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Above all, do not lie to yourself. A man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point where he does not discern any truth either in himself or anywhere around him, and thus falls into disrespect toward himself and others. Not respecting anyone, he ceases to love. Dostoevsky understands why our self-justifications are self-defeating. We lie because we wish to be respectable—first in our own eyes and then in the eyes of others. But people know when we’re making excuses for our sin, and we despise that, so then we despise them and ourselves. View Highlight 2025-11-29 See also: enneagram5
