No! I am right!!! You are wrong!

- Ritvvij Parrikh
Mumbai, India

Case Scenario:
Many times in our lives we face situation when we have had a fight with someone.. An argument... No! i am talking of those senseless arguments wherein YOU KNOW YOU ARE WRONG and just for the heck of maintaining your EGO - you keep on fighting... I am talking of fights.. when you feel you are right... and you fighting for your truth. And the other person feels he is true.. it is TRUE vs TRUE... A scenario where complete END to the fight is not possible!! Battles are won and lost... But the goes on and on..

I have tried to document this scenario here

In ancient India, there existed two great warriors - SanVir and RanVir. Both are master swordsmen of their times. SanVir had ruthlessly massacred men for his fun. But one day, in a moment of enlightenment - he realized his mistakes and started wandering about seeking peace and trying to do good. RanVir, a master war general and administrator - had NO faith in democracy. He believed that people without any knowledge cannot rule a nation efficiently and strategically because they have NO vision. He had raised an army and started a civil war within the country. The Government forces and the RanVir army fought hard. Battle after battle... the RanVir army was winning. That’s when the government approached SanVir and asked him to join them. They convinced SanVir that this was the only he could do well for the same people he had ruined. This was his punishment and his remorse. That’s when the tables turned. Now, SanVir and RanVir were both standing man against man in the battlefield and the two start fighting. The fight goes on for days at end. It is just matter of luck that suddenly, RanVir's sword breaks into 2 pieces and he is about to die. That's when he spoke – “You and me both have fought like lions. You and I both strongly believe that we are doing good for the nation. We both believe that we are right. But both cannot be right, one has to be wrong. It is just a matter of destiny that I have lost today… but only history will say – who was right?” And he dies. A few years later, a powerful foreign invader raids the country 7 times, kills millions and finally enslaves the complete country. The government just did not have any foresight or planning or strength to tackle this powerful invader. That is when SanVir realizes that a mighty leader like RanVir alone could have saved the nation from this powerful invader and that he was wrong. The dying words of RanVir were right and history did show who was true.

Abruptly coming back to complementary time…

Gazing outside the window at the serene landscape, I kept on listening to my comrade's explanation - explanation of as to why he overlooked me and my wishes. The same person with whom I considered to me mine... was standing right there behind me - trying to give me a logical and practical reason of why he betrayed me. All those days, months and years that we had been together as friends and buddies in arms... all those times when we had stood there in eachother's problems... everything - EVERYTHING flashed in front of my eyes. My mind and heart were at war... I still couldn't believe it - I had been backstabbed!! And my closest pal had done it. And he stood there telling me that he dint do by purpose! Suddenly, in a fit of rage and disappointment, I swirled around and yelled back - "NO!!! You are wrong! I am right!"

There are so many such similar situations that we face in our diurnal lives. Among friends, office comrades, relatives, family,... everyday each one of us has experienced this fight between right and wrong. This article is going to give further foresight into this most diurnal problem that is the source of maximum fights.

Generally, fights happen when two people share the same polarity. If either both feel that they are right or if both feel they are wrong. In no other case, would a fight occur. If one was right and the other wrong, then one will accept his fault and the fight would end - though the negative generated by ones fault would go slowly with time. Coming back to the scenario when two people feel that they are right...

The need to be right and not to be wrong has enraged many into battles, it has broken the closest of friendships, killed trust between your own blood... and what not. Wars have been waged by men saying they are right, their religions are true… and the other ones’ are false. Jehads, crusades… have been waged thinking that ones religion is right.

There are two sides to this basic PROBLEM of being right and wrong...

Side 1: You are sure that you are right. The complete world is supporting you. History, religion, traditions.. everyone proclaims you are right. Everything seems in place... But again - Can’t your view that you are right, be just an illusion. How can you be so sure that you are right and that others are wrong. You can never be sure… How can you be sure?

Side 2: Sometimes in life, moments arrive when everyone believes strongly that you are wrong. Everyone whom you know feels you are wrong… But again, you feel you are right. You know this because your head and heart are telling you that you are right. What do you do?

Only, history will tell who was right!

But till, history steps in, I would define truth to be collective belief. Truth until the actual truth comes out is nothing but what everyone believes the truth is. Thus, truth is nothing but collective opinion that has been created and not discovered. So, it is the above definition of truth that actually determined whether you are right or wrong in the short run. However, in the long run it is history that determines who was right and who was wrong.

Now, one thing is clear that you can never be sure whether you are right.. and that only history will say whether you were right just like in case of SanVir and RanVir.

But there is one more thing that I have seen and wanna add. Many a times, we feel we are right and we go ahead with what we feel is right... somewhere down the road we realise that what we believed to be right was actually wrong but by then we would have invested a lot of time, energy and other resources into that ILLUSION. Then because of our EGO - we dont accept that we were WRONG. This is not a sign of the strong.. instead it is a sign of the weak.

I conclude, this article by simply saying - Only history will tell whether my interpretation of the battle of right vs wrong was right!