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I think about wisdom. Perhaps more than the average person. It’s hard to tell. It’s not something that is a great conversation item.
Some years ago, I realized that perhaps more than anything else, I’d like to be wise. Wise in the sense that people wanted to listen to me.
But I’m not wise, nor, I suspect, will I ever be so. You see, the people who I consider to be wise listen more than they speak. And I’m the antithesis of that.
I’m convinced that wise people become wise because they listen. They absorb the wisdom nuggets of others. They also read a lot. I read a good deal, but not a lot. Not as much as I should.
I consider Socrates wise. But he was wise in realizing that he didn’t know much. His wisdom was, through questioning, showing others that they didn’t know very much either. In some sense, he invented the idea of true serious thought, deeper than the surface–probing, winding, turning, backing up, circling.
It’s hard not to think of Buddhist monks and Indian yogis as wise. They sound wise. Perhaps it’s because they say things that I don’t quite get, and I equate wisdom with statements that puzzle me. So, I’m not sure.
Lots of people, mostly dead, seem wise to me. Henry David Thoreau for instance. He said two things I never forgot:
“Most men live lives of quiet desperation.”
I think that is one of the truest and saddest things I’ve ever read. We all live encased in armor, a total mask. Presenting ourselves as “normal” when inside I suspect most of us are very unsure of most everything. And that frightens us.
“I went to the woods to live deliberately.”
I don’t think you have to go to the woods, but every hermit, every monk, everyone who is serious about their spiritual journey knows that isolation is essential, if only for a few minutes a day.
Thomas Merton was wise I believe, but perhaps in some sense what we define as wise is that which we believe is true. For the same reason I think Lakota healer and visionary, Nicholas Black Elk was wise.
The bible speaks a lot about wisdom, and addresses wisdom as female. Sophia. That’s a nice thought, wisdom being the female aspect of God. Yet, I don’t think of God as having “aspects.” I see God as an integrated whole, a singleness, not a duality or triad. These are human constructs designed to help our minds understand the transcendent quality of the Godhead. At least so I believe.
The dictionary suggests that wisdom is the ability to discern what is right and true. Philosophically it is defined as the “best use of knowledge.” The problem with this, is that again, it seems to be in the eye of the beholder.
A Cameroon proverb says of wisdom:
The heart of the wise man lies quiet like limpid water.
That seems to confirm that wise people aren’t big talkers.
We watch a television show called An Idiot Abroad. It’s produced by Ricky Gervais, a real favorite of mine, and is about the travels of his friend “Karl”. Ricky refers to Karl as a moron, an idiot. We were unsure of watching, since we surely had no desire to laugh at the goings on a person who had mental defects.
That was not the case. Karl is completely normal mentally. He’s just a simple home town boy, sent a travel across the globe. And he says rather funny, but often quite wise things.
“It’s better to be an ugly person and to look at good-looking people, than to be good looking and have to look at ugly people. “
Isn’t that true? Karl drops little pearls like that. Yet, Karl is not wise by any standard I know.
Which means that even rather simple average people can drop a wise bomb from time to time.
Sometimes people refer to a young child as a “very old soul.” I’ve never met one myself, but I assume that they mean that the child says things that are wise “beyond his years.”
The Contrarian is wise a good deal of the time, about a lot of things. He’s worth listening to. He once met a kid, still a teenager who had quit school. He found it worthless. He left home, and made his way as best he could. Most of his time he spent in the library, reading. He was probably wise then, and no doubt is even wiser today.
I know a couple of my Internet friends, one I’ve known a long time, another I’ve just “met.” Both write exquisitely. Tim, many of you know, from Straight-Friendly. The other is Paul and many of you may not yet visit his blog. You should it’s called Cafe Philos. They make me think, more than I want to sometimes.
I think wise people have an open mind. About everything. Nothing is sacred, so to speak. Everything is up for grabs. Some things, over time, are probably true, but the door is always a bit ajar, just in case something new comes along that causes a need to re-evaluate.
I’m good at this too.
Now if I could only shut up long enough to work on that listening thing. With Lent approaching, I guess perhaps I’ve found at least one of my Lenten practices. How about you?
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Nice post, Sherry! I might add “age” to the mix when considering wisdom. I’ve always liked the image of a crone, a woman old enough to have earned some wisdom.
Hey BE! I agree, age seems part of wisdom…It takes time to acquire all the knowledge from which wisdom emanates. Hope things are good in El Paso. We are gonna be neighbors in a year or so. ….
Sherry, there’s so much wisdom in this post that I have to read it a few more times before I can respond 🙂
The saying from Cameroon … YES …
More later.
BTW … Frank Howell’s art … sublime …
Jaliya, Thanks so much. I have missed you blogging, although I note your active on FB…I just have so much trouble moving around FB on dialup now that I scoot in and out usually…
I thought of being Wise, once…. but then realized it was more fun to be a Wise-ass! (sorry, I just couldn’t resist)…
or… I thought of being Wise…. but after a few beers the feeling went away.
or….noperz….. I best leave well enough alone… you might throw something at me.
You are wise my friend…more than most. I love your wiseass remarks.
Hi Sherry!
I agree with nearly everything you’ve written here. I especially love this passage:
“I think wise people have an open mind. About everything. Nothing is sacred, so to speak. Everything is up for grabs. Some things, over time, are probably true, but the door is always a bit ajar, just in case something new comes along that causes a need to re-evaluate.”
It seems to me you’ve written one of those blog posts I’d be a fool not to bookmark. But — even so — I am going to quibble here. I just know I am going to quibble with what you’ve said. I’m trying to contain it, but…
You’ve raised two ideas that have the alchemy to turn me into a quibbling idiot. First, it’s the Western notion that wisdom is mainly intellectual. Second, it’s your notion that wise people are almost always people of few words.
I want to quibble about both of those ideas.
Barry Lopez somewhere writes that the Inuit people have a word for “wise person” which can be translated as “one who makes wisdom visible through her actions.” That is, the Inuit word does not mean, “One who knows a lot”, but rather, “one who makes wisdom visible through her actions.”
Now, I have a dear friend who is chatty enough for two people, but whom the Inuit word superbly fits.
To be honest, Sherry, I do not always think her words and notions are that wise, but what she actually does – and how she does it – almost always seems very wise to me. And beautiful too.
Those are my quibbles, then.
By the way, thank you for your very kind words! It is always nice when someone says something good about you. But you are among a tiny handful — a very tiny handful — of bloggers, Sherry, whose posts I tend to read two and even three times through. Thus, it feels incredible to read your words about me.
I like your point. Is it a Western idea? I hadn’t thought of that but it seems to “sound” right.
I think wise people may be people of many words, but not in speaking so much as in writing. Not blogging, which is really the antithesis of considered thoughtful literary endeavor. Blogging is gutsy, raw, emotional.
But I did see the in definitions, reference to acting in ways that suggested the best use of knowledge. something to that effect, so I agree, it is action as well as words. I love the remark, “one who makes wisdom visible through her actions.” But this could also be about how a person is seen as relating to others, verbally as well. But I take your point. You’ve certainly given me something to think about. But I sense that I get it in a way, how actions themselves can be wise. Japanese with their slow, considered, way of doing tea for instance, show wisdom don’t you think in action?
And you are most welcome for the praise. It is deserved. I turned my husband onto your blog, and he enjoys your posts as well.
Sherry, thanks for the pingback to my few words (borrowed from elsewhere)and which has led me to the wisdom of your many and a subs to your blog!
Why of course and welcome aboard, I’ll get on over and see you too.
Another thought-provoking Post. I’ve noticed Greatest Thoughts, Wisdoms from Children, Cultures, old people, women especially. Although I do most of the talking, I also Think carefully: Greatest wisdoms from Anybody, uneducated as well as PhD’s, except One group: the Proud, Richest, who barelly speak any truth. I deeply appreciate Sunstone’s Quible Wisdoms, like Inuit, as well as others. I’ve never noticed Any correlation between greatest wisdoms and Educational levels. Just my quibling thoughts; thanks for Quibling, Sunstone. OKJim is irrefutable: Wisdoms can be best with a few Drinks.
I certainly agree that wisdom is not about education. It is about learning and the quest to understand the world and the people who inhabit it. But this can take many forms. Quite a group of erudite folks coming around here! I am enlightened and uplifted by their visits, and yours always Tony.
Thanks for the pingback! I’ll definitely be subscribing to this hitherto-unknown-to-me blog… very wise! 😉
I tend to think that wisdom, like Zen, is something which can’t be defined. It has nothing to do with how much or little one knows, how much or little one talks, or any of those things.
It just is.
Why, thanks ever so much. There were so many nice links to make on this subject! Ill be around soon and see you as well.
I’m glad you appreciated the “wisdom” of Karl Pilkington! 😉
You may have noticed I’ve just posted a few comments on other entries… I’ll definitely be popping back here!
I certainly have noticed and look forward to your thoughts.
Actually, I had spent a lot of time assessing the value of wisdom. We come to the problem from different cultures, different experiences and different expectations.
As Warren Buffet has mentioned in the past, had he been born into a primitive tribe in the Andes, his market wisdom would have been useless. (I modified the original statement to fit here.)
I really don’t care whether I am wise or not. I do care if I get things done, whether a piece of writing I deliver is clear, concise and understandable. I care to contribute despite obstacles. I fail to see where wisdom fits my values.
I think of wisdom as the catalyst to solving big problems, or any for that matter. I don’t see wisdom as simply smarts or a lot of knowledge about an issue, but an ability to synthesize knowledge from disparate places into something that is useful to help a person or a group. It’s outside the box or big picture kind of knowledge.
Yes, definitely “big picture” knowledge. Knowledge that exists innately without necessarily “knowing” anything!
exactly!