Wisdom is “a developmental process involving self-transcendence. Self-transcendence refers to the ability to move beyond self-centered consciousness, and to see things as they are with clear awareness of human nature and human problems, and with a considerable measure of freedom from biological and social conditioning. This ability to move beyond a self-centered perspective is certainly an important component of wisdom.
Transcending the self is needed to move beyond ingrained, automatic ways of thinking, feeling, and acting, and to connect empathetically with the experiences of others.”
Le TN, Levenson MR. Wisdom as self-transcendence: What's love (& individualism) got to do with it? Journal of Research in Personality 2005; 39(4): 443-457.
"wise individuals evince less despair and greater equanimity because they (are) more likely to grapple with existential dilemmas and paradoxes that give life more meaning."
Le TN. Life satisfaction, openness value, self-transcendence, and wisdom. Journal of Happiness Studies 2011; 12(2): 171-182.
"When we truly live each moment, what happens to the burden of life? ... If we are totally what we are, in every second, we begin to experience life as joy. Standing between us and a life of joy are our thoughts, our ideas, our expectations, and our hopes and fears.
... people who have been practicing for some time begin to have a sense of humor about their burden. After all, the thought that life is a burden is only a concept. We're simply doing what we're doing, second by second by second. The measure of fruitful practice is that we feel life less as a burden and more as a joy."
Beck CJ. Nothing special: Living Zen. HarperCollins, 1995.
Mindfulness practice is a well-established, intentional path from suffering towards wisdom, equanimity and joy.
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| A Weed Grows in Venice |
Do you think it has to be an either-or situation? Or do you think one can develop wisdom through a pursuit of expertise if one's journey is a mindful one?
ReplyDeleteGood point Mandy. I agree that it doesn't have to be one or the other. We ought to be cultivating wisdom AND regular skill sets, in tandem, with equal emphasis. But because wisdom is given minimal attention compared to materialistic pursuits, Omar M. Bradley's observation remains accurate: "Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants. We know more about war than we know about peace, more about killing than we know about living." This is not sustainable.
ReplyDeleteI think cultivating wisdom requires intentional conscious skillfully-guided training in its own right, just like training in any profession. Does a highly-accomplished athlete or a highly-skilled craftsman COINCIDENTALLY develop SOME wisdom along the way? Probably. How much we VALUE wisdom determines how much time & effort we put SPECIFICALLY into cultivating wisdom & living wisely.
ReplyDeleteJohn - Really like the part about the burden of life as a concept. Going to share that with a couple of clients.
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