all of nature from flocks of birds to schools of fish to hives of bees, we want to match our identity to that of others. In our endless quest to want to belong and be accepted we turn our sight away from Truth. Truth to us becomes what others believe it to be and what improves my standing and acceptability in the group. Jesus described it as “the blind leading the blind.” As a result, we are never at peace for long because there will always be something or someone that challenges or disturbs our narrow focus, making us feel insecure. We may feel at ease that this identity we created is accepted somewhat by some but never completely at ease knowing that that acceptance is not universal.
Clearly, it is a painful struggle to have our imagined identity accepted in the world. For example, people might appreciate you because you’re attractive, but that will disappear with time. People might respect you because you are wealthy but is that respect for the real you or for your accomplishments? Our imagined world is also under attack by time and changing circumstances.
So, how do we clear our minds of imaginations and see Truth, and why should we want to? The
reason we should want to is that Truth is what is and by living according to what is we can have
true peace and true understanding. We no longer look for acceptance but we are able to accept. Accept ourselves, others and the world. We find a peace and understanding that doesn’t change with time or the changing circumstances in life. It’s a stability that is beyond acceptance or rejection of the world. Beyond the need to fit in yet it gives the ability to fit in with anyone. Fit in not because you share each other’s conceptions but because everyone can feel the Truth even if they can’t see it. Truth is absolute peace, absolute knowing that cannot be shaken or changed by anything.
Since the world and ourselves are already this Truth, we don’t have to study or learn it, we already are it. We just have to let go of what we “imagine” ourselves to be, then what’s left is Truth. For example, my Grandson likes to play Iron Man. He can easily give up the identity of Iron Man, because he knows that he is imagining it and surely nobody would back up that identity. In our case it’s a little harder because we built this identity from all our experiences and the conceptions we collected throughout our lives. From all our impressions of how we should and shouldn’t be, we took these things so deeply and even unconsciously. It’s hard to even know how they affect us. Adding to that, people do “back it up,” judging us and classifying us.
This is where meditation comes in. By quietly reflecting on ourselves and all the things we took in throughout life that led to our imagined world we can begin to let go of these imaginings. As we let them go, more and more Truth is revealed. More and more we begin to see the world outside of our imagination, more and more we begin to see that unshakeable unquestionable Truth. It is not a collection of ideas or body of knowledge. It is simply what is. It is a great freedom to experience the world as it is rather than struggling with how you imagine it to be. This meditation is a method that is easy to follow. The rest is up to your willingness and work. The only thing I can say is that once you let go of your imagined world you can have a peace that can’t be disturbed and a clear understanding of yourself and the world.
