The many levels of truth

WE believe it to be true the Greeks’ and Romans’ contribution to knowledge and the historical episode that transpired.

Most of us accept historical accounts as gospel without a tinge of scepticism. We may ignore the probability that historical accounts of deeds and valour of benevolence and largesse were written from the perspective of the ruling cohort, which distort the actual situations to favour their positions. But, we assume it to be true. Thus, knowledge may not always present the truth.

Most of the time we assume that we know, but our knowledge is superficial and is dependent on the people who created, developed and transmitted them. This is the normal situation when we acquire knowledge from the initial schooling to university and beyond. There is a need to inculcate a healthy dose of scepticism in evaluating the transmitted knowledge.

Nevertheless, we have to trust their expertise. However, in evaluating this knowledge, we have to access their credentials, their motives and past precedents. Yet, we must not be so gullible as to blindly trust these people (authors, writers, etc.) because of their positions and so called moral stature for they may be peddling lies.

Is seeking knowledge an instinct? It is a conscious effort, which is explorative and analytical in seeking new information and the unconscious absorption of experiential observation allowing imprint of information on the mind and in the brain.

In fact, the self plays an important part in seeking and verifying knowledge. For the self is not only the awareness of the body in space and time, it also represents the cerebral perception of thoughts and emotions that affects its critical faculties. It could pave the way for the various manifestations of the egotistic self, which at times could be at odds with the truth.

There are thus various levels of truth in knowledge perception. Scientific truth, which is evidence based, and spiritual truth that is based on belief. Scientific truth is based on current algorithmic principles that may change with new discoveries.

And Einstein’s famous question to a friend in reference to Niels Bohr’s views “that nothing else exists without observation, do you believe the moon is not there when you are not looking at it?” brings into question the scientific concept of truth and reality, especially in the quantum world.

Spiritual truth varies according to the differing religious beliefs, which is also culture specific.

But the core principle of divine existence and determinant underlies all religious beliefs and thus truth.

Thus knowledge is only information/data that exists around and inside us and becomes visually and cerebrally visible when Man perceive it, and begins to ponder and format the data into meaningful phenomena based on his intellect and belief.

Man uses knowledge for functional, aesthetic and abstract purposes to equip himself to react to his environment, and to establish his ontological self and presence and the perception of the epistemic self that presents various probabilities of existence that go beyond the phenomenal world.

Knowledge and truth are as malleable as the cerebral fancy of man’s intellect fashioned by the cognisance of his ontological self within the existence of various cosmic dimensions.

The writer, Mohamed Ghouse Nasuruddin is an emeritus professor of performing arts at the School of Arts, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang