Ten Tenets: Honesty

Honesty is a primarily positive characteristic, mostly because it pays into one of the universe's most important tools: truth. If we are honest, we are stating what is - at least, that is, so far as we are capable of perceiving what is. The fact that we don't always see or view things from the proper or truthful perspective is a large part of why honesty has downsides, which we will talk about later on!

Being honest rewards us with positive vibration when we use it correctly. This is because honesty requires a few characteristics that require strength of will and quality of character that are not easily come by. Being genuinely honest also requires a certain degree of self awareness and desire to assert that knowledge of self. Neither of these things are particularly easy to do, either.

We can be honest in ways that are harmful, too, not just positive. Let's dive into that now!

One of the more prevalent issues with honesty is that it can sometimes cause conflict. This is for a number of reasons, one of which being that, sometimes, our truth conflicts with the reality we find ourselves in. One modern example of this is the current gender politics debate, in which an individual's emotional truth conflicts with factual truths. By just voicing their inner truth, a gender non-binary individual often creates an external conflict.

There is also the case of conflict created by ego, which is when an individual presents their honesty in such a way that it is hurtful or demeaning. While we should always strive to be honest, another of the positive tenets is kindness. Kindness and honesty go hand in hand, really, to help reduce the amount of conflict, as well as to help limit your ego's interference in the power of truth. One such example is if we were to tell someone else that we think they're an idiot. While it may honestly be our opinion, it's not very kind, and it may not even be the truth - or at least not the whole truth. Even if someone is foolish or uneducated in one particular way, they might be incredibly wise or skilled in another.

The ego can also interfere with truth and honesty when we believe that we can enforce our truth over someone else's, or are honest about our feelings in a way that is intentionally skewed or ego motivated. An example of this would be going out of our way to brag about true things in a way that is out of place and grandiose. Sure, your story may be true, but what is the true intention of sharing it? To share the story, and create a connection? Or to seem superior or better than someone else through having had the experience? Giving advice is another region in which this often applies. We can give genuine, well intended advice, or we can give advice that serves us, and our view points, more than the other person's actual situation. The difference here is that genuine advice comes from a place of true, inner wisdom, while ego driven advice comes from a place of self service.

Because of the ego, being honest can also be a bit shameful sometimes. When we reveal our truth, we are exposing a core facet of ourselves. This can leave us feeling very vulnerable. Whether it is our own ego or someone else's who might decide to take advantage of this occasional facet of honesty, it happens, and when it does, we or someone else is left feeling ashamed of some very true part of who we are, or how we view the world. Doing our best to embrace the truth of others, even if they conflict with our own, is a resulting challenge of honesty, to hopefully avoid causing shame.

Done right, however, honesty calls on some important and powerful facets of the spirit. The first of these is the ability to be humble enough to see the truth. Especially in regards to ourselves, the truth is not always easy to see. Being honest is an active battle against the negative aspects of the ego, perhaps more so than many of the other high vibrational tenets, because it requires us to view ourselves and others in a way that is not skewed by our emotions. For me, this particular facet of honesty is very difficult! It is usually much easier to judge others from my own perspective than to see a situation as it truly is, even though I am very much aware that this isn't the right way. Learning to actively humble myself in regards to my own truth and the truth of others, and the world in general, has been incredibly helpful.

Knowing how and when to be honest also requires moral integrity. Being able to stand by your morals, one of which is hopefully telling and living the truth, is one of the more challenging aspects of life, if you ask me. Honesty demands that you stand by what you believe is right, however, knowing that others may not agree or see it from your perspective. In additional to being able to know and stand by your truth, even when no one else sees it the same way you do, while also knowing when to stand by someone else's in favor of your own, requires a great amount of emotional and spiritual integrity.

The third benefit of honesty this article will discuss is justice, a natural benefit of truth. The call it the sword of truth for a reason; honesty will cut through the illusions and entanglements, to reveal the heart of the matter for what it is. When we use honesty with integrity and humility, and don't allow our ego to interfere, our lives begin to become much less complicated, and more straight forward. Other people's lies and illusions don't affect us like they used to, because we know our truth, and that we have been leading our lives with integrity. We are no longer as easily led astray by things that do not align with who we are, either, because our tempered honesty provides us with a set of skills to gauge how honestly someone else aligns with our energy, after all.

Honesty is a very challenging aspect of vibrational mastery, but also incredibly fulfilling. It also becomes easier to do the more you do it, mostly because the rewards are pretty satisfying. Even when being honest doesn't go well, it always provides us a clear insight into two things: the perspective of someone else, and the ways our own ego might have helped fuel the conflict. It can certainly teach us when being honest may not be the right thing to do, after all, if nothing else.

How has being honest or dishonesty affected your life? I'd love to hear from you below!

Affirmation:

I know and live my truth.