h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

The crux of this debate is not that there is one truth, or many truths, but whether there is any sort of universal "truth" at all.

If we are to believe that every human has its own individual consciousness, then human existence, by definition, is a subjective one. Your reality, ie. your emotional and your physical selves are entirely independent of others. Therefore your "truth" will be entirely personal.

Although we have a word to describe sharing another's feelings - to sympathise - the process is actually impossible. We can certainly *empathise* (to be understanding of), but our perception of how we would feel in the same situation is always tainted by our own experience.

The extreme of this view brings us almost full circle. If our reality is completely subjective, then we can never prove that the elements of our reality actually exist independently. To put it another way, it's not so much "if a tree falls in a forest, but nobody is there, will it make a noise?" but more "if I am not in the forest, does the forest exist at all?"

If we believe this version, then your truth (if you have one) must be universal, as essentially, you are the universe.

My personal truth is that your perceived reality is the only one you've got, so learn to like it!!