Is Hitler wrong for invading Poland and initiating World War II? Is Trump right for the planned displacement of Palestinians? Are you right for assuming she likes you back?
History is an arena where the truths of the champions are amplified, and the losers undermined. Well, what if that were true for our daily life as well? How much truth do we hold so dear today, is nothing but piles of scrap papers? We keep them, hoard them, save them, believing that they are helpful, or at least will be useful for us, but instead, all such supposed truths do is erect barriers from us understanding life. They make us believe we are “superior” to others.
Therefore, through this essay, I propose an alternative lens of truth and how we can adopt it into our lives.
Humans, male or female, children or adults, slaves or free men, rich or poor, we all have our perception of how the world should run. We determine, consciously or unconsciously, a set of rights and wrongs. Then, as we stumble upon others who do things the “wrong” way, according to our dictionary, we impose a negative connotation upon them. Malaysians ridicule Singaporeans for not showering in the morning, and Singaporeans josh Malaysians for being lazy. In the war of truths, the winner is fallacy. Is a world of fallacy a world we want to live in?
I hope the answer is no. Now, what can we do to live together despite having polarising truths?
The answer is simple yet insurmountable in practice: one must live in perspective rather than perception. The sole medicine for barren wars is the ability to understand how the opposition came about their truths. Malaysians need to “be” Singaporean and vice versa if we really want to solve any quarrels, big or small. But wait, doesn’t every person have an innate identity and will cling to it for fear of despair? And that, dear citizens of peaceful nations, is why we will not advance as human beings.
The fear of losing our identity overrides our willingness to understand one’s perspective. You can’t say you represent the rakyat when all you’ve done in life is go to an international school, get picked up by your chauffeur, and sleep on a comfy queen-size bed. Everything good comes after losing something. End of January 2025, I was grateful to be given the chance to visit Geneva to observe the conditions that prisoners of war had to endure fundamentally because they believed in the opposite truths. Rationally, you would think that these people who have been tortured day and night for weeks and even years must have no energy to do anything. You would think that breathing is all that they can do. Yet, these souls made paintings, musical instruments, and sculptures, to name a few. In the absence of light, comfort, and hope, these souls in captivity are the most creative they have ever been. Partly because they have no one to express themselves to other than on paper; otherwise, they managed to create unthinkable masterpieces because they are no longer soldiers; they are now a person, an insan.
Indeed, I wouldn’t suggest you dispose of your entire identity to understand why a Malaysian would rather speak English than Malay. Our core identity defines who we are, after all. Instead, I encourage you to be 10% more charitable with the people you disagree with and, similarly, be 10% more sceptical with the people you agree with. Frankly, it takes courage to lose a bit of yourself. Nevertheless, in knowing that not all truths serve a purpose, may you find more comfort in throwing yourself into the abyss. For all we know, the abyss may hold a pleasant surprise. Uncertainty is a gift for humans so that we could be conscious of every aspect of life.
Before closing off, I would like to emphasise that losing yourself to be in others’ world is a noble habit, only if you do it purposefully. Fyodor Dostoevsky put it beautifully that one’s worst sin is to destroy and betray oneself for nothing. Here, doing something with purpose doesn’t translate to doing it intentionally. I’ve spent a chunk of my life laying on hospital beds, clinical rooms, and surgery theatres (which I swear were all unintentional). Yet, I found bliss in knowing losing my health serves a purpose, even if I disagree with whatever God is planning for me at that moment. Surely, with hardship comes ease.
My life has been nothing but uncertain, and I love it that way. I’m afraid of being in a constant position; that is, I only hold on to a set of beliefs and am unwilling to let others into my life. For that, it is a robotic reality from which I want to stay as far away. I hope this essay encourages you to lose some part of yourself and replace it with the beauty of others, on and with purpose. Most truths are created from perception, not facts. We should be wary of that. Be comfortable with truths in perspective, not perception.
Perception says this is an image of nothing; perspective says it reflects yourself.
Throw yourself into the abyss,
Hakeem.
