We must constantly question where we stand, the height we claim, the path we walk, and whether those guiding us have chosen the right direction. Otherwise, anyone will be able to lead us anywhere—and in any manner—they please. We must always suspect that “the end of this road might be a cliff,” and we must demand accountability from our guide: why this path, why this route?

Look—under dictatorship, one person questions everyone. In a democracy, everyone questions everyone.

The very institution of elections is born of doubt: four, five, or seven years after you elect someone, you begin to doubt their fitness. If your doubt proves correct, you replace them. If not, you reelect them—once or even multiple times.

In a dictatorship, the leader doubts everyone but demands that no one doubt him. He punishes the skeptics and comfortably rules over those who pretend to believe—or truly do.

Only animals being led to slaughter suspect nothing. The human mind, by contrast, must remain in interrogation mode—always questioning.

Throughout history, when people stopped questioning, rulers began to see themselves as irreplaceable, even divine—“God’s shadow on Earth.” Some literally deified themselves, like the Pharaohs of Egypt.

The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was born of our nation’s collective doubt. That’s why it still holds a place of respect and admiration today.

You see, when a person lies, they have to construct the lie. It becomes a product of the brain. But truth comes directly from the heart. People with sensitive hearts, who read and listen with their hearts, can instantly sense whether words are heartfelt—or not.

So, what truly sustains and drives us forward is not blind faith, but lucid doubt—even when we sometimes doubt the doubt itself.

As Carl Sagan once said:

“I don’t want to believe. I want to know.”

See? Even humanity’s brightest minds have doubted the very act of believing.