They say seeing is believing.
I guess for hundreds and thousands of years this was true.
But our eyes can be easily tricked.
Hence the reason why magicians have been making money since time immemorial.
But in today's modern world of ai, deep fake and being able to splice together a video on your handphone, this is no longer true.
This is what I saw happening when a video started going viral about the Dalai Lama asking a boy to eat his tongue.
I saw the outrage turning into a giant inferno.
I held back from commenting on it. Mainly because I did not want to add fuel to a burning issue. And something kept holding me back.
A deep gut feeling saying all that you see may not be true.
I know for a fact that it is a custom in Tibet to greet someone by putting their tongue out at them. Also if you go to Europe, virtually everyone kisses on the lips.
Fortunately for me, I came across this video which outlines the context of this entire situation whilst showing the complete unedited footage.
The fact that the boy's mom is also present, sitting on the stage, just a couple of feet away from Dalai Lama, and her expressions right throughout also helped me to understand that this would not have been a threatening situation for the child.
It was only then I realised how easily we can be manipulated. Even I am guilty of jumping into conclusions hastily. Without realising that there are three sides to a story. The actual truth, what one person says and what the other person says.
Because we have been conditioned through many thousands of years that seeing is believing.
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