Etymology of the word 'integrity' proposes a lesser known meaning to the concept. Integrity refers to 'wholeness' and 'health.' In mathematics, 'integers' are complete numbers. Conceptually, many believe it to be a personal responsibility towards honesty and consistency. Honestly speaking, it seemingly imposes heavy responsibility on the individual and hence is viewed as something good, but also very difficult. Since people's beliefs drive their behaviours, it is no wonder that often people would adopt the dishonest route and justify their actions and try to get away as if those things were normal. I would like you to view integrity from another perspective.

Instead of being something heavy that we ought to carry because we are good people, we need to view integrity as something that takes the load of heaviness on our behalf. Also, it is not something we need to exercise at just some extremely important defining moments of life. Integrity is to be exercised in small things. Before it plays out in our conduct and character, it works deep within our beliefs and biases. Our integrity determines what we would do when no one sees or knows. A good work may be performed while we are alone and we never get a credit for and yet it is the right thing to do.

In the world of psychology, it is proven that our brains work much harder when a person lies compared to the moment when he is simply being truthful. There is a dissipation of moral and creative energy when compromises are made within the mind and heart. For religiously oriented, such compromise means a loss of standing before the Divine. In new age spirituality, it would mean causing a negative imbalance of spiritual power. In any case, we must understand this that practicing integrity in little things of our daily life would contribute to our wellness and quality of life.

Story is told of a 10-year old boy who offered a deal to his younger sister. "You give me all your cookies and i will give you all my toys." They agreed to the barter. The sister brought in all the cookies, but the boy chose to hide some of his best toys in the closet and gave the rest to his sis. That night, sister slept calmly in her bed, while the boy tossed on his pillow wondering, "Did she keep some cookies with herself?" The story has some strong lessons for us.

Let us give our best. Let us not cheat ourselves. Let us also not cheat anyone else because in cheating them we will end up cheating ourselves. Let us be interested in reality rather than uniformity. Let us believe in the truth. Let us not inflate self or deflate others. Let us do the right thing. Let us act when we believe.

PS - If you would like to enjoy a thought provoking spirituality quiz, then jump to our fun quiz page. You may also watch our YouTube videos. What about learning about life after death?