June 26, 2006
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Intelligence
What is intelligence? Intelligence is intrinsic (like breath). Intelligence is mindfulness. Intelligence is the capacity to see without prejudice or stereotype. It is the capacity to listen without interference. It is the capacity to accept things as they are. Intelligence is ability to response to the vicissitude of life. It is dynamic. It flows and refreshes every moment. It is life.
Intelligence is not about achievement, efficiency, and memory. It has nothing to do getting good grades or passing examinations. Intelligence is not intellectual. An intellectual person is constantly carrying prejudices, knowledge, beliefs, information of what he has learned. He stops seeking. He cannot listen to others. Before we can say anything, he has already concluded. He has become fixed, static, frozen. He has become consistent. The intellectuals are blind and deaf. Intellectual alone is unintelligence. The head has nothing to do with intelligence. The head is the mind. The brain is part of the mind. The brain is knowledge. The brain is a biological computer. It is good for mathematics, calculation, and day-to-day life. The brain accumulates and regurgitates. It is good for efficiently memorizing the verses in the scriptures and unintelligently parroting them to others. When we live life in the head, we live a mechanical life. We become a robot. And robots are very efficient, more so than human. When we live like a robot, we may have a better standard of living, but we won’t have a life.
An intelligent person depends on his own insights. An intelligence person will try just to be herself and listens to her own intrinsic call. She is a light unto herself. She is able to response to life situation without resistance. An intelligence person always meditates. Whenever she feels that life has no meaning, she tries to find meaning within. She knows life is not definite. She knows life is inconsistence. She knows that tomorrow will bring it own experiences. She surrenders and let God. She trusts in God and her own being. She loves and respects God, herself, others.
The idea the some people are intelligent and some are not is wrong. This is insulting, dehumanizing, and degrading. All are born with intelligence, though intelligence may differ in expressions. We just have to find our intelligences. Once we’ve found and accepted our intelligences, we become clear of whom we are.
There is only one kind of intelligence and it is in the heart. Intelligence is to live in the heart and use the head whenever is needed.
Comments (7)
Yes, I think intelligence is a capacity, which is infinite if we remove our judgments and expectations.
RYC–thank you. You always uplift me in so many ways.
Thanks for answering my question! Much appreciated. I like what you had to say about going with the moment. To have a love of learning, a sense of wonder about life, and to be open to new and unfamiliar experiences… *smiles*
This is beautiful. It spoke to me.
~Ann~
Three divergent thoughts immediately popped into my mind.
1. Is intelligence and wisdom the same thing? My thought is that you can be intelligent without being wise.
2. I thought of Howard Gardner’s concept of Multiple Intelligences. He views intelligences as Verbal-Linguistic, Logical-Mathematical, Bodily-Kinesthetic, Visual-Spatial, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Musical, and Naturalistic. Beyond that we can consider that “dog intelligence” is different from “cat” intelligence and both are different from “bird” or “worm” intelligence. The intelligence you need to be who and what you are differs greatly from species to species and among individuals.
3. Heart Intelligence. The most important kind. “Living in the Heart” Most of the time I see it in myself. I see it at times in friends and neighbors. I see it in my puppy a lot. Even when she is upset, her whole heart is in it. I’ve seen it in birds and cats. I don’t know about worms, but I may not have enough worm or heart intelligence to understand or connect to them. I like this idea of Heart Intelligence. In our world of ever escallating political and social tensions, it may prove to be the most important kind.
i see too many un- intelligent people every day driving on I-4.
wowow i didn’t know there’re so many definitions for intelligence. I thought it just means Tram ahahaha JK…..lol