Wisdom, NOT about what you Know?

[David Filippone]

Image: ‘Maple leaves’ by gregovish – Pixabay

Wisdom may NOT be about what you know…

“We live in a world that we consider to be real. That may seem self-evident, but… our conviction is mostly based on certain kinds of evidence. For instance… the working of cause and effect: if the cause produces an effect it must be real… More generally, we could say we establish reality based on observation, inference, and data from past observations. A certain logic operates, linking these elements in specific ways. Linguistic structures, set up from before we can remember, support this logic… Our personal identity is one of those structures. The unfolding of events from past to present to future is another. The reality set up in this way is self-confirming. Each part co-exists with every other part, working out its own destiny in accord with established directions. Based on this, we can observe ‘accurately’ what is happening and make predictions about what will happen in the future. Each new event serves as a witness for the whole. It confirms the logic in operation…

When we think in these causal ways, it seems appropriate to say that mind is the cause of matter… But keep in mind that matter has to do with the meanings we assign, and the pursuits we take on: matter is always about what matters to us…

Wisdom is not a ‘by-product;’ it is not produced ‘by’ concepts… it does not rely on causes and conditions and it may not need transitions. Wisdom arises differently. It offers a depth of understanding, a perfect knowledge that goes to a deeper sense of being… When perfect knowledge or wisdom unfolds within us, we discover that another way of being is possible. We taste a joy or bliss that ordinary words, concepts, and images cannot express.”

… ‘Challenging Journey, Creative Journey,’ by Tarthang Tulku, p.257-261

It isn’t often we speak of joy. Something so personal, so deeply experienced in the moment, a sound that resounds in a felt silence, the brightness that illuminates a darkened bulb, and beyond… that connects with all there is, and the space that births its nascence. As Ken says, “That joy itself goes mute, Within the silence of its roaring spring…”

April Afternoon
by Ken McKeon

Hardly paid any attention
To this one maple,
Wedged into a far corner of the deck,

It’s one among several trees,
Those nearly fully leafed out,
Those all lovely quiet presences
Duly planted here in ceramic pots.

But this now before me,
Has gone essentially nowhere,
A zilch of a flop even in late April,

Yet, this afternoon, a few
Bright, deeply pink leaves.
They’ve just shown up,

I didn’t even see the
Dots of life, buds of growth,
I didn’t see them coming,
And now this springing leaf,

Such a kick it is to see unfurled,
This lift of light,
It’s now all one,
It’s now all growing,
It looms as light itself
Is seen beyond itself,
Horizon given, but not horizon bound,

It’s more an enveloping
Than a something pointed to,
Is such a dear joy,
That joy itself goes mute
Within the silence of its roaring spring.

And I am touched by the light
As it is touched by the sun,
Brief glows both,
But quite here now
On this April afternoon.

 

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