Miram-Webster's online dictionary defines wisdom as: accumulated philosophic or scientific learning; knowledge; good sense; judgment; a wise attitude, belief or course of action; capacity for effective application of the powers of the mind as a basis for action or response, intelligence. An apt synonym would be common sense.
Somewhere along the road, if we ever had it, humankind seemed to lose our 'common sense'.
As we stand at a pivotal point, an especially important juncture in the journey of humanity, it seems to be that wisdom is the virtue that is most needed.
Linda Kavelin Popov tells that "Wisdom is the guardian of our choices. It helps us to discern the right path at the right moment."
I believe every thinking person on this planet today would agree that the quality of our future, and perhaps our very survival as a species depends on us collectively choosing what is the right path, the wisdom path, at this moment in history.
Kavelin Popov goes on to tell us that wisdom "gives us clarity of thought and deeper understanding."
Wisdom calls us to "use our best judgment, resisting the pull of impulse and desire. Wisdom gives us the maturity and patience to make sustainable decisions."
Sustainable decisions? Sounds wise, don't you agree?
Back to Miriam-Webster's: sustainable - capable of being sustained; relating to, or being a method of harvesting or using a resource so that the resource is not depleted or permanently damaged.
Again, using wisdom or common sense, one doesn't need a PHD in economics, (or anything else for that matter), to realize that much of what we call the 'western' way of living, is not 'sustainable'. Nor has it ever been.
The practice of buy now, pay later, in all it's various permutations, has a very deep cost.
And the loan has come due. The capitalist system that awards the rich at the expense of the poor, (and the planet) is not sustainable, and therefore, is not wise.
The global economic system, currently crumbling before our very eyes, is based on the false belief that 'the market' is the best system for providing the necessities of life.
Yet in the decades since the last major depression, the disparity worldwide, between the wealth of the rich and the poor has grown only greater.
The age of prosperity has not been so for the many, but rather for the few. (often on the backs and at the expense of the many) How can that possibly be sustainable? Where is the wisdom in that?
We are a planet of over 6 billion people. Yet the majority of the worlds wealth is held by about 6% of us. To put it into perspective, check out this link: www.vagabondish.com/if-world-had-100-people-video/
What is the answer? Values must shift. Wisdom must prevail.
Rianne Eisler, author of The Chalice and the Blade, has written a new book, The Real Wealth of Nations. (Berrett-Koehler Publishers: 2007)
In it, she proposes a new economics, a 'caring economics', which takes into account and includes the contributions of people and our natural environment.
Touted by Christiane Northrup, Deepak Chopra and Archbishop Desmond Tutu (and many others), the book traces the roots of the greatest problems of our time (poverty, inequality, war, terrorism and environmental degradation) to our past and current flawed economic systems, which fail to value and support the most essential human work: that of caring.....for people and for the planet.
What would wisdom look like, in caring for the planet, which after all is our home?
As a homeowner, it doesn't take much wisdom to know that if I were to treat my home with the same disrespect much of humanity treats the earth , it would soon crumble and fall apart.
In The Real Wealth of Nations, Eisler, a social scientist, puts forward an audacious and bold reformulation for an economics that takes into consideration 'caring' while at the same time offering huge benefits, both socially and economically. She goes farther than putting forth an opinion, but constructively carries it through by providing a "blueprint for putting this more humane and effective economic system to work."
The current condition of our world has to be somehow linked to the lack of 'caring' for, and neglect of, our planet and it's peoples. The current meltdown is the inevitable result of unwise and unsustainable decisions that have been made along the way. The 'health', or lack thereof, we are facing today, is a result of an accumulation of unhealthy and 'unwise' choices that have been made in the past, and the result of ignoring the feedback we have been getting for decades about the true state of our natural environment.
I know this very personally, on a 'micro' level. I am one of the millions of people suffering from a chronic health condition. It's label is not important, what's really important is that my environment, both from within and without, has been unable to sustain my health.
It is, in part, the result of an accumulation of unhealthy circumstances throughout my lifetime. Some were things I had no control over or choice in, yet choices I made along the way, have made the situation much worse that it may have been. I may have had the tendency to develop this condition anyway, but it showed up at a time of incredible stress. Stress that was a wake up call that something was amiss, and that I largely ignored.
What I've noticed over the two decades that I have had this condition, is that I have a lot of power to manage how it effects me on a day to day basis. And I have also noticed, how often, I choose not to.
There have been weeks, months, sometimes even years, when I would have said I was' cured'. My symptoms were so non existent. This was only possible, because I began to pay attention to the 'sign's my body, (earth) was sending me, and day by day, chose to make changes that would support health; - sustainable changes, common sense changes. I began practicing the virtue of wisdom.
Then, for some reason, wisdom would begin to leave me. I felt so great, I began to 'indulge' again in the practices that were not sustainble to my health. Staying up too late, eating too much of the wrong foods, staying too long in relationships that were not working and not workable, (and even toxic), not enough physical activity, ignoring my true spiritual needs.
You know the story. You can probably relate to some of what I've written, even if you don't have a health 'label' of your own.
As a result of my 'wisdom' lapse, the stresses of the past couple of years have been challenging for me, health wise. I found myself, once again, too far away from managing this syndrome and too much held back by it's relentless grip. Through it all, I continued to push myself, to do more, have more, be more, until the symptoms became, once again, so big and impossible to ignore, I had to face them. Kind of like what's happening in the wider world. And, maybe, to one degree or another, in your world.
When things are challenging, wisdom calls us to take care of first things first. If we don't take care of our health, our body will break down and make it that much harder to 'take care of business'. If we don't take care of our planet, it too will break down (as we are finally realizing) and make it that much harder to 'take care of business'.
When chaos seems to be reigning, how to we find the wisdom path?
LKP reminds us that part of wisdom is seeking knowledge, entering into reflection and opening ourselves to inspiration.
" We consider carefully, then act confidently. Wisdom takes us beyond thought to a deeper knowing. Wisdom grounds us in grace."
I am only one small speck, a cell if you will, in the body of humanity. And so are you.
Yet the wisdom with which I live my life, and you yours, has an effect on the whole. And together, cell by cell and soul by soul, we can make a difference to the whole body.
Namaste
~ Kate
The Practice of Wisdom
I make discerning choices.
I resist distracting impulses.
I listen to my better judgment.
I reflect before I act.
I seek spiritual guidance.
I trust my deepest truth.
I am thankful for the gift of Wisdom. It is the messenger of my soul.
Reflection questions:
What is wisdom calling me to?
How can I live a more sustainable life?
In what way do I seek spiritual guidance?
What is my deepest truth?
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