Knowledge isn’t Always Power. Sometimes it’s our Problem
The More You Grow the Less You Know
A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO TAOISM
The More You Grow the Less You Know
The “joke”
When I was a boy around five years old, my father, who I haven’t seen in over 20 years, told me a joke.
“Do you know the other name for a Brazil nut?” To which I replied with a simple no. “N***** toes,” he said while laughing.
It’s amazing how normal the joke seemed to me contrary to the inexcusable racism which was the reality.
Labels, nicknames, and words. What a useful and horrible tool humans created. On one hand, the ability to effectively communicate hundreds of thousands of ideas, concepts, and perceptions separated us from animals and allowed our species to prosper.
On the other hand, however, our words are also used to destroy, divide, and separate us into believing one group is better over another. Or that certain things are only one way when in fact they are not any way at all.
In ancient China, the duality of words was already known. It’s no wonder Laozi, in his Tao Te Ching, the seminal Chinese book of wisdom created over 2,500 years ago, warns against knowledge for knowledge’s sake.
Evidence In Text
The idea that knowledge and definitions can be negative and untrustworthy isn’t a small line in an otherwise large chapter but repeated throughout the text. For example:
Abandon wisdom, discard knowledge, and people will benefit a hundredfold. — Tao Te Ching chapter 19
Those who seek knowledge, collect something every day. Those who seek the Way, let go of something every day. — Tao Te Ching chapter 48
Also…
A good person is the bad person’s teacher. A bad person is the good person’s task. — Tao Te Ching chapter 27
Abandon knowledge and your worries are over. — Tao Te Ching chapter 19
Useless Knowledge
Some readers read these quotes and believe “Oh, Taoism is anti-intellectual.” However, read closer. If that were true, why would Laozi or any other Taoist master bother writing down anything? They would simply allow their knowledge to die with them.
No, Laozi wanted to share what he had learned, but is warning us against what I call “useless knowledge” which is knowledge for knowledge sake. Or, overlearning to the point of using it as a weapon against others.
For example, if you grew up with siblings, it’s likely you were a part of an argument where the older sibling tried to use your lack of education against you as way to show dominance. This occurred often in my house with two brothers.
Jeremy and Nicholas would fight, and Jeremy (two years Nicholas’ senior) would state a science question which Nicholas couldn’t answer. Nicholas wasn’t dumb, but his class had not covered that topic. Jeremy would use this unanswerable question as a method to prove his superior intelligence.
Did you not grow up with siblings? Turn on the news. Democrats vs. Republicans (for the American readers), black vs. white, LBGTQ+ vs bi-sexual, and the list goes on and on forever. The more we have used the knowledge we gained about each other the more we have used it to divide us and hurt each other.
This is why Laozi stated, “Abandon wisdom, discard knowledge, and people will benefit a hundredfold.” If we forget about what separates us, then we are only people and we would have to admit how terrible we treat each other. We don’t do it because they are simply different, but because we have labeled them into categories which we defined which specific characteristics.
Mind Blown
In all the lessons, courses, and conversations I’ve had over the years regarding the Tao, my mind blown moment came in chapter 27 quoted above.
What is a good man?
A teacher of a bad man.
What is a bad man?
A good man’s charge.
If the teacher is not respected,
And the pupil not cared for,
Confusion will arise, however clever one is.
This is the crux of mystery.
In this chapter, if you have the ability to live in harmony with the world, you are tasked with showing others. Good cannot be without bad. Confusion, anger, chaos will arise if both do not understand this nature. Having useless knowledge will not help in this situation as the experience of understanding cannot be placed into words.
When Words Fail
Knowing and experiencing do not equal each other. Knowing about love and experiencing love is not the same.
Do you remember when you fell in love for the first time? Who was it? How old were you? Now, remember the last time you fell in love. Were both of those love experiences they the same? Probably not. Each love is different and can’t be easily described.
Try to describe how great sex makes you feel. You can describe actions, bodies, perhaps emotions, but you can’t describe that sensation which separates the amazing time from the terrible times. You can do the same actions, the same movements, even in the same locations, but “something feels off” when you two don’t just “click.”
Words are not the end-all be-all for humanity. We don’t need more words to divide us and hope we finally learn to understand each other.
We have all the words we will ever need for that.
