How do you get wise? But first, under what circumstances is it desirable, if not necessary, and what is its main goal?
Life is the wish to live, and even better, the wish to live well. As we try to meet this need, we run into problems that make things harder or make us give up. This problem or frustration is the same as suffering because it gets in the way of getting what you want.
Wisdom is meant to help us deal with all of this pain. It is an example of how reason can adapt to hard situations. Because of it, happiness is still possible and attainable, no matter what. So, it is the best thing there is.
In fact, many people put religion on the same level as wisdom because it serves the same purpose, though in a different way. Religion and wisdom look at suffering and explain what life is all about in different ways.
From a religious point of view, suffering shows that the world is not perfect, which goes against the human desire for perfect happiness. So, life on Earth, where people are doomed to suffer, is absurd in and of itself. Or, life only has meaning if it leads to a happy afterlife. A good life makes the way for a happy afterlife. The religious think this because it's what an inspired spiritual leader, who claims to know what happens after death, has taught them.
Even though I have doubts about these teachings, I keep an open mind. They are very suspicious, but the fact that their goal is beyond this world makes it impossible to discredit them with solid evidence.
Anyway, the way I see it, wisdom is separate from religion, even though it can help religion. It says that life has meaning on its own, even though it isn't perfect and people can learn to accept that. Even better, they can learn to value these flaws as they realise that, contrary to popular belief, perfection is not always the best thing.
Even happiness that is perfect leaves something to be desired. By definition, it doesn't include pain, so it also doesn't include any kind of difficulty or frustration. It assumes that everything is perfect, that is, that nothing is hard at all. So, there is no need to try, and every dream is possible. At first glance, this seems like the best thing that could happen, but a closer look will show that this is not the case.
In the history of people, what strange whim has caused people from all walks of life to leave their safe homes and go on dangerous adventures? Maybe this strange thought isn't so strange after all. Many battles have been won just for the fun of it, even though the odds were against them. The key word is "pride," which goes with "excitement." People who like to win find heaven's infinite ease to be infinitely boring. For them, life and the struggles that are a part of it are the thing that makes perfect happiness fall short. It's a chance to be brave and win, but there's also a chance of failing in a painful way.
Happiness means taking this chance with courage and beating the problems that stand in the way of our success in the things that are most important to us. This victory isn't always easy, and it's always limited, precarious, and temporary. We're also going to lose the battle in the end, but that just makes the victory more valuable and worth enjoying.
When we try to figure out what we most want to do well, we have to look at who we are to figure out what our purpose is. Our getting smarter depends on how well we study and learn, which leads to this definition. It starts with being aware of our animal drive to live, because survival is the basis of what it means to be a human being. In this way, being aware of life is the next step. It takes into account both who we are as people and what makes us unique as people with different tastes and skills who can do many different things.
The more we know about our purpose in life, the more we can live with determination and passion, which gives us a better chance of being successful and happy. The opposite is also true. So, it makes sense that when we try to get wiser, we set ourselves up for success and happiness.
