Balancing the Mind: The Path from Intelligence to Wisdom
From a very young age, maybe 11 or 12 years old, I can recall certain aspects of the schooling system quite clearly. One of the most striking aspects was this "intelligence" hierarchy among young kids that was very engrained and integrated into the system. It was very competitive, and I can see now how we were so conditioned to compete from such an early age. The ones with good grades were those deemed more "intelligent," which allowed those students to climb the schooling hierarchy ladder and be placed on a pedestal, while the "unintelligent" were a sort of second-class citizens in this environment.
Just like this, we were subconsciously conditioned and programmed to believe that the development of our cognitive abilities was of utmost importance. We learned to link success to intelligence from a very young age. We were under the illusion that those who were "good students" and had great grades had a future, while the rest were bound to fail. At the end of the day, only those with good grades would have a chance to be doctors, scientists, and engineers. These careers were presented to us as the pinnacles of success.
Many of us didn’t get the opportunity to look at success from a different standpoint, from a different perspective. Our rigid and unidirectional system does not allow many children to see that there are other avenues of success and that pure intellectual and cognitive capabilities aren’t the only bridges toward a fulfilling life. We weren’t taught about the broadness of the concept of success, and many of us weren’t taught to see all the different possibilities that exist in our life spectrum. Life is diverse and malleable, with an infinite number of directions that can lead to success. To explore these, you don’t need to endlessly develop your left brain hemisphere, but you need to give as much protagonism to your right hemisphere. More importantly, you need to connect with a more holistic attribute in life: the development and pursuit of wisdom.
Years went by, and as a young adult, I began to explore books, information, interviews, and videos from individuals who resonated deeply with me. Many of these new ideas and perspectives on life were original and unconventional, ones I had never heard of growing up. This was a new world I was entering. By listening to people like Krishnamurti, Alan Watts, Ram Dass, Sadhguru, and Goenka, I realized that all the conventional notions I had grown up with were just one way to see the world, not the only way. They believed that the intellect, the ego, is just a tool—an incredible tool but a horrible master. They all believed that living solely in the intellectual realm leads to an unfulfilled life. The Eastern view of life made more sense to me, offering a more holistic way of interacting with life. As I delved deeper into their teachings, things started to make more and more sense. There was something more worth pursuing than mere intelligence, and that was wisdom. These individuals had immense amounts of wisdom without needing a Ph.D. What they had was life experience and a commitment to exploring the depths of our human nature through their own life journeys.
All the information I was consuming from these masters and wise people made perfect sense and resonated with me. But ironically, it was all an intellectual understanding that I had. I wasn’t taking steps in the physical reality to make sense of these wise statements and ideas in my own personal reality. At the end of the day, that is what searching for true wisdom was about.
Something important had already happened internally: my belief systems had changed, and all those metrics of success I had been programmed with as a kid were dissolving. I no longer looked up to people with credentials and external status as role models. My role models now were these wise individuals who seemed to have achieved higher levels of freedom, understanding of life, and mastery of themselves. That was what I sought to achieve, but I knew deep down that I wouldn’t be able to do it through pure intellect. I had to embrace the hardships and challenges of the journeys that lead to gaining more wisdom.
In my twenties, I took the next step and started making decisions in my life that aligned with the views and ideas that resonated so much with me. I went into a serious exploration mode that led me to spend many years in the East, exploring different cultures, people, spiritual practices, and philosophies. The commitment to make sense of these ideas on a more fundamental level of my being was paying off, as I began having truly challenging but fulfilling experiences. This journey is for another blog.
In order to grasp all of this, we need both our intellect and our experiences, our higher mind. As these teachers have said, our intellect is a beautiful tool that we have been given. What I want to shine a light on is the notion that over-identification with our intellect and the blind pursuit of intellectual development can lead to an unfulfilled life. The invitation here is to search for the right life balance, which can only be achieved by developing wisdom. Wisdom isn’t developed as easily as mental sharpness. It isn’t about just reading a book. While reading can help us create a mental framework, wisdom is acquired through life experiences, challenging situations, and learning how to live in the unknown. It is acquired in moments of uncertainty when you have to come up with solutions on your own.
All polarities lead to negative outcomes. What is important in life is to find that constant balance that allows us to experience all the amazing things life has to offer. Is it important to develop our intellect to achieve our goals? Of course, it is. Is it important to gain wisdom so we can know which goals to pursue? Absolutely. I believe this is an important topic to ponder because, in my own experience, I’ve seen the polarization in our Western world towards embracing the intellect. There’s an obsession with status symbols that represent intelligence, such as job titles, degrees, or other external markers. The intellect doesn’t allow us to see the broader picture.
Many brilliant intellectuals live in misery, while many seemingly disadvantaged individuals possess wisdom that allows them to lead fulfilled lives. Reflect on whether your life is balanced. Are you pursuing wisdom and using your intellect as a tool? Strive to let both aspects work in harmony, embracing life's challenges and experiences. In the end, true fulfillment comes from balancing intellect and wisdom, allowing you to live a life of deeper understanding and genuine contentment.
Much love,
Matias