Acquired knowledge vs revealed knowledge…

Pondering over how the human soul inevitably gets proud when one gets knowledgeable, I am reminded of an observation by a teacher ‘for a world that is getting more and more knowledgeable, we are actually getting less and less intellectual..’ [paraphrased].

Observing folks who have acquired knowledge [masters degree, PhD, MBAs etc] seems to point to something common - ‘too much knowledge puffs up’. Especially when one puts in inordinate effort to build the knowledge, one gets very possessive. The knowledge is like an acquired ‘possession’ which one wants to protect and even boasts about. I have been down that road and know its ‘potholes’.

Revealed knowledge, on the other hand, cannot be acquired. It is revealed by God. Such knowledge is very wondrous and humbling at the same time. Revealed knowledge is also the source of wisdom. I can only quietly ponder over such knowledge and be thankful that I am counted worthy to receive. There is no room for pride, possession or presumption.

When I let God move / guide / direct me moment by moment, I will be dependent and I will not speak with such possessiveness because the knowledge is still being unfolded before me.

Being too smart for our own good is no good. It is ugly, it is self serving and it closes the door for more learning. We think we have the entire picture. Even if we studied under the best teachers in our area of discipline, our teachers themselves acquired knowledge from their teachers, etc. So, if there were a hidden presumption some hundreds of years ago, it would certainly have passed from guru to disciple. Like the practice of creating a new batch of yogurt using a spoonful from previous batch, tracing back centuries [whatever impurities back then would have been passed down].

Being in the learning industry, this is truly a daily reckoning. May i choose revealed knowledge over acquired knowledge. May i not be puffed up and behave like I know it all.

Learning knows no boundary – as long as there is a healthy appetite and genuine desire to seek understanding… But pride is just as voracious in appetite.