Truth made you a traitor as it often does in a time of

Hear the fierce words of Lillian Hellman, who declared: “Truth made you a traitor as it often does in a time of scoundrels.” This saying is not gentle, but sharp as a sword, for it reveals a grim paradox of human history: in corrupt times, when liars rule and scoundrels thrive, to speak the truth is to invite scorn, exile, and betrayal. In such an age, loyalty is demanded not to what is right, but to what is convenient; not to justice, but to power. And so the one who dares to stand with truth is branded a traitor, though in truth it is the world itself that has betrayed righteousness.

Hellman spoke from her own bitter experience. As a playwright and a woman of conviction, she refused to bend before the inquisitions of her time. When others cowered and named names during the shadowed days of McCarthyism, she declared, “I cannot and will not cut my conscience to fit this year’s fashions.” For that defiance, she was condemned, shunned, and treated as if her truth were treason. Her words echo the fate of countless souls across history who found themselves exiled, imprisoned, or slain—not for lies, but for telling the truth amidst scoundrels.

Consider the story of Socrates, who in ancient Athens questioned the powerful and exposed their ignorance. He sought truth, not flattery, and for this he was accused of corrupting the youth and dishonoring the gods. In a city that had lost its way, his truth made him a “traitor” to the order of scoundrels who feared exposure. They condemned him to drink hemlock, and though they silenced his voice, his truth endured through the ages, greater than their falsehoods.

Or look to Galileo Galilei, who gazed at the heavens and declared that the earth moved around the sun. His discovery was no treason to knowledge, but to the powers of his time, it was rebellion. They demanded silence, for his truth threatened their authority. He was forced to recant, branded as a traitor to faith, though in reality he was only a traitor to their lies. Here again, we see Hellman’s words: truth itself becomes betrayal when scoundrels rule the day.

The lesson is heavy, yet necessary: do not expect that the path of truth will be lined with garlands. Expect instead suspicion, opposition, and sometimes even betrayal. For the world of scoundrels has always called truth treason. But remember also that though truth may condemn you in one age, it redeems you in the next. Socrates, Galileo, and Hellman herself—all condemned by their contemporaries—are honored now as voices of courage. Their so-called “treason” was in fact fidelity to what endures.

Therefore, O seeker, learn this: never betray the truth, even if truth betrays you into exile. Better to be a traitor in the eyes of scoundrels than a scoundrel in the eyes of eternity. For lies are light as chaff, blown away by time, but truth is heavy as stone, unmoved by storms. To cling to it may cost you your place, your peace, even your life, but it will give you something greater: freedom of the soul, and the honor of standing with what is eternal.

So live in this way: test your age, and ask whether it rewards scoundrels or lovers of truth. If it is the former, do not despair. Stand firm, even if your honesty makes you a traitor. For it is better to be cast out with truth than to reign with lies. And remember Hellman’s warning: in a time of scoundrels, truth will make you a traitor. But in the time of history’s judgment, it will make you a hero. Choose the path of truth, though it be hard, for it is the only path that leads beyond the fleeting shadows of power into the light of eternity.