Why do people lie to themselves?
Investment in their story.
It’s an unfortunate truth that these days people are essentially shit and dishonest. Unwilling to really even try to come to grips with an idea that falls outside of their personal conceptions of reality.
When something conflicts with a belief, the easy thing to do is denounce it and walk away. This wasn't always so. Not to glorify the past as some kind of golden era, but more the people that became big and famous for being cool. The sages, the Buddha’s and the Jesus.
One of the hardest things to do in life is confront a conflicting belief, to compose yourself in the face of overwhelming dissonance and examine the truth of a situation. But it is the absolute key to your life, after confrontation with yourself how to proceed is up to you.
It will always be much easier to recede into a shell if you don't grow the discontent, which drew you into inquiry in the first place, into something more than discontent, something more powerful than just about anything else in the world and the reason that man is the most powerful species on the face of the planet.
Curiosity.
It sounds like such a benign word. It’s not. Curiosity is itself without moral judgement and is therefore inherently honest, not a lot of aspects of the human condition have that trait.
Inherent honesty... how does that sit with you. It cannot be claimed by anything or anyone. It’s completely free and selfless to begin with. But it is fragile. People, with their moral judgements superimposed over this pure thing corrupt that essential curiosity.
But that curiosity can’t even judge that. At our absolute best, the human race is simply curious. It doesn't always have a happy ending, it’s without moral judgement you see, and therefore that essential curiosity is as much a creator of the atom bomb as it is the solar panel.
It’s why lots of teachings teach to be like a child. What is the one thing that defines children? It’s that innate and constant curiosity,
"whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it” - Jesus
"Be like a child and be like an old man" - Osho
The list goes on.
Why a child? Because it is all that exists at the heart of a child uncorrupted by the “teachings” of the twisted lying adults before him.
Honest curiosity.
