Can you know things that you don’t understand?
Do you act on things you cannot articulate?
Where does inspiration and revelation come from? Imitation only covers a small part of it. Where was it before the light goes on in your head?
We can become so caught up on what we objectively know, that we rarely stop to think about how and why we know. The things that are articulated and captured by science are sort of dead ends that we don’t have to bother pondering anymore.
But where does the new stuff come from? And why do you think we are so afraid of it until science turns it into a structured dead end for us?
You will probably hurt yourself if you try to answer these questions point-for-point!
Go do something enjoyable for a while and ponder it over. I’d be interested in hearing what you come up with!
© 2026 – SoulSequel
9 responses to “Can you understand things that you don’t know?”
No and yes. I would say we can know nothing except the fact that awareness exist.i am not convinced that I can even say for sure that awareness exists inside of me. What if no one owns the awareness? what if it is simply awareness, but we as humans like to take ownership of things, don’t we?
@Scarlett
The existence of self-aware consciousness would seem both a safe and beneficial assumption for now.
Or at least less fraught with probable danger than the opposing viewpoint!
I think there’s value in the classic Biblical notion that all life is of God and will someday return to God.
From an individual standpoint it is as if we are all given a little piece of something precious and Transcendent to exercise some choice and see what we can do with it.
If we discover celebrate and participate in that Transcendence, we allegedly remain a consciously aware part of it.
And if we follow a path of believing it is all of us, about us and for us, we don’t.
When I try to make a point, which is what I’m about to do, I tend to talk in circles.
When I try to understand a concept that is new to me, like cryptomining, because my ex was invested heavily in it and it intrigued me, I think in the most simple an abstract ways possible. Those thoughts are then explained in a childlike jumble of words, then he expounds on them, and I could see myself ever so tortise-speed slow pieceing it together.
Those things are painful, in that I really have to stretch out my thoughts, slow them down, dig deep for the right word or correct pattern of mouse clicks, and I know it comes from the brain, but it feels like it comes from the gut also.
In art… Inspiration, at least for me, comes from the heart, brain, soul, and gut. Nothing like having a design pop into my head that I can’t explain in words or colors or textures, but only show once I actually sit down with a brush in hand.
I think we are afraid of the unknown. It can be anything from what’s really under my bed… A monster or a bunch of dust bunnies, to how will I wake up feeling tomorrow now that my partner is gone. It can be what’s really in the universe scary, or how will I feel when my paintings don’t sell scary. The unknown is a hard thing to embrace because anything can happen and that leaves us less in control than what we agree is a comforting feeling.
It takes a brave person to admit their fears and faults, trials and tribulations, without spinning the truth so that their who isn’t left bare. Trying the unknown is a huge gamble to the ego. And until we can come to terms with allowing ourselves and our unknowns to potentially damage our egos, we won’t get a valid answer to where the new stuff comes from.
@fosheet
I think it has to do with courage and bravery. Venturing into the unknown has many perceived risks, and a few actual ones as well. But we in our current form are a celebration of people reaching into the unknown, and mastering it to varying degrees.
I think you are right that what we fear is not being in control. But here’s a thought. In a society where people don’t even bother controlling themselves and their own inner kingdom of fears and emotions, the person who does is the hero.
With themselves under control they can venture more bravely into the unknown, knowing that there will be one less thing to jump up out of control and master them!
I’m pretty sure that even without having a term for gravity (or even language as far as that matter goes), most things have a sense of the concept of gravity.
If I don’t know what I don’t know, how will I ever come to know how much I don’t know??? Well,….. I don’t know.
I try to know all I need to know. I know that something is coming around the sun and heading towards Earth. We will see it in September, October, November, and I hope we survive it in December to next March. People who know are putting aside emergency food and water —- enough to last from 3 months to a year. Can you live without electricity, gas, and a way to cook your food? What about when you turn the handle on your tap and water doesn’t come out —- because there is no electricity to run the city pumps? Trucks have no gasoline to deliver life saving foods. You may have to use your survival knowledge. It would be a nice thing to know.
I have friends who say it is not so, because they look at the glare that is the sun, and the glare overpowers the orb right next to it. If they cannot see it, then it is not there. I put a filter over my camera on my phone and aim it at the sun to take a picture. There it is. My friends look at my picture of it, and still say that they don’t believe it. They don’t want to know. Do you know how much you don’t know because you don’t want to know???
Well, if you don’t look into it, you won’t know. I want to know enough to attempt to survive. That is what I live to know and want to know more about. All I know is that this is getting closer and closer.
There are things I know that would give you nightmares…
@immortal_pirate
I don’t doubt it! I wouldn’t mind hearing of some of them face-to-face some day over a stein of whatever passes for quality Grog down there.
And I may own a few things myself that would shiver your timbers!
It hurt just to read that.