Sunday, March 28, 2010

Self-Deception


"The greatest deception men suffer is
from their own opinions."

- Leonardo da Vinci

A deception is an un-truth, an intentional misguidance, a lie. When
we deceive someone else we are, in fact, lying to them. When we
deceive ourselves we are either lying to ourselves or we are
accepting as Truth a lie or a misguidance from someone else.

With this thought in mind, why is it oftentimes much easier for us
to believe lies and deceptions than it is for us to believe and accept
the Truth?

One reason we allow ourselves to be deceived is that there are
certain things we wish were true. We blind ourselves to all actions,
information and facts that are in opposition to whatever it is that
we "wish" to Believe. We deceive ourselves into believing that if we
blindly follow a deception it will eventually turn itself into the Truth.
However, as a deception or lie is completely contradictory to the
Truth, this "wish" of ours can never come into fruition and we end
up holding the rotted remains of a Self-Deception of our own
creation.

A second way in which we permit ourselves to be deceived is when
we allow the Opinions, arguments and self-serving comments of
others to influence our judgement.

In any issue there is only one Truth. However, in this same issue
there are many arguments and opinions which are contrary to the
Truth.

Why is this so?

The answer is rather simple. There is only one Truth. Truth does
not force itself upon anyone. Once it is spoken, or revealed, there
is no more to be said. Truth simply states its case and leaves it up
to us to either accept or reject it. Truth cannot add any arguments
or opinions to itself. Truth also has no reason to defend itself. The
Truth is simply...The Truth! This is why it is so easy for the
enemies of Truth to attack it.

For while Truth has has only one way to present itself, lies and
deceptions have many different avenues through which they can
attack the Truth and deceive unwary victims. Some of the ways
in which lies and deceptions attack the Truth is by way of Debates,
confusion and Opinions forced upon us by self-serving "experts"
and servant messengers.

We have been educated into believing that we must debate, and
"look at", all sides of an issue. Often, doing so simply clouds and
confuses an issue by allowing the demons of deception to enter
into the debate.

We also tend to believe that we must have a "devil's advocate" to
attack an issue simply for the sake of attacking it. In following the
path of devil's advocate, we often ultimately find the devil itself.

We have also been taught to believe that more "information"
enables us to make a better Decision. However, more "information"
usually adds to more confusion. Once the basic facts (the Truth)
of an issue has been un-veiled, anything else we add to the issue
simply creates a thick Mist of arguments and deceptions which
clouds the issue, confounds our thinking and leads us to erroneous
conclusions and Actions.

The vast armies of lies and deceptions are well-trained and well-
experienced. They have been practicing and perfecting their craft
for ages. Their "silver tongued" messengers have entranced and
slaughtered many innocent victims by persuading them to believe
in the folly and not the fact. For folly receives so much more
attention and promotion than does fact (Truth).

It is our responsibility to banish the specters of lies and deceptions
when they appear before us. However, before we can banish these
demons, we must first be able to recognize them.

Here are some of the ways in which we can protect ourselves
from being deceived:

Whenever we find ourselves confused about an issue we should
consider stepping back and taking a different look at whatever it is
that is confusing us. Confusion is a warning signal that either the
issue itself is not clear to us or we are allowing too much "information"
to clutter the issue and cloud our judgement.

Whenever we find ourselves entranced by, and carried away upon,
a wave of popular hysteria we must consider the fact that deception
is afoot and is working its diabolical miseries upon the masses. Truth
is simple and quiet; it does not present itself by means of popular
hysterias and delusions.

Whenever we find ourselves being entrapped into "looking at all
sides" of an issue we should realize that we are no longer
concentrating on the central issue, whatever it may be, but are
being led astray by multiple arguments and opinions which have
little, if anything, to do with the core issue. It is in times like these
that we must remind ourselves that deception has many "sides"
whereas the Truth has only one. The Truth is simply The Truth.

Whenever we find ourselves simply "wishing" something were true,
or when we find ourselves blindly accepting the arguments and
opinions of others without doing our own in-depth research, we are
opening ourselves up to a Self-Deception for which we have no one
to blame but ourselves.

Remembering that the Truth is simple, quiet and uncluttered we
should avoid all ideas, opinions and arguments which are loudly
forced upon us by the specters of deception. Once we are
introduced to the Truth we must accept it for what it is...simply
The Truth. Failure to recognize and accept The Truth when it is
presented to us can only lead us into dire Consequences.

Once we eliminate the clutter and wishful thinking which the agents
of deception plant in our minds we become able to focus on the
basic Truth of the issue which is before us. Then, with a clear mind
and unwavering understanding we are able to confidently act upon
the issue which is currently confronting us and banish the unholy
demons of Self-Deception from our lives.

Comments and Emails: I welcome comments and emails from
people with similar thoughts and feelings. My email address is
located in the upper-left area of this page. Comments can be
posted by using the "Comment" link located below each article.
Also: If you found value in this article please feel free to forward
it to other like-minded individuals, organizations and sites.

Disclaimer: None of my articles should be considered to be
either advice or expertise. They are simply personal opinions
and no more. Everyone is encouraged to seek competent
advice from a licensed, registered, or certified professional
should such advice or service be required.

© copyright Joseph Panek 2010
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