The Value Of One’s Word…

I watched this great action movie when I was a kid. It was one of Sylvester Stallone’s lesser known movies; a cop flick called “Cobra”. In it, the main protagonist played by Stallone uses a great quote: “As long as we play by these bullshit rules and the killer doesn’t, we’re gonna lose.” I still watch this movie on days when I’m feeling nostalgic.

What are your thoughts on this? What do you believe the value of one’s own ethics and truth are worth? Are they simply good for the one, or does it help towards contributing to the overall betterment of the world?

Buddhism teaches us that the true definition of a fool is “Knowing the truth, seeing the truth, but still believing the lies.” This has held a heavy amount of truth within my own life in recent years (See what I did there? The truth about a quote on truth? Whatever, I think I’m funny… Moving on…)

The past year and a half of my life has been about truth. Who may be speaking it, who may be bending it, and who may benefit from either. I have always lived my life according to a personal code of ethics that has required honesty in all situations. I’m the type of person that what you see is what you get. Most times, I’ll spit out the truth before I have a chance to stop myself.

So, what happens when that truth is used against you? Does you harm? Damages your family? Does it then become a hindrance as opposed to the right path? And should you take steps to eliminate these hindrances?

Lao Tzu once wrote that “The words of truth are always paradoxical,” meaning that even the truth will always be absurd or self-contradictory. (And yes, before any of you mention the fact that I’m Buddhist and Lao Tzu is Taoist, I’ll gladly point out that I’m a student of life and study many religions!)

These questions are at the focal point of my thoughts today. And I wonder if the end result is worth the effort. I believe the truth is important. I think that doing the right thing and protecting others is also important. The issue comes when those two aspects conflict with each other.

A little bit heavy on the philosophical side today, but some healthy food for thought for all of you. After all, when you aren’t exercising the body, you should be exercising the mind. ☯