Stuff like “are there aliens”. “Is there a secret alien invasion”.”Is there a way to obtain immortality, and if so, how”. “Is there a God, and if so, who is God”.
In my case, I discovered that I had a fake name, face, and background. So, I continue to look for answers about what the truth is. Besides… questions *similar* to the above…
“Is there a way to fix the world, and if so, how”.
There is a lot of knowledge worth having.
“If one is not happy, how can one be happy”.
“What is the most ecstatic state of being, and how can one get there”.
@five2one Sometimes I think that whatever it is that we desire to know is worth knowing? I think it’s up to the individual and what gives them that spark, that desire to pursue?
I’m in grad school and I greatly enjoy my major- social work. I never tire of reading and learning about trauma, but I get that some see it as a yawn, so let them go pursue what makes them happy.
One thing I noticed after I got in grad school was that I couldn’t seem to get engaged in regular books as much, but that changed yesterday when I read Feynman’s Rainbow. I devoured that book in less than a day.
@Scarlett I studied Feynman, and started on a social work degree (albeit just community college). That was the 80s. A friend just called me a ‘black hole with reading’, which is true. I suck up information hard core.
But, really, why I oriented towards fields where I could reach people, was because I found myself happy, and wanted everyone to be happy.
The knowledge I eventually found, and continue to research, do investigative journaling type of thing, is very strange. But, I believe it, ultimately, will help that goal I had happen.
I discovered, that is, I was not alone, as I used to think I was… that there were others who also were genuinely happy… and they had more information about what was necessary to do.
More of a ‘first contact’ kind of thing, though. (*high amusement*) Is what it all turned out to be. And what it is, and remains. Where I try and figure out how the truly happy live, what their society is like, what their perspective is. They are spiritual, but I am flesh. It is not stuff you can find easily on the internet, though we are all connected together… just hard for people to see.
My current view is there are a number of regular people, who do not quite fit into the world, ‘out there’, who are not really sure what they really are, inside. I see them, and my own self, like worms in a cocoon, babies in a womb… slowly pulling apart the layers, to try and make it to “the light”. It is organic.
It is a natural ‘stage of evolution’.
One old guy put it that we would all be like rock stars. I think, something ‘like that’, but it looks like it will be quite a bit more extreme then that.
Where people who are truly wonderous and beautiful in their heart, are no longer unseen, but seen.
The knowledge I have obtained from the world, really just has helped me fill in the blanks and start to make a way to a new language. To put words on matters, which otherwise, have no words — on earth.
Like bringing snow from eskimos to primitives in South America, or something. The indescribable from another world.
@Scarlett “Sometimes I think that whatever it is that we desire to know is worth knowing? I think it’s up to the individual and what gives them that spark, that desire to pursue?”
Second response, more to this part of your response:
Yes and no. Is my belief on this. It depends on where your heart is. I do think the main thing to search for is Heaven. This, it seems, is a very odd belief. But, it has certainly worked for me.
And still is, and still is what I am searching for, despite how much I have found.
Some, maybe even a lot, of what I have studied over the years has been useful for me to understand. But, I can not be entirely sure of that. One problem has been, I have felt like I have had to understand ‘the world’s’ understandings and the understandings of Heaven. In order to bridge a gap and not appear as entirely alien, for one thing.
But, it is hard for me to say I have not been sidetracked, extensively, and now, at 48, I really see the negative of that. “You only live once” means you should strive to figure out where to get to forever.
There is great power in our weaknesses, great credit accrued, depending on what we invest in, whether it is the spiritual, or the material. Whether it is by faith that there is more and will be more, or whether it is by really having no sense of the unseen, at all… besides, at best, some token head nods, or grasping of crucifixes, when trouble arises.
This is why it is so much easier for those who have such a terrible time in the world to make way to Heaven now, then it is for those who are rich. And in modern, ‘first world’ society, pretty much nearly everyone is rich.
Any knowledge one can glean more wisdom than folly from.
Some knowledge is so weighty many would not want to carry it. But those who do without being crushed gain the strength to carry it and perhaps even weightier things. People tend to be far stronger than they give themselves credit for.
@griz I can dig some of that. We are learning about the merits of wisdom in my gerontology class.
In a study, international wisdom experts were asked if wisdom was akin to or distinct from intelligence and spirituality using likert scale. Wisdom differed significantly from intelligence and spirituality. Most experts agreed that wisdom is uniquely human, a form of advanced cognitive and emotional development that is experience driven, a personal quality, a rare quality, something that can be learned and increases with age, and can be measured . In my book they differentiate between cognitive wisdom (desire to know the truth and capacity to attain a deeper understanding of life); reflective wisdom (ability to see from multiple dimensions, including viewing the self); and compassionate wisdom (the motivation to foster others’ well-being).
@Scarlett
That’s interesting. I just listened to a lecture and a conversation on wisdom. The idea was presented that we don’t exactly know what it is or exactly how to obtain it, but that those who consider it a worthy quest seem to intrinsically recognize and value it when they encounter it — with this ability improving over time. It seems to follow the same path as other complex aspects of the Human Condition: it starts with enacted behavior often for reasons “we know not why”; is presented in theatrical narratives (stories, archetypes); and finally is articulted in a way science can start to grasp.
The “timeline of wisdom” seems to be somewhere around stage two, perhaps early stage three.
What stood out what I viewed today, was agreement that wisdom is perhaps linked to spirituality, intelligence and knowledge, but was something unique to itself. One can be intelligent or knowledgeable, but not necessarily wise. Degrees of wisdom can come with age. But there’s still :no fool like an old fool” — so is it “automatic” with age?
Wisdom seems to be time and exploration/experimentation-related. It often requires processes that cannot be justified at the time through “what is already known/accepted” (ie, science, conventional wisdom). It involves “investment over time”, and in things that might not seem apparent will pay off. Wisdom shares this trait with spirituality, artistic invention, entrepreneurial enterprise . . . relationship(?). They often require what convention dismisses as foolish, unwarranted, a waste.
There was agreement that it was a rare quality — or perhaps the traits leading to the willingness to undertake “the risk” [in exceeding convention] are rare? Most people don’t like exploring beyond what is known and “safe”.
There was also a discussion on how wisdom acquisition is perhaps a “whole brain” process. There’s the idea that degrees of precision and finesse require “oppositional competition”. You can experience this by pointing at an object with your right index finger and then stabilize it with your left hand. The “opposition” provides augmented degrees of accuracy and precision. (The prof went on to link this to society working better when there is creative (vs destructive) oppositional competition between the left and right wings, and advancing the supposition that it could be part of the reason why “a God” might want a world where there is evil as well as good. Perhaps a higher, more accurate and precise “good” is only possible when there is “evil” pushing back against it? Remember, this is just supposition, but still compelling!)
But back to wisdom as a “whole brain” process. Usually we just use one aspect of our brains at a time: the right to deal with the “unknown” and the left to deal with the “known”: with indication that dreams and other states of “altered perception” somehow provide the best active cross-link between the right and the left.
I’m way out in a suppositional limb here, but perhaps wisdom is the ability to have flashes of “whole brain” processing — in concert with time, experience/exploration “outside the lines”, openness to the possibility of such? (With trait-openness being the artistic behavioral aspect of the “Big 5” foundational characteristics.
Wow, sorry for the length. Especially after you articulated your response so precisely!
8 responses to “What is a knowledge worth knowing?”
Stuff like “are there aliens”. “Is there a secret alien invasion”.”Is there a way to obtain immortality, and if so, how”. “Is there a God, and if so, who is God”.
In my case, I discovered that I had a fake name, face, and background. So, I continue to look for answers about what the truth is. Besides… questions *similar* to the above…
“Is there a way to fix the world, and if so, how”.
There is a lot of knowledge worth having.
“If one is not happy, how can one be happy”.
“What is the most ecstatic state of being, and how can one get there”.
I could go on and on all night with this.
@five2one Sometimes I think that whatever it is that we desire to know is worth knowing? I think it’s up to the individual and what gives them that spark, that desire to pursue?
I’m in grad school and I greatly enjoy my major- social work. I never tire of reading and learning about trauma, but I get that some see it as a yawn, so let them go pursue what makes them happy.
One thing I noticed after I got in grad school was that I couldn’t seem to get engaged in regular books as much, but that changed yesterday when I read Feynman’s Rainbow. I devoured that book in less than a day.
@Scarlett I studied Feynman, and started on a social work degree (albeit just community college). That was the 80s. A friend just called me a ‘black hole with reading’, which is true. I suck up information hard core.
But, really, why I oriented towards fields where I could reach people, was because I found myself happy, and wanted everyone to be happy.
The knowledge I eventually found, and continue to research, do investigative journaling type of thing, is very strange. But, I believe it, ultimately, will help that goal I had happen.
I discovered, that is, I was not alone, as I used to think I was… that there were others who also were genuinely happy… and they had more information about what was necessary to do.
More of a ‘first contact’ kind of thing, though. (*high amusement*) Is what it all turned out to be. And what it is, and remains. Where I try and figure out how the truly happy live, what their society is like, what their perspective is. They are spiritual, but I am flesh. It is not stuff you can find easily on the internet, though we are all connected together… just hard for people to see.
My current view is there are a number of regular people, who do not quite fit into the world, ‘out there’, who are not really sure what they really are, inside. I see them, and my own self, like worms in a cocoon, babies in a womb… slowly pulling apart the layers, to try and make it to “the light”. It is organic.
It is a natural ‘stage of evolution’.
One old guy put it that we would all be like rock stars. I think, something ‘like that’, but it looks like it will be quite a bit more extreme then that.
Where people who are truly wonderous and beautiful in their heart, are no longer unseen, but seen.
The knowledge I have obtained from the world, really just has helped me fill in the blanks and start to make a way to a new language. To put words on matters, which otherwise, have no words — on earth.
Like bringing snow from eskimos to primitives in South America, or something. The indescribable from another world.
@Scarlett “Sometimes I think that whatever it is that we desire to know is worth knowing? I think it’s up to the individual and what gives them that spark, that desire to pursue?”
Second response, more to this part of your response:
Yes and no. Is my belief on this. It depends on where your heart is. I do think the main thing to search for is Heaven. This, it seems, is a very odd belief. But, it has certainly worked for me.
And still is, and still is what I am searching for, despite how much I have found.
Some, maybe even a lot, of what I have studied over the years has been useful for me to understand. But, I can not be entirely sure of that. One problem has been, I have felt like I have had to understand ‘the world’s’ understandings and the understandings of Heaven. In order to bridge a gap and not appear as entirely alien, for one thing.
But, it is hard for me to say I have not been sidetracked, extensively, and now, at 48, I really see the negative of that. “You only live once” means you should strive to figure out where to get to forever.
There is great power in our weaknesses, great credit accrued, depending on what we invest in, whether it is the spiritual, or the material. Whether it is by faith that there is more and will be more, or whether it is by really having no sense of the unseen, at all… besides, at best, some token head nods, or grasping of crucifixes, when trouble arises.
This is why it is so much easier for those who have such a terrible time in the world to make way to Heaven now, then it is for those who are rich. And in modern, ‘first world’ society, pretty much nearly everyone is rich.
Any knowledge one can glean more wisdom than folly from.
Some knowledge is so weighty many would not want to carry it. But those who do without being crushed gain the strength to carry it and perhaps even weightier things. People tend to be far stronger than they give themselves credit for.
@griz I can dig some of that. We are learning about the merits of wisdom in my gerontology class.
In a study, international wisdom experts were asked if wisdom was akin to or distinct from intelligence and spirituality using likert scale. Wisdom differed significantly from intelligence and spirituality. Most experts agreed that wisdom is uniquely human, a form of advanced cognitive and emotional development that is experience driven, a personal quality, a rare quality, something that can be learned and increases with age, and can be measured . In my book they differentiate between cognitive wisdom (desire to know the truth and capacity to attain a deeper understanding of life); reflective wisdom (ability to see from multiple dimensions, including viewing the self); and compassionate wisdom (the motivation to foster others’ well-being).
@Scarlett
That’s interesting. I just listened to a lecture and a conversation on wisdom. The idea was presented that we don’t exactly know what it is or exactly how to obtain it, but that those who consider it a worthy quest seem to intrinsically recognize and value it when they encounter it — with this ability improving over time. It seems to follow the same path as other complex aspects of the Human Condition: it starts with enacted behavior often for reasons “we know not why”; is presented in theatrical narratives (stories, archetypes); and finally is articulted in a way science can start to grasp.
The “timeline of wisdom” seems to be somewhere around stage two, perhaps early stage three.
What stood out what I viewed today, was agreement that wisdom is perhaps linked to spirituality, intelligence and knowledge, but was something unique to itself. One can be intelligent or knowledgeable, but not necessarily wise. Degrees of wisdom can come with age. But there’s still :no fool like an old fool” — so is it “automatic” with age?
Wisdom seems to be time and exploration/experimentation-related. It often requires processes that cannot be justified at the time through “what is already known/accepted” (ie, science, conventional wisdom). It involves “investment over time”, and in things that might not seem apparent will pay off. Wisdom shares this trait with spirituality, artistic invention, entrepreneurial enterprise . . . relationship(?). They often require what convention dismisses as foolish, unwarranted, a waste.
There was agreement that it was a rare quality — or perhaps the traits leading to the willingness to undertake “the risk” [in exceeding convention] are rare? Most people don’t like exploring beyond what is known and “safe”.
There was also a discussion on how wisdom acquisition is perhaps a “whole brain” process. There’s the idea that degrees of precision and finesse require “oppositional competition”. You can experience this by pointing at an object with your right index finger and then stabilize it with your left hand. The “opposition” provides augmented degrees of accuracy and precision. (The prof went on to link this to society working better when there is creative (vs destructive) oppositional competition between the left and right wings, and advancing the supposition that it could be part of the reason why “a God” might want a world where there is evil as well as good. Perhaps a higher, more accurate and precise “good” is only possible when there is “evil” pushing back against it? Remember, this is just supposition, but still compelling!)
But back to wisdom as a “whole brain” process. Usually we just use one aspect of our brains at a time: the right to deal with the “unknown” and the left to deal with the “known”: with indication that dreams and other states of “altered perception” somehow provide the best active cross-link between the right and the left.
I’m way out in a suppositional limb here, but perhaps wisdom is the ability to have flashes of “whole brain” processing — in concert with time, experience/exploration “outside the lines”, openness to the possibility of such? (With trait-openness being the artistic behavioral aspect of the “Big 5” foundational characteristics.
Wow, sorry for the length. Especially after you articulated your response so precisely!
I know things that would give you nightmares, so, I’ll just keep those things to myself to spare you from having nightmares.