lie is an unnecessary entanglement that occupies our time and energy and takes away the peace of mind needed to reach God, says Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj
In our daily lives we are faced with the choice of telling the truth or uttering an untruth. Many people feel that no one will ever find out if they tell a lie or deceive others. Thus, to make some gain for themselves or to get away with something, people often tell a lie. little do we realise that truth always finds a way to reveal itself. Sooner or later, the truth will come out. When we are truthful in our dealings, we have nothing to fear or hide. Others come to respect and trust us, and our slate is clean when we try to enter the spiritual realm.
A story from the times of Akbar illustrates the importance of being truthful. Once there was a religious man who wanted to go on a pilgrimage. He did not want to take a chance of losing his life savings; so, he went to his friend to ask him to hold them for him while he was away. “I am going on a pilgrimage,” said he, “and do not know when I will return. Could you be kind enough to keep my life savings safely until my returnIJ I will collect it from you when I get back.” The friend agreed to guard his money. The following day the man left for pilgrimage.
Many years passed but the man did not return. Then, one morning there was a knock on the door. The man, now quite old, had returned from the pilgrimage. “I have returned and would like my money back,” said the religious man. The friend changed the subject and began to talk about other things. The old man kept coming back to the subject of his money, but his friend kept changing it. Finally, the old man insisted, “Can I please have my money backIJ” The friend said, “I don’t know what you are talking about. You never gave me any money.” The old man was shocked and shouted, “I never expected you to act this way. Please give my money back.” The friend said, “Are you crazyIJ You must be imagining things. You never gave me any money. You are lying.”
The man kept asking for his money, but the friend turned him out of his house. In despair, the old man decided to bring the case before Akbar. The emperor listened patiently to the old man. He then called for Birbal, his wisest advisor, and asked him to take care of the case. Birbal listened to the old man’s complaint and then had his friend summoned. When the friend arrived, Birbal asked him whether the old man had given him any money. The friend responded, “Sir, he is a big liar. He never gave me anything.” Birbal looked perplexed, and turned to the old man saying, “You say you gave him a bag containing money. Do you have any witnessesIJ”
The old man said, “I do not have any witness. I gave it under a mango tree.” Birbal said, “You are foolish to say you have no witness. You gave it to him under a mango tree. Can’t you get help from the treeIJ Go immediately to that tree and tell it that Birbal wants it to appear before him.” The old man was surprised at Birbal’s request, but did as he was ordered. He departed to bring the mango tree as a witness. In the meantime, Birbal asked the friend to have a seat by his side. An hour passed. When the old man did not come back, Birbal started to talk to himself loudly. He said, “Why is that old man taking so long for such a small taskIJ”
The friend responded, “But sir, he can’t possibly return so soon. He would not have even reached that place yet.” Birbal asked him, “What do you meanIJ Do you mean to say that this place is so far away from here that it would take him a long time to get thereIJ” “Yes,” responded the friend. “The place is far away from here.”
After a long time, the old man returned, out of breath. He said to Birbal, “Sir, I gave the message to the tree, but it did not say anything to me.” Birbal said, “Do not worry about it. The tree has already proved to me that this man did receive the bag of money from you.” Birbal then turned to the friend and said, “You have a chance to admit your guilt and return the money to this man.” But the friend insisted, “But he never gave me any money.” Finally, Birbal said, “If that is so, then how did you know the tree was far from hereIJ Are you prepared to admit your guilt nowIJ” At this point, the friend realised he was caught in his lie, and he bowed down to Birbal’s feet and begged forgiveness. He then returned the money to the old man.
The story illustrates that sooner or later the truth we try to hide gets uncovered. When we tell a lie, we have to tell so many more to cover up the first one. It is hard to keep so many lies straight in our mind. While the truth is one and is easy to remember, a lie weaves a tangled web in which we have to remember all the various strands. It is hard to sleep peacefully at night when we are worried about someone finding out the truth. It is better to tell the truth and be done with it, and sleep and meditate peacefully, than go through life with the fear of our being found out hanging over our heads.
Spiritual progress depends on the stillness of mind, free of mental entanglements and attachments. Being the keeper of a lie is an unnecessary entanglement that occupies our time and attention and keeps us away from the peace of mind needed to go back to God. By thinking twice before telling a lie, we can live a life of peace and tranquility.
The writer is a spiritual master