‘Arul Vakku’ -'  Lie and Fear '

• P.Natarajan

What do we feel in the ordinary course as and when we commit a mistake ?  It would be harboring round the mind with a sense of guilt. It would irritate as we hate to look at the dirt.

An immediate action what follows would be to hide it. Instead if we pray for forgiveness, we would become free from the guilt. We would also be watchful in not repeating the misdeed.. As soap washes the dirt, the bad feeling would disappear soon, when we admit the mistake.

Unfortunately we don’t disclose the mistake and instead utter a lie to divert the matter. When we don’t wash the hand , the dirt would become septic and turn into a wound. The lies after lies would follow to conceal the mistake(s) and the mind loses peace and becomes restless.

There arise a question - why in the first place we try to speak falsehood after having committed a mistake? A lie is a false statement with an intention of deceiving - anything misleading or of the nature of imposture. We are afraid of someone -  so we utter a lie or we want to pose or make a good impression about ourselves. Like a lie is comparable to a wound, fear can cause an itching sensation for the guilty.

The behavior science lays importance to respect the elders, parents, teachers, womenfolks and live in harmony with the society at large. It also advocates to shed the fear at all cost and fear only the conscience. Fear is like a  virus and spoils the purity of the mind. It would be fair to admit the mistake to our elders instead of uttering a falsehood. They would certainly pardon us. When we conceal the lie, it becomes a double edged weapon. When the truth becomes apparent, reprimand becomes unavoidable first for committing the misdeed and second for lying or misleading. The last but not the least, even if the elders punish for doing something ‘unbecoming of oneself’, we should accept the punishment with an open heart. It would be very much enduring and we would feel greatly relieved. Experience is the best teacher and experience gained helps as a course correction in the long run.

The courage of conviction, truth are like detergents to clean the dirt and is sure to irradiate the mind and bestow a shine and smile in oneself..

pn