“The beginning of wisdom is to desire it.”
- Ibn Gabirol (c.1020 – 1070), Jewish poet & philosopher
What a simple, yet incredibly powerful tool in our toolbox for living. Passed down to us in myriad forms throughout history, this gem is truly one of life’s most priceless instructional artifacts – one that we’re clearly intended to uncover no matter from where we hail or from what religious or spiritual tradition we’re taught. The inherent promise that comes with this is that to truly desire wisdom is to have it, and having it is to know depths of peace and joy beyond description. Sounds pretty good doesn’t it?
Here’s a small sampling of versions from other places and other times:
- “The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.”
- “No one can fail who seeks to reach the truth.”
- “Everyone who asks, receives. He who seeks, finds. To him who knocks, the door will be opened.”
So what exactly is “wisdom”? The answer to that seems to depend on who is asked. There often appears to be conflicting viewpoints about what wisdom is because historically we insist on defining it from two distinct, contrasting thought systems – one intellectual, centered in the mind, and the other intuitive, centered in the human spirit. This conflict of perspectives is at the very root of why genuine wisdom seems so often to elude us and why we are repeatedly reminded of these instructions again and again and again throughout time.
Our intellect tells us that wisdom is an accumulation of knowledge acquired through sacrifice, extensive education and disciplined study. By this definition, wisdom becomes exclusive, available primarily to those with an aptitude for education, high enough IQs and who are willing to strive to achieve it. Our intuition on the other hand tells us that wisdom is a natural state of being, characterized by the demonstration of discernment and balanced judgment, guided by ever-deepening spiritual insight. By this definition wisdom is all-inclusive, available to everyone with a genuine desire to become aware of, and then practice, this natural state of being.
Furthering the perceptual divide, our intellect would have us be convinced that we come into this world as empty vessels, to become something by filling our minds with worldly or divine knowledge before we depart it in order to ensure we are among the winners and not the losers, the saints and not the sinners. By sharp contrast, our intuition gently reminds us that we both enter and depart this world entirely whole, that the experience of wisdom is the letting go of all beliefs we choose to make up and accumulate about ourselves while we appear to be here. It teaches us that wisdom is experienced in the practice of letting go of our “stories”… the letting go of everything that we are not.
What we cannot help but miss under the guidance of our intellectual thought system is that wisdom is always accompanied by humility, and humility is something our intellect is utterly incapable of grasping. Underneath all the vast layers of accumulated knowledge, human intellect would have us believe it makes us what we are, it differentiates us from all other life forms, even from our fellows, and it ultimately provides and decides our value as human beings. Humility, on the other hand, takes no issue whatsoever with simply saying, “I am as I was created, not as I have made myself to be.”
Intellect can certainly be a useful tool for navigating this world. It enables us to conjure up any destination we wish to travel to within our lives, be they physical, intellectual, emotional, philosophical or spiritual destinations. But, that’s just it… our intellect is a tool, and tools are intended to be of service, not to reign. It is our intuition that inspires to make the journey of our lives purposeful, joyful and peaceful – these are the attributes of wisdom. It’s in the conscious choice and regular practice of placing our intellectual mind under the guidance and service of our intuitive, spiritual self that the door to wisdom opens wide.
Even with all his intellectual knowledge, Albert Einstein in his wisdom and humility put it this way: “The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.” This gift is knowing that we lack absolutely nothing in our lives but the awareness of our own intuitive spiritual guidance. Here lies true wisdom.
Love and Light friends,
Patrick
Posted by Patrick 
