Spiritual Life is Not About Being Right

For as long as I can remember I have been told being right is better than being wrong.

We are taught being right is essential to a happy life. In school, at home, in spiritual life, being right is important. Life is about finding right answers and sharing them with other people. Our lives will be better if we make right choices and decisions.

We educate ourselves, and our children, about the power of being right. We say that right makes might. We see ourselves as being on the right side of history. We believe we have the right to defend our rightness with everything we have.

My experience, though, tells me there are significant advantages to being wrong.

When we are convinced we have found the right answer, we usually stop exploring. When we think we know what is right, we work harder to defend what we know than to continue learning. When we believe we know, we tend to discourage other people from asking questions.

Many of the greatest discoveries and innovations of our lives happen when we question what we know. We tend to learn more when ask whether we might be wrong than when we are certain we are right.

We hear about people who seem to believe spiritual life is about knowing they are right. We hear them defend the rightness of their own ideas at the top of their electronic voices. They are convinced they are right. They want us to be convinced as well.

For me, spiritual life is more about exploring, being wrong, and learning, than about being right. I suppose I could be wrong about that.

How important is being right to you?

When is the last time you questioned the rightness of your own ideas out loud?

[Image by Conanil]