Is there a path to wisdom?

Discussion in 'Philosophy' started by coberst, May 7, 2009.

  1. Is there a path to wisdom?

    How can I know what I do not know? How can I trace that boundary between knowledge and ignorance?

    In the dialogue “Apology” Plato writes about Socrates while in the dungeon just before drinking the hemlock that the citizens of Athens condemned him to be executed.

    In the dungeon shortly before drinking from the hemlock cup Socrates spoke to his followers. He spoke about the accusations against him at the trial. He said that the sworn indictment against him was “Socrates is guilty of needless curiosity and meddling interference, inquiring into things beneath Earth and in the Sky…”

    Socrates further adds that he is accused of teaching the people of Athens, to which Socrates vehemently denies that he is a teacher. He points out that in matters of wisdom he has only a small piece of that territory; the wisdom that he does have is the wisdom not to think he knows what he does not know. Socrates conjectures that he has the wisdom to recognize the boundary of his present knowledge and to search for that knowledge that he does not have. “So it seems at any rate I am wiser in this one small respect: I do not think I know what I do not.”

    For Socrates a necessary component of wisdom is to comprehend what one is ignorant of.

    Am I wise? Do I know what I am ignorant of? I certainly know that I am ignorant of astronomy and music. There are many things about which it is obvious to me that I am ignorant of. Are there things about which I am not even aware of my ignorance? Are there matters about which I think I am knowledgeable of but which I am, in fact, ignorant of?

    When I ask myself these questions I become conscious of a great number of things about which I am ignorant. Does this mean I am like Socrates in this matter? I do not think so. Socrates is speaking about two types of ignorance about which most people are unconscious of.

    I think that Socrates is speaking of our ‘burden of illusion'. People are unconscious of the superficiality of much that they think they know and they are unconscious of a vast domain of knowledge that is hidden from the non critical thinker.


    The uncritical mind has no means for discovering these illusions. CT (Critical Thinking) is the keystone for discovering these illusions. The Catch-22 here is how can one develop a critical mind when they are deluded into thinking they have a critical mind?

    When our educational system has not taught our citizens how to think critically how can our citizens ever pull themselves out of this deep hole of illusion?


    “It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble; it's what you know for sure that just ain't so”-Mark Twain

    coberstakaDutchuncle
     
  2. If you want to walk on the path to wisdom then ditch Socrates and start catchin up with the real wise men.
     
  3. The path of wisdom is unique to everyone.
     
  4. I believe one can find out his place in life and the reason for life through meditation and lots of thinking about spirituality. I also believe that psychedelics can provide a short cut to finding out such things if used correctly but Ive never done them :(
     
  5. #5 Gloom, May 8, 2009
    Last edited by a moderator: May 8, 2009
    Cannabis is a psychedelic.

    Edit: Maxrule would love my post count right now. :p
    Edit2: It was 911.
     
  6. I've always said that psilocybin should be prescribed by doctors to treat closed minded ignorance. I don't see how you could come out of a trip without added perspective.

    edit: I'm sure maxrule could find some connection in all our post counts... :D
     
  7. This reminds me of one of my favorite quotes:

    "The only true wisdom consists of knowing that you know nothing." - Bill S. Preston
     
  8. In the summer of 48 my older brother told me that if I wanted to play high school football I had to ‘get ready’. In his terms, ‘getting ready’ meant running to get in condition for the rigors of football practice.

    In the spring of 09 I want to begin the quest for wisdom. How do I ‘get ready’ for becoming wise?

    Starting with the definition of wisdom as “seeing life whole” seems to be as good a place to begin as I can think of. How do I get ready to see life whole?

    It seems to me that to see life whole I must learn a great deal more than I already have learned but I must start with where I presently am. I am convinced that learning new stuff requires three aspects (a position facing a particular direction) of mind; mentally I must have curiosity, caring, and an orderly mind.

    I claim that curiosity and caring are necessary conditions for understanding. Understanding is a far step beyond knowing. I will not examine a matter for the purpose of understanding it unless I am curious about it. I must care enough about the matter to do the intellectual work necessary to understand.

    Understanding is a step beyond knowing and is seldom required or measured by schooling. Understanding is generally of disinterested knowledge, i.e. disinterested knowledge is an intrinsic (due to the nature of the self) value. Disinterested knowledge is not a means but an end. It is knowledge I seek because I desire to know it. I mean the term ‘disinterested knowledge’ as similar to ‘pure research’, as compared to ‘applied research’. Pure research seeks to know truth unconnected to any specific application.

    Understanding is often difficult and time consuming and the justification is not extrinsic (outside cause) but intrinsic.

    Questions for consideration:
    Is caring necessary for understanding? I think so.
    What is ‘understanding’?
    Is curiosity necessary for knowing? I think so.
    Is curiosity necessary for understanding? I think so.
    Is a knowledge of history required to ‘see life whole’? Absolutely!!
    Is difficulty our duty? I think so.
     
  9. Q : How do I ‘get ready' for becoming wise?

    A : Stop trying to become wise.
     
  10. try not be become wise just meditate and try to connect with the energy inside us. we all have it we just need to get in touch with it. once you know how its sooo easy all it took for me was a hateful childhood and a near death expierence. i could tell you my story but its long and noone wants to hear about it lol im not trying to brag but i call it enlightement when your in touch with this energy. once your in touch with it you can do almost anything you want with great skill. its called wisdom:smoke:
     
  11. actually you got me interested haha
     
  12. ok if you want to know, when i was young i got into alot of messes. got picked up by the police almost every night for being out to late. paintballed towns, tepeed houses, egged cars, smashed mailboxes, i could go on forever. then i moved and it just got worste i would beat kids up. take there money and yu-gi-oh cards. then when i turned 17 i got to the point where i hated everyone and myself more then i could explain. the only way to explain it was to kill a bunch of people then take my own life. so i thought about it for months and got deeper and deeper into this feeling. suddenly i had a different feeling like i was seperate from my body and its surroundings. like i was in just my mind and i wasnt getting any sleep because i was so interested in this feeling. i started meditating to understand this feeling. then suddenly people were coming up to me and saying that i have changed alot. and i was quiet because i had no need to talk. i was peaceful, i helped old people whenever i could get the chance. and i became what other people call me enlightened. now im crazy nice like i go on forums just to help people out with philosophy. in my eyes enlightenment and wise is the same thing. and i have become really wise, its like there is a energy in all of us and we just have to connect to it. idk how to connect to it, it just happend to me. but something else that happend to me in this transition is i became good at almost everything i do because i can almost like hyperfocus on it. if i try something for 20 mins then i become amazing at it. i could tell you stories about times this has happend but idk if you guys want to here it. anyways thats my story sorrys its alittle long. and btw i love everyone and love myself now.:smoke:
     
  13. People who claim to be enlightened never are. Enlightenment doesn't just happen over night, it takes a lifetime of dedication, you can never become truly enlightened in this lifetime, you can progress as far as you can, and imo upon death having advanced your soul as much as you can is when you will attain true enlightenment a.k.a. godhead.
     

Share This Page