Living to Learn: Is Learning Painful or Life?

Living to Learn:  Painful or Life?  May 16, 2011

 “Man lives only to learn.  And if he learns it is because that is the nature of his lot, for good or bad.”  Carlos Castaneda

When growing up, I was always intrigued by what I did not know.  Walking or talking with friends, I would observe something and immediately ask, "I wonder what that means."  In variably, the friend would respond me with irritation, "it means nothing, it just is."   One friend commented that I would "argue with a stop sign!"  While I would laugh and stop verbalizing my curiosity, I still wondered.  Not only would I wonder, I would align what I was observing with what I already knew.

Sometimes, there was a hidden meaning that I discovered; and sometimes there was a meaning I did NOT discover. I believe nothing just happens, only sometimes we are privy to what happened and sometimes we are not.   Still, the desire to learn was and is strong. As I get older and the power of life becomes more evident, I am even more astounded.  I can’t wait to get up in the morning to start the learning process for the day.

Long ago, I learned, that I learned more when I am alone.  I found that well meaning friends squelched my pursuit of knowledge in favor of what they already knew.  They were comfortable, not knowing.  I was not.   I soon learned that when I just wanted to socialize, I would seek out others.  When I wanted to learn, I became very comfortable with myself or other curious beings, along with the resources around me that would allow me to explore.  It does not matter if I am walking, cooking, or just going through life; I am acutely aware of the opportunities to learn.   I had and still have a burning desire to learn.  To me, it is the currency of life.

In Ecclesiastes 1:16-18, King Solomon speaks about knowledge and wisdom.  King Solomon was the wisest man in the world as a recipient of God’s granting his request for wisdom only.^”I said to myself, "You are by far the wisest person who has ever lived in Jerusalem. You are eager to learn, and you have learned a lot."  Then I decided to find out all I could about wisdom and foolishness. Soon I realized that this too was as senseless as chasing the wind. The more you know, the more you hurt; the more you understand, the more you suffer.”  1 Kings 3:1-28   

King Solomon was and is right.  Learning increases responsibility.

In addition, today, as I was reading a book, this quote by Carlos Castaneda struck me profoundly:  “Man lives only to learn.  And if he learns it is because that is the nature of his lot, for good or bad.”  I especially agree with him as well!

Here one man, Solomon, speaks of knowledge as painful.   The other man, Castaneda, speaks as knowledge as life.  It is my belief that they are both right.

I find myself attracted to small children and the way their minds work.  They are always learning, exploring, and reaffirming what they know with glee.  Somewhere along the line, as we age, others will dull that enthusiasm for knowledge if we allow them to.

 It is my belief that the mind wants nothing more than to learn, to think, and to live.  Yes, many times what I learned was painful, yet most of the time it is pleasurable.  The reward is in the learning regardless of the outcome. 

 In my estimation, we really do get a new day, a clean slate daily to record the wonders of the world.  It is my belief that the major cause of Alzheimer’s is inactivity of the brain.  Life has taught me that what you don’t use, you loose; the mind is no exception.  It is true, “a mind is a terrible thing to waste.”

 The purpose of writing this blog is to do two things:  (1) Encourage every person you know to live by learning and (2) discourage every person you know from discouraging others who ARE LIVING BY LEARNING.  Sometimes, it is enough to just observe and encourage even if you do not see the value.