Should our actions always match words? Even if it goes brusquely against our own feelings and needs? What if the words said were ill-informed and declared in a moment of emotional distress?

Do those words deserve to be followed? I have always been keen on following through my own words. But sometimes I am unable to do so and on those occasions I am greatly disappointed with myself.

Mythology

I often reach out to Indian mythology when examining issues related to morality. I have written on several occasions about my obsession with Lord Rama, and his ability to follow through.

But there are so many background factors that make it defensible, especially the one related to ‘divine will’ which requires him to take the harsh decisions. The fallout of this approach is kinda brutal on the people around him, but they comply out of love or obligation.

Krishna, however is a maverick who plays around with words and manipulates people. He justifies half truths and romanticises rather politically shady moves by saying that he does it to protect Dharma or righteousness.

This is a slippery slope because nobody can define ‘Dharma’ in a purely objective manner. What one might consider to be right might be squarely wrong.

Nobody Gives a Shit

That has often led me to the domain of absurdism. The fact that everyone is doing whatever they feel like gives me the license to do whatever I wish. This is a crude take on the surface but it gives me so much liberty and lifts the burden of compliance or fair play.

If I were to do the same thing everyone is doing (in their own self-interest), that doesn’t make me feel good either. But then, nobody asked me to sacrifice for the greater good.

Self-examination can be an endless loop. One’s own reasoning can feel like a scam because we tend to selectively view our actions in positive light and downplay the impact of negative consequences of some of our decisions.

I do acknowledge and reiterate the importance of matching words and actions, because without this approach it will be hard to generate self-trust and a perception of trust in others. Credibility is definitely linked to past track record.

Conclusion

This chain of thoughts eventually leads me to one viable conclusion.

Before speaking or making promises, one needs to carefully assess the background, the nature of players involved, incentive structures and our own capability to fulfil the words we speak.

There must be no shame in making departures from past positions if new facts emerge before us.

In absence of changes in circumstances, one should definitely strive to make words and actions match. Otherwise, the entire civilisation would collapse and we would be living in anarchy and stress.