When Truth Gets Blurry-and Why Satya Still Matters
It feels harder than ever these days to know what’s true.
Images are filtered and altered.
Posts are shared without being verified.
Stories spread faster than they can be fact-checked.
Sometimes it feels like truth itself has gotten a little blurry.
And yet, I’ve been thinking about how this isn’t entirely new. It just looks different now.
My mom once told me a story from when she was a young woman that still makes me smile.
She went to the store and bought something – I can’t remember exactly what it was - and when she got home, her mother asked the simple question, “How much did you pay for that?”
My mom knew she had spent a bit more than would be considered reasonable. Not terrible…just enough to make her uncomfortable admitting it.
So, she did what many of us have done at some point.
She shaved the number down.
“It was only $22!” she said.
Her mother nodded thoughtfully and replied, “Well, at that price, you’d better go back and get two more!”
And just like that…the little white lie unraveled.
I love this story because it’s so human. Most of us aren’t trying to deceive the world in big dramatic ways. Usually, untruths slip in quietly - when we want to look a little better, avoid discomfort, or keep the peace.
In yoga philosophy, the second Yama, Satya, is truthfulness - and it isn’t just about not lying. It’s about living in alignment with what is real - in our words, our actions, and even in the stories we tell ourselves.
And honestly? Practicing Satya today can feel more challenging than ever.
We live in a world of:
carefully curated lives
edited images
misinformation shared with great confidence
a lot of pressure to appear “fine” even when we’re not
Satya gently invites us back to center, where we can be honest and grounded.
It might look like:
pausing before sharing something online
noticing when we’re tempted to exaggerate
admitting when we don’t know
telling ourselves the truth about what we actually need
Because here’s the quiet gift of Satya: Truth isn’t always comfortable, but it is freeing.
When we practice being real, something in us settles. Our energy isn’t working so hard to manage appearances. We begin to trust ourselves more, and our relationships feel more genuine.
We don’t have to do this perfectly.
We just begin gently.
One honest moment at a time.
In a world where truth can feel blurry, choosing to live with integrity is a steady, grounding choice.
And if we forget…well, somewhere I still hear my grandmother’s voice:
“At that price, you’d better go back and get two more.”
