Abhijit Naskar's Blog - Posts Tagged "knowledge"
What is Wisdom in 21st Century?
The name is Sapiens – Homo Sapiens. That’s what we are called in the scientific circle – in the intellectual circle. Homo Sapiens – the name given by humans to the humans – a name, that by the look of it, exudes a hint of wisdom, because the term sapiens means wise. So here’s the question – are we wise? Are you wise? Is humanity wise? And how do you know that you are being wise at a certain? What kind of behavior would be true measure for wisdom? Perhaps I am asking the wrong questions here.
It is easier to tell when you are not being wise, than to tell what the measures for wisdom are. For example, a fundamentalist who argues about his religious supremacy with a fellow religious person from a different religion, based on simply his own scripture, is as dumb in terms of wisdom, as a scientist who arrogantly boasts about the supremacy of reasoning over all kinds of sentiments and beliefs, both good and bad.
I am a scientist, and an educator of science and reasoning, yet, I do not advocate for the supremacy of reasoning. I advocate for conscience – and conscience is part reasoning and part compassion. To quote from my treatise on parenting, entitled “Human Making is our Mission” :
“Modern society is modern because of its mental cocktail of reasoning and compassion. Turn the compassion network in the brain off, and it will be a society of heartless robots. On the other hand, turn the reasoning network off, and it will be a society of dumb sentimental apes.”
So, being wise means, not talking about what you think is true, whether you are a scientist, a plumber, a trucker, or any kind of professional. A layperson can be a hundred times wiser than a young doctorate at times, because wisdom has less to do with information, and more to do with the ability to see through the information and look at the big picture. A layperson is more likely to be wrong about factual things than a scientist, but a scientist on the other hand, also runs the risk of becoming cognitively more blind than a layperson to the significance of human sentiments in human existence driven by his radically rational mind. Hence, wisdom is not an exclusive possession of the intellectual parts of the society. Being articulate is not the same as being wise. Truth devoid of conscience, is worthless in human existence.
A smart person speaks out the truth. A wise person doesn’t care about speaking it out, as much as he or she cares about utilizing that truth in the society, in a way that brings most progress – in a way that brings most human development. And that’s what wisdom is about. Wisdom is not simply about progress – it is about collective humane progress.
Now the question is – do the definition and characteristics of wisdom itself keep changing through time! Like all other cognitive processes, the mental process of wisdom goes through change as well. And this change is relentless. For example, more than a century ago, a wise man would be the one who would give his wife at home taking care of the household chores and children, the same amount of respect as he’d give himself. But, the norm of that time was that men were superior to women. So at that time even thinking about a housewife to have the same amount of basic dignity as the husband who was the guardian of the family, was a sign of wisdom. But today, we have crossed that boundary of wisdom, and taken wisdom a few steps ahead, by constructing or at least attempting to construct a society of gender equality, where women are equal of men in all aspects of not just private life but also social life.
Likewise, a century ago another wise movement was afoot – the movement of religious toleration, hugely carried out by the Parliament of World Religions. But in this case as well, toleration was the wisdom of the past. Acceptance is the wisdom of today. Nevertheless, “acceptance does not mean accepting those who disregard humans on the basis of race, religion and sexual orientation” (quote from Either Civilized or Phobic: A Treatise on Homosexuality).
So the point is, wisdom evolves, but one core principle in it does not. It is the principle of becoming better, by demolishing the shortcomings of today and building the benefits of tomorrow. And that’s what makes us a wise species. And as long as we are ready to recognize the shortcomings in ourselves, in our culture, in our traditions and in our ancestral heritages, we shall keep on deserving the title of “Sapiens” or “A Wise Species”.
Further Reading
Either Civilized or Phobic: A Treatise on Homosexuality
Human Making is Our Mission: A Treatise on Parenting
It is easier to tell when you are not being wise, than to tell what the measures for wisdom are. For example, a fundamentalist who argues about his religious supremacy with a fellow religious person from a different religion, based on simply his own scripture, is as dumb in terms of wisdom, as a scientist who arrogantly boasts about the supremacy of reasoning over all kinds of sentiments and beliefs, both good and bad.
I am a scientist, and an educator of science and reasoning, yet, I do not advocate for the supremacy of reasoning. I advocate for conscience – and conscience is part reasoning and part compassion. To quote from my treatise on parenting, entitled “Human Making is our Mission” :
“Modern society is modern because of its mental cocktail of reasoning and compassion. Turn the compassion network in the brain off, and it will be a society of heartless robots. On the other hand, turn the reasoning network off, and it will be a society of dumb sentimental apes.”
So, being wise means, not talking about what you think is true, whether you are a scientist, a plumber, a trucker, or any kind of professional. A layperson can be a hundred times wiser than a young doctorate at times, because wisdom has less to do with information, and more to do with the ability to see through the information and look at the big picture. A layperson is more likely to be wrong about factual things than a scientist, but a scientist on the other hand, also runs the risk of becoming cognitively more blind than a layperson to the significance of human sentiments in human existence driven by his radically rational mind. Hence, wisdom is not an exclusive possession of the intellectual parts of the society. Being articulate is not the same as being wise. Truth devoid of conscience, is worthless in human existence.
A smart person speaks out the truth. A wise person doesn’t care about speaking it out, as much as he or she cares about utilizing that truth in the society, in a way that brings most progress – in a way that brings most human development. And that’s what wisdom is about. Wisdom is not simply about progress – it is about collective humane progress.
Now the question is – do the definition and characteristics of wisdom itself keep changing through time! Like all other cognitive processes, the mental process of wisdom goes through change as well. And this change is relentless. For example, more than a century ago, a wise man would be the one who would give his wife at home taking care of the household chores and children, the same amount of respect as he’d give himself. But, the norm of that time was that men were superior to women. So at that time even thinking about a housewife to have the same amount of basic dignity as the husband who was the guardian of the family, was a sign of wisdom. But today, we have crossed that boundary of wisdom, and taken wisdom a few steps ahead, by constructing or at least attempting to construct a society of gender equality, where women are equal of men in all aspects of not just private life but also social life.
Likewise, a century ago another wise movement was afoot – the movement of religious toleration, hugely carried out by the Parliament of World Religions. But in this case as well, toleration was the wisdom of the past. Acceptance is the wisdom of today. Nevertheless, “acceptance does not mean accepting those who disregard humans on the basis of race, religion and sexual orientation” (quote from Either Civilized or Phobic: A Treatise on Homosexuality).
So the point is, wisdom evolves, but one core principle in it does not. It is the principle of becoming better, by demolishing the shortcomings of today and building the benefits of tomorrow. And that’s what makes us a wise species. And as long as we are ready to recognize the shortcomings in ourselves, in our culture, in our traditions and in our ancestral heritages, we shall keep on deserving the title of “Sapiens” or “A Wise Species”.
Further Reading
Either Civilized or Phobic: A Treatise on Homosexuality
Human Making is Our Mission: A Treatise on Parenting
What is Science
People often assume that science is only about empirical research - that it's merely about facts and figures, which happens to be nowhere near the truth. Facts are the fundamental building blocks of science, but bringing those facts together to have an insight of a certain phenomenon requires a rational, conscientious and creative mind. It's only through rigorous analysis and observation, as well as, creative contemplation, of the empirical evidence, i.e. facts, discovered through decades of research, that we can understand a certain phenomenon. Science cannot exist without empirical evidence, but evidence alone can't take science ahead and upwards, for that, we need some rather naïve and conscientious minds who can pierce through the evidence in order to have a practical insight of the big picture of a certain phenomenon. In short, there's more to science than facts and figures. Think of facts and figures as bricks and cement, and science or scientific understanding as a building. Without the vision of the architect, it's impossible to construct the building no matter how much bricks and cement you have.
Why Entertainers are More Appealing to the Masses than Scholars
Stop making stupid people famous. Such goes the saying. Everybody has heard of it. Everybody knows what it implies, yet, that very everybody, or at least, almost everybody, never thinks twice before “making stupid people famous”. Hence, I have said in my book “Mission Reality” – “Stupid people make stupid people famous”. But why? Is there a deeper reason behind such a primitive act? Is there something more than mere stupidity? Is this stupidity really that stupid or does it have some incomprehensible value which can only be discovered if we see past the surface of such behavior!
If we speak empirically, then there is no such thing as stupid or wise in the kingdom of nature, for the kingdom of nature is governed by only one quality, and that is survival potential. If a behavior exists, it does so, because it has some sort of survival potential attached to it. And this is the reason why scholars, such as scientists and philosophers are way less appealing to the masses in comparison to entertainers such as filmstars, singers or sportspersons.
Scholars (including scientists, philosophers, doctors, teachers, innovators and many more, involved in the practice of science, technology and philosophy) make some of the greatest physical contributions in the health, prosperity and progress of the human species, take away the scholars and all progress will come to a standstill, yet most of them spend their life in anonymity outside the tiny circle of their distinct field. On the other hand, entertainers are seen by people from all walks of life as some form of all-knowing prophet – if they say, a certain health drink is good, the masses would most naively embrace that health drink in their life – if they say, a certain watch or perfume or handbag is the symbol of elegance, the masses would most blindly run after it – and if they run for office, the masses would most stupidly vote for them, without actually knowing their psychological capacity to run a people.
Here, I beg you not to think of all entertainers to be stupid, rather what I am pointing out is that, the expertise of an entertainer is in entertaining, so you should give them as much reverence as they deserve, not more than that. They are not expert in medical issues – they are not expert in running a people – they are not expert in anything except their work in entertainment – just like, I am not an expert in Chemistry or Physics or Mathematics – I am a Biologist and that’s where all my attention is placed. So, if you have a question about Quantum Physics, you must not ask me, rather you must ask a Physicist. And the same is true for every other expert in the world – be it an expert of science, mathematics or arts. For example, my favorite actors are Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart, and I enjoy their work immensely, but I don’t expect them to have a deep insight into human nature, just because they were and still remain quite famous – that’s my job, just like their job was to hold up a mirror in front of the society through their acting.
Now the big question is, why do people fall prey to the charm of celebrities and confuse their charisma to be the sign of wisdom, in most cases quite subconsciously? This behavior goes back millions of years. When our ancestors lived in the jungle amidst other animals, the chances of survival of the tribe increased in proportion to their blind loyalty to the alpha, a character with leadership characteristics, which mostly consisted of an absurd amount of confidence and charm. And this evolutionary instinct of attraction to confidence and charm still remains rather dominant in the common human psyche, which makes them vulnerable to the spell of charisma, even if that charisma has no content of character or wisdom underneath it.
In everyday life of the common human, reason takes a back seat and emotions dictate all significant behavior. “Erase the emotions and you would erase the most important part of what it’s like to be human” (as said in Mission Reality). In short, no matter what you say, if you can say it with such a confidence that it touches people at an emotional level, then you can make them believe in anything – you can make think anything – you can make them do anything.
In the human society, being famous is not the same as being right. Because people who make individuals famous, do not care about right or wrong – they don’t care about truth and reasoning – they are subconsciously driven by their instinct for survival, towards confidence, charm and charisma, just like moths are drawn towards a burning candle to face their inevitable demise.
I’m afraid, if the humans do not learn to make conscious and conscientious efforts to place their attention on character and wisdom, instead of on charm and charisma, then the demise of humankind is inevitable. Here, one may wonder, how can an entire society of humans change their behavior overnight! And the reality is, such a transformation or change cannot take place overnight, moreover, it won’t happen all at once. All change begins with the individual. When we change, the world will change.
Recommended Reading:
All For Acceptance
Mission Reality
Citation: Abhijit Naskar. “Why Entertainers are More Appealing to the Masses than Scholars”. EC Psychology and Psychiatry 8.10 (2019): 1083-1084.
If we speak empirically, then there is no such thing as stupid or wise in the kingdom of nature, for the kingdom of nature is governed by only one quality, and that is survival potential. If a behavior exists, it does so, because it has some sort of survival potential attached to it. And this is the reason why scholars, such as scientists and philosophers are way less appealing to the masses in comparison to entertainers such as filmstars, singers or sportspersons.
Scholars (including scientists, philosophers, doctors, teachers, innovators and many more, involved in the practice of science, technology and philosophy) make some of the greatest physical contributions in the health, prosperity and progress of the human species, take away the scholars and all progress will come to a standstill, yet most of them spend their life in anonymity outside the tiny circle of their distinct field. On the other hand, entertainers are seen by people from all walks of life as some form of all-knowing prophet – if they say, a certain health drink is good, the masses would most naively embrace that health drink in their life – if they say, a certain watch or perfume or handbag is the symbol of elegance, the masses would most blindly run after it – and if they run for office, the masses would most stupidly vote for them, without actually knowing their psychological capacity to run a people.
Here, I beg you not to think of all entertainers to be stupid, rather what I am pointing out is that, the expertise of an entertainer is in entertaining, so you should give them as much reverence as they deserve, not more than that. They are not expert in medical issues – they are not expert in running a people – they are not expert in anything except their work in entertainment – just like, I am not an expert in Chemistry or Physics or Mathematics – I am a Biologist and that’s where all my attention is placed. So, if you have a question about Quantum Physics, you must not ask me, rather you must ask a Physicist. And the same is true for every other expert in the world – be it an expert of science, mathematics or arts. For example, my favorite actors are Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart, and I enjoy their work immensely, but I don’t expect them to have a deep insight into human nature, just because they were and still remain quite famous – that’s my job, just like their job was to hold up a mirror in front of the society through their acting.
Now the big question is, why do people fall prey to the charm of celebrities and confuse their charisma to be the sign of wisdom, in most cases quite subconsciously? This behavior goes back millions of years. When our ancestors lived in the jungle amidst other animals, the chances of survival of the tribe increased in proportion to their blind loyalty to the alpha, a character with leadership characteristics, which mostly consisted of an absurd amount of confidence and charm. And this evolutionary instinct of attraction to confidence and charm still remains rather dominant in the common human psyche, which makes them vulnerable to the spell of charisma, even if that charisma has no content of character or wisdom underneath it.
In everyday life of the common human, reason takes a back seat and emotions dictate all significant behavior. “Erase the emotions and you would erase the most important part of what it’s like to be human” (as said in Mission Reality). In short, no matter what you say, if you can say it with such a confidence that it touches people at an emotional level, then you can make them believe in anything – you can make think anything – you can make them do anything.
In the human society, being famous is not the same as being right. Because people who make individuals famous, do not care about right or wrong – they don’t care about truth and reasoning – they are subconsciously driven by their instinct for survival, towards confidence, charm and charisma, just like moths are drawn towards a burning candle to face their inevitable demise.
I’m afraid, if the humans do not learn to make conscious and conscientious efforts to place their attention on character and wisdom, instead of on charm and charisma, then the demise of humankind is inevitable. Here, one may wonder, how can an entire society of humans change their behavior overnight! And the reality is, such a transformation or change cannot take place overnight, moreover, it won’t happen all at once. All change begins with the individual. When we change, the world will change.
Recommended Reading:
All For Acceptance
Mission Reality
Citation: Abhijit Naskar. “Why Entertainers are More Appealing to the Masses than Scholars”. EC Psychology and Psychiatry 8.10 (2019): 1083-1084.
Civilization is Not A Place (The Sonnet) | Gospel of Undoctrination
No matter who likes it not,
Say Gay anyway.
Compliance to discrimination,
Is the coward’s way.
A true leader once said, women belong in,
All places where decisions are being made.
I say, fudge it all,
Women just belong, period.
They say, they don’t want their kids,
To be hurt learning history.
I say, if learning history makes you hurt,
You are in dire need of therapy.
Civilization begins when we acknowledge our primitiveness.
Civilization is not a place, it’s a people, it’s a process.
Say Gay anyway.
Compliance to discrimination,
Is the coward’s way.
A true leader once said, women belong in,
All places where decisions are being made.
I say, fudge it all,
Women just belong, period.
They say, they don’t want their kids,
To be hurt learning history.
I say, if learning history makes you hurt,
You are in dire need of therapy.
Civilization begins when we acknowledge our primitiveness.
Civilization is not a place, it’s a people, it’s a process.
Peace is Existence (The Sonnet) | Mücadele Muhabbet
Peace is not a statement,
Peace is existence.
Love is not a sentiment,
Love is sentience.
Awareness is not a practice,
Awareness is absolution.
Moderation is not restriction,
Moderation is jubilation.
Ignorance is not inferiority,
Ignorance is upliftment.
Failure is not the end,
It is the road to development.
Acknowledge the whole, quirks and all.
You have all the powers to treat the world.
Peace is existence.
Love is not a sentiment,
Love is sentience.
Awareness is not a practice,
Awareness is absolution.
Moderation is not restriction,
Moderation is jubilation.
Ignorance is not inferiority,
Ignorance is upliftment.
Failure is not the end,
It is the road to development.
Acknowledge the whole, quirks and all.
You have all the powers to treat the world.
Genius by The Dozen (A Sonnet) | Amantes Assemble
Given the resources, I can build any technology,
Unlike some people, I do not need to hire genius.
Yet I gave up my obsession of electronics, because,
Building rockets is easy, building society not so much.
Not everybody is born with a silver spoon in mouth,
Rest of us have to choose among bread, dreams and tears.
But don’t assume that I am whining about a misfortune,
Because, a reformer is worth a hundred entrepreneurs.
Rocket science is child’s play for even a fisherman’s son,
Cognitive Science is common sense for a laborer’s child.
Yet you boast about a bunch of counterfeit geniuses whose,
Greatest power is that they are born with a golden hide.
If you seek true genius, lend a hand to developing nations.
And they’ll give you Gates, Musks and Byrons by the dozens.
Unlike some people, I do not need to hire genius.
Yet I gave up my obsession of electronics, because,
Building rockets is easy, building society not so much.
Not everybody is born with a silver spoon in mouth,
Rest of us have to choose among bread, dreams and tears.
But don’t assume that I am whining about a misfortune,
Because, a reformer is worth a hundred entrepreneurs.
Rocket science is child’s play for even a fisherman’s son,
Cognitive Science is common sense for a laborer’s child.
Yet you boast about a bunch of counterfeit geniuses whose,
Greatest power is that they are born with a golden hide.
If you seek true genius, lend a hand to developing nations.
And they’ll give you Gates, Musks and Byrons by the dozens.
More Important Than Truth (The Sonnet) | The Pastor Who Never Was
In the beginning even I was,
Bedazzled by the concept of truth.
It took me some time to,
Step across the lure of truth.
That is when I realized that,
Every brain creates its own truth.
So we’d never achieve harmony,
With the heartless pursuit of truth.
Understanding the definition of truth,
May differ from person to person.
But the virtues of basic goodness,
Need no divisive interpretation.
Always place love first, truth second.
Humanity first, intelligence second!
Bedazzled by the concept of truth.
It took me some time to,
Step across the lure of truth.
That is when I realized that,
Every brain creates its own truth.
So we’d never achieve harmony,
With the heartless pursuit of truth.
Understanding the definition of truth,
May differ from person to person.
But the virtues of basic goodness,
Need no divisive interpretation.
Always place love first, truth second.
Humanity first, intelligence second!
Esperanza Impossible Sonnet 2
Truth is the pandemic,
Truth is the terror.
My truth versus your truth,
Your truth versus another.
We speak of truth as if it’s a constant,
We chase it as antidote to our insecurity.
Most of our truths bring not understanding,
We cook up truth to fan our self-centricity.
Truth, in truth, is the opposite of stagnation,
Contraction repels all hope for understanding.
Truth is not a fixed point, but an act in motion,
Truth is the courageous act of a mind expanding.
Hence, to seek security one must not seek truth.
To seek truth, with security you must cut all truce.
Truth is the terror.
My truth versus your truth,
Your truth versus another.
We speak of truth as if it’s a constant,
We chase it as antidote to our insecurity.
Most of our truths bring not understanding,
We cook up truth to fan our self-centricity.
Truth, in truth, is the opposite of stagnation,
Contraction repels all hope for understanding.
Truth is not a fixed point, but an act in motion,
Truth is the courageous act of a mind expanding.
Hence, to seek security one must not seek truth.
To seek truth, with security you must cut all truce.
100 Questions of Life | Abhijit Naskar | Rowdy Scientist
6. What is perfection?
Perfection is imperfections we’ve made peace with.
…
13. What is nature?
Nature is order within chaos.
14. What is order?
Order is but friendship with chaos.
15. What is chaos?
Chaos is order we are yet to understand.
…
21. What is knowledge?
Knowledge is ignorance we’ve chosen to correct.
22. What is choice?
Choice is the fulcrum of freedom.
23. What is freedom?
Freedom is the fulcrum of responsibility.
24. What is responsibility?
Responsibility is the act of backbone.
25. What is backbone?
Backbone is more than a stick to hang your head.
26. What is the head?
Head is the mightiest carrier of progress.
27. What is progress?
Progress is much more than mere functioning of nuts
and bolts.
28. What are nuts and bolts?
Nuts and bolts are our greatest defense against
unforeseen terrors of nature, on earth and beyond.
…
53. What is heritage?
Heritage, in moderation, is an aid to growth,
unmoderated, poison.
…
57. What is death?
Death is but the fear of life.
58. What is fear?
Fear is but memory of our animal past.
59. What is memory?
Memory is the fabric of time.
60. What is time?
Time is the meaning behind moments.
…
78. What is curiosity?
Curiosity is a challenge to superstition.
79. What is superstition?
Superstition is nature’s antidote to the insecurity of
the unknown.
80. What is insecurity?
Insecurity is wisdom of the jungle against possible
predatory attack.
81. What is wisdom?
Wisdom is the result of travel in mind, not in time or
space.
Perfection is imperfections we’ve made peace with.
…
13. What is nature?
Nature is order within chaos.
14. What is order?
Order is but friendship with chaos.
15. What is chaos?
Chaos is order we are yet to understand.
…
21. What is knowledge?
Knowledge is ignorance we’ve chosen to correct.
22. What is choice?
Choice is the fulcrum of freedom.
23. What is freedom?
Freedom is the fulcrum of responsibility.
24. What is responsibility?
Responsibility is the act of backbone.
25. What is backbone?
Backbone is more than a stick to hang your head.
26. What is the head?
Head is the mightiest carrier of progress.
27. What is progress?
Progress is much more than mere functioning of nuts
and bolts.
28. What are nuts and bolts?
Nuts and bolts are our greatest defense against
unforeseen terrors of nature, on earth and beyond.
…
53. What is heritage?
Heritage, in moderation, is an aid to growth,
unmoderated, poison.
…
57. What is death?
Death is but the fear of life.
58. What is fear?
Fear is but memory of our animal past.
59. What is memory?
Memory is the fabric of time.
60. What is time?
Time is the meaning behind moments.
…
78. What is curiosity?
Curiosity is a challenge to superstition.
79. What is superstition?
Superstition is nature’s antidote to the insecurity of
the unknown.
80. What is insecurity?
Insecurity is wisdom of the jungle against possible
predatory attack.
81. What is wisdom?
Wisdom is the result of travel in mind, not in time or
space.
On Shortfalls and Strongholds | Abhijit Naskar | Visvavatan: 100 Demilitarization Sonnets
The biggest requirement of learning is to know your limits of the moment. Let me elaborate with an example. Alongside my mainstream works, I have wanted to create complete works in turkish and spanish for several years. And few years back, with my rather limited experiential understanding of both languages, I even took it upon myself to do so, but I got stuck on the very first page. Why? Because it is one thing to pen occasional gems in another language, and totally different to release an entire work in that language. I was ready at heart, but not at brain. So, instead of writing whole works in these languages, I simply made turkish and spanish a joyful addition to my mainstream work – however the original linguistic and cultural intention kept reflecting in the titles of works, such as Aşkanjali, The Gentalist, Gente Mente Adelante, Mucize Insan and so on. It was not until late 2023 that my brain finally caught up with my heart, and delivered the first complete original turkish and spanish Naskarean works to the world.
Know your strongholds, they’ll take you far. Know your shortfalls, they’ll take you farther. Strongholds help you enhance your predominant capacities, whereas shortfalls help you unfold new possibilities – they help you unfold new vistas of human endeavor.
Know your strongholds, they’ll take you far. Know your shortfalls, they’ll take you farther. Strongholds help you enhance your predominant capacities, whereas shortfalls help you unfold new possibilities – they help you unfold new vistas of human endeavor.
