Perspective

I believe that present knowledge is largely based on past knowledge.

As an illustration, what happens when an individual or a community is completely sealed off from the rest of the civilized world? Closed communities like the Amish and cult groups living in controlled communal quarters are examples of people who have been cut off from the flow of developing knowledge and exposure to current events to such an extent that they are basically living in the past (or a simulated version of it). There have been stories of families or individuals who have left urban life to sequester themselves deep in the moutains or wilderness, having zero contact with the outside world, and once they finally emerge, fifty or sixty years later, the effect is something like time travel for them. Their lives up till now have essentially been frozen in a single period in time and when thrown into the modern world they are nearly unable to adapt to the drastic changes they encounter. Their understanding of life and the universe is stunted and incomplete.

Also, this brings to mind the famous saying, “Those who do not learn from the mistakes of history are doomed to repeat them.” When you can’t or won’t learn from the past, your present knowledge, whatever or however much it may be, will be limited in its usefulness or practicality. You can experiment with ten thousand ways to create a light bulb, but if you fail to record your mistakes and what went wrong and what to do differently next time, you’ll keep on making those same mistakes and a functioning light bulb will never come to fruition.

However, I can think of some exceptions to this general rule, espcially when one takes into account the many philosophers, mystics, and spiritual people throughout history who have utilized the tranquility of silence and solitude to transcend life’s suffering and realize a deeper understanding of themselves, God, and the universe. In these cases, one cannot fully comprehend or verbalize the mystery of divine revelation and the deep intangibles of personal discovery and transformation found in the invisible realm. For example, from where did the now immortal words of spiritual figures such as Henry David Thoreau, Teresa of Avila, or the Buddha, originate? To be sure, much of their understanding of life was founded on their past education and study, as religions and philosophies are often based on the principles of their founders, but the essence of these individuals’ core beliefs sprang from far beyond what one could learn from a textbook or mentor. They had to undergo their own personal journeys--often in isolation where the only inspiration was from an entirely immaterial source--to reach that level of experiential knowledge.

Some discoveries can’t be seen until the exact moment of revelation. Sometimes the past is flawed or irrelevant. Sometimes we believe the earth is flat with all our heart because that was what we were taught from generations past, until one brave thinker insane enough to challenge common belief dares to say otherwise.

Sometimes life is like bricks in a developing structure or a staircase up into a tower. One step at a time, building one fact on top of another until you reach the apex of enlightenment.

Other times, life is like jumping off a cliff, not stopping to think too long about whether your glider will hold true or not, whether you’ll soar into the clouds or shatter on the sharp rocks below. Either way, you’ll unequivocally have your perspective altered by the end.