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Wisdom is of the ages and comes with living life through its myriad vicissitudes. It is not a gift gratis, an inheritance or legacy to be passed on or a genetic skill that we acquire naturally. The trauma and joys of life simultaneously teach us wisdom that comes through judgement and discrimination.
Wisdom is not merely the acquisition of knowledge but a refinement of knowledge, the distilled wisdom that we apply as the situation demands. It is the collective experience we gather as we go along that informs our decisions and influences our values and ways .
Wisdom is the ability to retain your equanimity regardless of circumstances realising fully that not everything is in your control, to change or improve what you can and a gracious acceptance of what you cannot and understanding the difference between them. It is basically a search for meaning and knowledge and the essence of being human. A large part of wisdom is ‘Saha hrudayata’ or empathy that shared feeling of humanity.
The quality of being wise is recourse to the soundest course of action based on knowledge, experience and understanding. The wisest among us are those who carry their greatness, learning and virtue lightly on their shoulders and are not averse to learning from the humblest among us. They believe that everyone has the power to add value to our lives and every encounter should be treasured because it may not come again.
Also true wisdom does not try to seek meaning and significance where there is none but living life with hope and courage. Often life brings tragedies and suffering in it’s wake as well as immeasurable joys but wisdom gleans resilience from it all and the knowledge everything will pass.
The greatest teaching of wisdom comes from the Bhagavadgita where Krishna tells Arjuna that he must take arms against his kin in the resolution between good and evil. Wisdom is the ability to discern between right and wrong, to make a choice when confronted with difficult and varied possibilities and live life with equanimity and peace.
Wisdom is about considered choices and understanding our limitations in the backdrop of ambitious goals. Above all wisdom means tolerance, a commitment to listen to other voices, a humility that elevates a human being.
(Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.)