The phrase “five three truths that are self‑evident” seems to be a mix-up of two common ideas: the famous “We hold these truths to be self‑evident” from the U.S. Declaration of Independence (which lists three key truths), and the party game “Two Truths and a Lie” (often adapted to three truths and a lie). There is no standard list of “five three” self‑evident truths in political philosophy or popular culture; instead, the classic reference is to three self‑evident truths in the Declaration.

The Original Three Self‑Evident Truths

In the Declaration of Independence (1776), Thomas Jefferson wrote:

“We hold these truths to be self‑evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

From this one sentence, the three main self‑evident truths are:

  1. All men are created equal
    This means that every person has the same fundamental worth and dignity at birth, not because of wealth, birth, or power, but simply as a human being created by a Creator.
  1. People have unalienable (natural) rights
    These rights are not granted by government; they belong to individuals by nature and cannot be justly taken away—only protected or violated.
  1. Among those rights are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness
    Life (the right to live), Liberty (freedom to act and choose), and the pursuit of happiness (the right to seek one’s own version of a good life) are explicitly named as core rights.

Together, these three truths form the moral and political foundation of the Declaration of Independence, and they are described as “self‑evident” because the authors believed they were so obvious and fundamental that they needed no complex proof.

The “Five” Part: A Common Confusion

Sometimes people mistakenly say “five truths” because they expand the Declaration’s sentence into five distinct ideas by splitting the parts:

  1. All men are created equal.
  2. They are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.
  3. Among those rights are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.
  4. To secure these rights, governments are instituted among men.
  5. Governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed.

But in Jefferson’s original text, only the first three are called “these truths” in the famous self‑evident clause; the rest are political conclusions drawn from them about government.

In Games and Pop Culture: “Two (or Three) Truths and a Lie”

Outside of politics, “three truths” usually refers to the party game “Two Truths and One Lie,” where each person shares three statements—two true, one false—and others guess the lie. There is no official list of “five three truths” in this context; instead, people make up their own combinations, like:

  • “I’ve been skydiving, I speak three languages, I’ve never broken a bone.”
  • “I once met a celebrity, I can cook five-star meals, I’ve never been on a plane.”
  • “I’ve lived in four countries, I’ve won a national contest, I’ve never had a pet.”

So, in short: the classic three self‑evident truths are from the Declaration of Independence about equality and natural rights; the notion of “five three truths” is not a standard philosophical or historical list, but rather a confusion or a playful mix-up with the game format.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.