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Re: Theos-World RE: "Common sense" and "Openness" -- When is learning not Indoctrination ?

Jun 26, 2003 04:55 PM
by Bart Lidofsky


dalval14@earthlink.net wrote:
My answer:
I disagree with that. Can you please explain how you can equate
"Common sense" and "openness" with what you call "WISDOM" ? I
just don't get it. Maybe some other readers care to make a remark
on that.

Anyone ?
Not so sure how openness has ANYTHING to do with knowledge or wisdom, but I can comment on common sense.

John Algeo (who, if nothing else, is an expert in American English and etymology) has pointed out that the term "common sense" does not refer to any characteristic shared by many people (or commonly), but the ability to use the sensory data we have together, in common. It can be considered to be a synonym for intuitive wisdom.

The problem with "common sense" is that it only works if the sensory data we are receiving is accurate. With instrumentation that amplifies our senses, or tells us information which is simply not otherwise available to our senses, we have learned that "common sense" is very often wrong.

Common sense led to the Newtonian laws of mechanics, and the conclusion that they apply to everything, no matter how big or how small. But using information not available to our senses, we have discovered that Newtonian mechanics ignores an important factor, because at our approximate size and accelerations at which we are familiar, the factor is so close to zero that the instrumentation required to even see that the factor exists has only been available for the last century or so (although, based on the writings of Blavatsky, the Mahatmas, their sources, the fact that there were factors not accounted for in Newtonian Mechanics was known well before then). And this new information showed that size DID matter; that Newtonian mechanics did not work at all for very large or very small objects.

Common sense is the ability that the 5th Root race needs to develop. It leads to many discoveries about the Universe. Our modern instrumentation, by extending the senses, is bringing this facility even further. But there are limits even there. To perform experiments to extend our knowledge of quantum mechanics much further would require more energy than exists in the entire known Universe. Yes, common sense can lead to much wisdom. But, at least without an unforeseeable leap in ways of extending our senses even further, we are reaching the limit to that which it can tell us (mind you, we probably aren't going to actually reach the limit in our lifetimes).

Now, if the founders of the Theosophical Society are to be believed, there is wisdom beyond what common sense can teach us. But to receive it, we must first exhaust that which we can learn from common sense, at least in certain directions. What directions? Beats the hell out of me. If I knew, I wouldn't be here. I'd be up in a mountain in Tibet gathering chelas, or laughing at those who are there.

Bart




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