The Indian 1000 rupee banknote includes the words “I promise to pay the bearer the sum of one thousand rupees.” Under these words there is a signature and the word Governor, presumably referring to the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India – the nation’s central bank. This promise, it turns out, is not worth the paper it is written on. A month ago, in a surprise move, the Indian government declared both the 1000 rupee note and the old 500 rupee note worthless. Small numbers of the notes can, indeed, be traded in for valid currency at the Reserve Bank, until the end of this month. After that, it will be a broken promise.
Even with the best will in the world, promises often end up being broken. This is especially true of open-ended promises, like those on the Indian banknotes, or marriage vows and such like. Making such a promise merely shows a complete misunderstanding of the nature of existence. It assumes that one is in control of one’s life. It assumes one can predict all possible eventualities. Such promises might be made from a genuine naivety – out of ignorance of one’s own ignorance – but often there is an element of manipulation involved. We make a promise because we want someone to trust us. But psychology is cunning and words are often used as a substitute when the reality is lacking. Someone who feels himself to be untrustworthy will make a promise in order to hide this perceived defect. It might work for a while. The chances are though, as with these banknotes, that sooner or later the promise will be shown to be empty.
If you want to know who to trust, trust those who do not promise anything!
