Universal Ethics
Universal Ethics > Ideas > Virtue of Truth

Truth as a virtue

If you keep the truth from someone, thinking it will prevent them from getting hurt, they will usually find out and be hurt because you kept the truth from them. - Wallis Zbitnew

Honesty is one of the fundamental elements of the Universal Ethics checklist. For more information about honesty, click here.

Honesty is a habit that needs to be nurtured, and sometimes a person can fall into a rut of trying to smooth over life's problems with small exaggerations, understatements, or lies. It helps if you define your "ideal self" as a person who is honest, and then remind yourself from time to time of your ideal. In Wallis Zbitnew's 2014 book, Mr. Apple Discovers the Four Way Test: Four Questions that Dramatically Changed His Life (Inner Truth Publishing, Regina, Canada) the author points out how important one's thoughts are to one's character. Here are her recommendations for affirmations you can say to yourself to re-enforce your own honesty (quoted from her book, p59):

Words to Repeat for Telling the Truth
  1. I am a person of integrity.
  2. I am in control of my thoughts.
  3. I choose to think thoughts that are good, true and kind.
  4. I practice telling the truth at all times.
  5. I am true to myself and to others.
  6. People trust me because they know I am an honest person.
  7. I am at peace with myself because I have nothing to hide.
  8. I always tell the truth in love, with good intentions, being careful not to cause pain.
  9. I am free to tell the truth that I prefer not to respond to a question or comment that is too personal or that might hurt someone.
  10. My thoughts are true. My words are true, and my deeds are true. I am a genuine person.

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