Although wisdom appears to be one of those things easy to recognize but difficult to define [similar to pornography], this could not be further from the truth. Wisdom is simply understanding the truth of the matter. This realization allows responses targeted with great precision and makes wise people wise. Many people who seem to be unable to get it right are such not because their responses are poorly thought-out or organized [although this might be the case, as well], but instead, because they have misdiagnosed the situation. Instead of seeing the issue as it presented, their discriminatory mind went into analysis-mode, bias was added to the perception, and accordingly, the response [based on the bias] is erroneous. So wisdom is not being really intelligent [although it can be], and it's not being particularly experienced [although it usually is], it's simply seeing what happens for what it is and nothing more. This is why the masters of Eastern practices are so wise...they simply see the truth in everyday things...and why the historical Buddha said upon his full enlightenment, "I achieved absolutely nothing." Seeing things as they truly are [without bias] is one of the great secrets [that has been around for thousands of years] and the key to obtaining wisdom. Give your mind the space it needs to do its thing without believing that you know more than reality, and you will live a much better life [and be able to greatly help others in the bargain].
I'm reminded of my Dungeons and Dragons days. By which I guess I mean last Thursday. Anyway, one of the most interesting things about D&D is that your character has both an Intelligence score and a Wisdom score. They are two separate things. You can be dumb and wise or smart as hell and still lack wisdom. New players often have trouble grasping this and it can be difficult to play out, but a favorite explanation in the community is "Intelligence tells you those clouds over there indicate that it is about to rain . . . wisdom tells you that you should go inside."
In Buddhism there has always been a debate over which appears first, clarity or wisdom. Of course, they are the same, that is, clarity gives rise to wisdom as wisdom gives rise to clarity.
The one I keep hearing is "Intelligence is knowing that tomato is a fruit, wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad". But that's kinda weird to me too, intelligence is not knowledge or learnedness. I think the wise interpretation of wisdom is that people are going to use it in many different ways. If you tell yourself you've found the correct meaning of the word, you're only inviting yourself to misunderstand others when they use it slightly differently. We should have a nebulous understanding of wisdom, so that we react with "well, what do you mean by wisdom" if the exact definition is important. And in fact, the exact definition shouldn't be important. If we find ourselves relying on the finer details of the word, then we should probably spell out exactly what we mean, instead of relying on a nebulous word.
Wisdom is intelligence, and intelligence is problem solving. IOW knowing not to put tomato in fruit salad. Or, a guru who can spout meaningful platitudes but can't pay his rent on time, is not 'wise'.
Wisdom is a book in the Bible that has 19 chapters = https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=wisdom+1-19&version=CEB
When you say 'wisdom is getting to the truth of the matter', but that is a statement subject to a mountain of subjectivity, so I don't think that's the path to wisdom, per se. In the 80s, I had a particular viewpoint on the world, and I thought I was wise, but as I aged, I realized how wrong I was about many things, and my 'getting at the truth' changed right along with it. Whose to day it won't another 5 years from now? I think there is more to wisdom that just this concept. However, where I do agree with you one would be wise to read the words of the Buddha, Lao Tzu, Chang Tzu, and in modernity, Ramana Maharshi, and of late, Sadhguru, for these sages were and are (in my opinion) enlightened beings. I would add Christ, but Christ didn't write his teachings down, so what is written, can it be trusted? It's a tough question. Wisdom to be thought of in terms of some kind of measurement, it must be aligned with something. If your alignment is material accomplishment, then those who die with wealth are wiser than those that do not. But, is that wise to align wisdom with mere material accomplishment? I do not think so. Others might say wisdom is health, but not all healthy people are happy. Some say wisdom is the capacity to live a long time, but many who do aren't necessarily happy. Those who can be happy are said to be wise, but is this all there is to wisdom? I should think there's more. If one believes in reincarnation, and one's attitude in this life will affect the next life, than that must be factored in in the alignment process. I think the greatest test life tosses at humans is the capacity to let go. Why do I say this? Because, at the moment of your passing, the most difficult thing you will be confronted with in your entire life is to let it all go. I say wisdom has to do with this because the capacity to do this one act will greatly affect your next reincarnation. Of course, one must accept the principle of reincarnation and this principle. If one doesn't accept reincarnation as a truth, then we must find some other item with which to align ourselves with . Or rather, if one does, we can add the following to the equation, with or without accepting reincarnation as a truth. so, then I would say it is the capacity to appreciate who you are, and your lot in life, to be happy with it, the capacity to appreciate and respect humanity and the universe at large, in other words, the capacity to achieve humility at the foot the universe and all living things. I say this because, in my view, the key to happiness is the capacity to achieve these things, and those that can, are wiser than those that cannot. Intelligence is not the thing, wisdom is the thing. We cannot alter our IQ (for the most part) but we can acquire wisdom, this can be learned. some say the key to wisdom is knowledge, which may help, but not necessarily. A fool believes he knows something when in fact he doesn't. A wise person knows that he doesn't know and/or when he doesn't know, and once one achieves humility in the face of the universe, one realizes one knows very little, indeed, if one knows anything at all, which is, of course, an aspect of humility, which is the broader concept. Socrates spoke of this. So, without aligning wisdom to a belief system or knowledge achievement, I would say wisdom is the capacity for humility. Other things, like capacity to love, etc., are components of humility, which is the broadest all encompassing category. But, there is a higher wisdom than these, and that is the capacity to know oneself, and the pursuit of self-,knowledge. Which is why I believe that those who meditate, and are disciplined meditators, are the wisest people of all, for they achieve self - realization and 'englightenment' faster than others who do not. So, I think the wisest thing a person can do is align oneself with achieving 'enlightenment' (aka 'samadhi', 'nirvana' 'self - realization' etc., or the term which endears one the most) because doing this, all else, humility, the capacity to let go, and all the aforementioned items fall into place and one's demons, etc., fall away like dead leaves in the autumn. That being said, this path isn't for everyone given their degree of consciousness/awareness level, and for those it is not, then the items mentioned before meditation apply. Those who know who they are, what they are, love who they are, and choose while act on their their path, harbor no pretense, are wise. "In my humble opinion". (or maybe it's not that humble, but it is my opinion, FWIW) . But, I must assert, at this juncture, I make no claim to be a wise man, and, indeed, my life has proven to me I'm not very wise at all. Some might argue why argue on a forum such as this, what is the point? And that is a valid point. But, I'll deal with that point in perhaps another thread. But, one can learn a lot about wisdom by reading the Tao Te Ching (Lao Tzu), and the Dhammapada (Siddartha's teachings --- aka 'Buddha').
Many thanks for your very kind and thoughtful post. By getting to the heart of the matter, I am speaking of the non-intellectual [in this case, Zen meditation]. In its pure form, it is as void of subjectivity as is humanly possible. And I completely agree as to your view on humility. I know that I do not know [even though in the intellectual world there is acknowledged knowing that is ALWAYS changing [so technically, this cannot be known either]. The key is to be able to go back and forth between the intellectual [knowable and always changing] and the non-intellectual [unknowable and permanent]. Very, very few have any understanding of these matters.
