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Wednesday, September 12, 2012

The Confusion about truth


In day to day life i get asked by my friends,colleagues and family to give my opinion on issues of their concurrent concern or some or the other preoccupation.This prerogative is solely bestowed upon me because people have an impression that i have earned my stripes in life through lots of thick and thin. This dialogue and exchange of ideas is very healthy indeed and leads to one's clarity of mind and also keeps the thread alive.  Or else where is the time left with anybody to reach out or 'Communicate'.

One thing that i have been lately debating is, how true my set of beliefs are , how deep my knowledge about multiple subjects is ?and how well have i weaved all the experiences in my thinking methodology ?? There are topics that i am well read and aware of , a bit lesser in few and at times totally oblivious of some. I assume that's a general mix and match of everybody around us. The grey area and self doubt  creeps in  the areas where i am not in control or have not thought it through ,however easy it might be. Still the ask of people around is an answer , an opinion and/or an advice. I can very honestly express my in ability of not knowing  it all and find an escape. Now here is the catch  !! This answer or truth is not helping me when it comes to raising my son.

My kid  is growing up day by day and learning numerous new things in this journey. He has questions, anxities and puzzles to seek an answer for and but naturally he will turn up to his parents.  Whenever he will pop up a question i have to have an answer to quench his curiosity and as i said earlier there will be questioins i will not be equipped to answer.  This is where the " Confusion about Truth " comes.  I do have an aid in the internet search engines that can answer better than me and in a fraction of the time i will take. What perplexes me in this sea of information is the verity of this information and its relevance for the answer seeker. 

Truth is not what we know
Truth is not what we know

Now to judge or sieve in from this maze of content that is thrown up at me i have to fall back on my own learning's.The basics to analyse , the ability to decipher , the competency to understand and the authority to disseminate it in the end.  The big question !! Did i learn it right ??  Has there been more transimisson loss than i think,in the learning's from my teachers to me ?? Did i get my fundamentals in the first place?? How well did i learn myself ?? Has there been more of a generation gap between my parents and me  and did i not pick from them that effectively ??

What is the image and shape of the ultimate truth that i know and currently believe in ??

I have come to think of it that as we all grow we change the way we used to think few years back. Now as we change and customize there is lots of information that we buffer and newer things  we pick up. The rate at which we relinquish is not the same at which we acquire, though. The interesting thing to observe is, in the way of disowning , forgetting or deleting the information that we acquire. Here is when we pick and choose and remember things that we conveniently want to carry forward. All of it that we carry with us is not true , all is not a lie but one thing that is certain is, it is not all perfect as it was.

Gradually over the years, layers over layers keep on forming in our minds and this continuous process brings us to a point where there is a confusion about the truth we presently know. I stand at a conjecture where my  present knowledge over the years is colored ,modified and i have fresh to learn, the mode and content of which i need to judiciously decide. I am in no position to comfortably agree to either of the two sources. 

Waitng for another obscure question from my kid !!

4 comments:

Siddhartha said...

Search engines throw data and Parents give their interpretation of data based on a framework that they have formed from life.

Once they are an age where they start understanding life...Its best to help them prepare their framework so that they come up with their own frame work to judge data....

Till that time enjoy answering silly questions...

Viveksheel said...

Siddhartha !! You quite rightly say that we as parents interpret data and information based on our learning and fundamentals. I can help my kid till a point beyond which i will let him go and allow him to make his own judgement in life.

Today i am questioning my own set of beliefs, knowledge and want to reinvent myself. Moreover i intend to play a role of a parent and 'content curator' for my kids.

Let the question and answer sessions go on and let me keep raising my own bar for my kid :):)

Words Kraft said...

Even a few fragments from daily life...A hundred odd news channels broadcasting different versions of the same "Truth"....Leading to utter confusion for us mere mortals...

Viveksheel said...

Hi Soham !! Quite rightly said, the facts and figures presented by the media are coated with their own interests and are definitely biased. I am really thinking hard what yardsticks should i choose to teach my kid. What 'true world' do i present to him so that he can make his own inferences.Not only the society has undergone a sea change the Truth too has undergone makeovers !!