WISDOM AND HAPPINESS

My friend Van and I attended a discussion group on the subject of happiness and how to achieve it. Some of the more common suggestions included relationships, exercise, walking in the woods, and the pursuit of a goal we believe in.

While all these suggestions have merit, I was surprised that no one suggested that knowledge and wisdom can also significantly contribute to our level of happiness or peace, as many of the ancients had attested:

• ...for wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. (Proverbs 2:10)

We usually don’t consider the possibility that wisdom and knowledge can be pleasant, even fulfilling. Instead, more value is being placed on feelings and experiences. Perhaps the best way to illustrate the value of wisdom is by considering the opposite - confusion.

While many extoll confusion, few will admit that it’s fun or happiness-producing. The late author, James Baldwin, confessed:

• “Confusion is a luxury which only the very, very young can possibly afford and you are not that young anymore.” (Giovanni's Room)

Confusion is costly in terms of our peace of mind.  The author, Caroline Stevermer, had written:

• “How dreadful...to be caught up in a game and have no idea of the rules.” 

In contrast, wisdom perceives the rules and decides whether or not to play the game. Philosopher, Criss Jami, understood that a confusing game can become quite uncomfortable:

• “In the age of technology there is constant access to vast amounts of information. The basket overflows; people get overwhelmed; the eye of the storm is not so much what goes on in the world, it is the confusion of how to think, feel, digest, and react to what goes on.” (Venus in Arms)

However, wisdom is able to answer these questions and lead us to a place of peace and safety. Wisdom is also interpersonal peace. It banishes confusion and sheds light on possible solutions. It sets sound goals and identifies ways to reach them. Wisdom also seeks the welfare of others.

However, wisdom is married to truth, and truth is a tyrant that draws a line between right and wrong. It is an imperialist that tells us what to do. It is also a light that exposes our hidden motives. Therefore, we run from truth and reject wisdom, a gift of exceeding value:

• “For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding; he stores up sound wisdom for the upright; he is a shield to those who walk in integrity, guarding the paths of justice and watching over the way of his saints. Then you will understand righteousness and justice and equity, every good path; for wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; discretion will watch over you, understanding will guard you.”(Proverbs 2:6-11)

If this is true, then wisdom is a source of peace and protection, but it is also the surgeon’s scalpel, which cuts away the self-deceit, a surgery often too painful to bear.