04/03/2026
This is how I’m holding things right now.
In the tradition of Vedanta, truth is understood in three layers. And I love this, because it reminds me that reality is not flat, it has depth.
Here is how it lands in me:
First, the apparent truth.
This is what we see with our eyes and feel in the moment. If someone lies, it hurts. If someone harms, it feels wrong. Cause and effect seem simple and direct. This level matters. It’s human. It’s where our ethics live. But it’s also limited because we never see the full picture.
Then, the transactional truth.
Here, things are not isolated. Everything belongs to a web of causes, conditioning, history, karma. What looks “wrong” may be part of a longer movement unfolding. This doesn’t excuse harm but it deepens understanding. Life is patterned. It is lawful. There is a larger balancing happening beyond our immediate reaction.
And finally, the absolute truth.
From this perspective, even chaos participates in evolution. Even distortion eventually reveals clarity. Nothing is outside the greater intelligence moving through existence. What seems broken may still belong to awakening.
But here is what feels important to me:
Higher truth is not an excuse to bypass responsibility.
Just because something serves a bigger unfolding doesn’t mean we abandon integrity in the human realm. We still speak honestly. We still act with care. We still choose alignment.
For me, maturity is when all three levels live together:
I act ethically in what I see.
I remain humble about what I don’t see.
And I rest in trust that life is moving toward coherence.
When those three meet, there is less reactivity… and more steadiness.
Not blind optimism.
Not moral superiority.
But embodied coherence.
And maybe in times like these, that quiet coherence is the real Dharma.
🙏🏽🙏🏽
