How to witness "Truth"

"Truth" is an illusive thing. Not everyone can see it. Even those who have the capacity to see it are often blinded by preset opinions. Below is my method of witnessing "Truth".

1. First, you need to come to terms with the fact that you know nothing about whatever subject you are evaluating. Consider everything you know to be false, and dismiss it completely. You must start with a CLEAN SLATE. This is the hardest part, because the human mind struggles so hard to define things in ways that it is familiar with. It might be necessary to do some meditating to clear your mind.

2. Seek any and all information you can get. look at EVERYTHING. this goes beyond looking at both sides of a subject. You must look at all parts of all sides. When you decide to look at something from one side, you cast it into a "light", when you look at it from another side, the light changes colour. When you just look at the way an object looks under different lights, you don't get as clear an understanding of it as you would if you held it, felt it, examined every part of it.

3. Your mind is not entirely useless. Logic and common sense, along with a sense of probability will play into your conclusion. These are largely inaccurate for most people, because they can easily be manipulated to whatever outcome they "want". They can be very useful, however, if you are able to "stop wanting" a conclusion and start looking at things more objectively. KNOW THE DIFFERENCE.

4. "Truth" will not be as clear and black and white as you want it to be. You will have a very difficult time explaining what the truth of something is. This is more for your own understanding than for expressing to someone else. "Truth" is, after all, a lie as soon as its voiced. When you tell a person what the truth is, it becomes an opinion that hinders them from finding "Truth" for themselves. I know it sounds complicated and strange, but it really isn't.

Have fun.

Hey. You know, you could be onto something there. It could apply to many things, not only in this forum.

You have voted Nicotine1982 for the Way Above Top Secret award. You have two more votes this month.

Great post. I voted you way above too.

I think the main problem people face is the inability to accept lack of knowledge. It seems that people can not accept coincidence and let their minds fill in gaps where there is no real knowledge.

Thanks guys, its appreciated.

I'll add my two cents to your list:

5) Recognize when you have a bias on a particular subject, and be particularly sure to examine points of view other than your own.

For example, a person raised in a particular religion will probably find it impossible to look at their own religion, and quite possibly other religions, in an objective way. A person born in a particular country is more likely look at history in such a way that favours their own country, like "we didn't lose in Vietnam, we withdrew", or that sort of thing.

People also come with all their own prejudices, whether it be against a certain race, nationality, level of intelligence/education, sexual orientation, religion, or whatever. We need to try and get around those biases in order to get a more objective picture of things. (more easily said than done!)