Say Hello to Your Intellect
A philosophical exploration beyond the mind and intelligence.
TODAY, the world talks a lot about the brain, the mind, and intelligence, but what about the intellect?
So little is known about this incredible faculty. Yet, the world needs to know about it because a life devoid of intellect can be stressful and overwhelming. In contrast, a life enriched by intellect is peaceful, purposeful and prosperous.
All our struggles, all our stress and strain, overwhelm and anxiety are due to our mind running the show.
When the mind is in charge, we are like a small boat at sea, tossed about by waves and wind. But when the intellect takes the helm, we become like an ocean liner — steady, stable. The waves may crash around us, but we can sail through the chaos with calm authority.
Understanding Your Mind
If you don’t know how to manage your thoughts, your mind can create chaos in your life. It will become your greatest adversary, leading to anger, frustration, fear, anxiety, stress, and unhappiness.
An ungoverned mind results in a rollercoaster life full of ups and downs. When there’s profit, you’re up. When there’s a loss, you’re down. When the weather’s good, you’re happy, but when it’s stormy, you’re miserable.
Furthermore, an ungoverned mind tends to live in the past and future. It’s either worried about something that happened yesterday or anxious about what might happen tomorrow.
An ungoverned mind drifts from one thought to another continuously. That’s why you feel exhausted; all day, your mind rushes from one thought to another, one desire to another, and one set of worries to another.
If you can’t control your mind, your mind will control you.
Ignore Your Mind
For generations, the human mind has been granted way too much importance and attention. Countless therapies have been developed, promising to improve the mind’s capabilities, such as raising your IQ and teaching you how to satisfy your desires and achieve your goals. Yet nobody talks about the value of ignoring your mind.
Instead, the world makes the greatest mistake by ignoring the intellect. That’s why there is very little peace and happiness in the world today.
Today, the world is all about intelligence. Now, artificial intelligence!
Today, there are so many people with incredibly high IQs, yet they have no control over their anxiety, anger, stress and addictions. They have brilliant minds but poor intellects. Consequently, they make a mess of their lives.
Embrace Your Intellect
Intellect is your most valuable asset. Often mistaken for academic intelligence, which refers to external knowledge, intellect is your internal capacity for thinking, reasoning, discerning, understanding, decision-making, and self-awareness.
Intellect is what keeps you sane, focused, efficient and peaceful. It’s your clarity, discernment, and your ability to manage your impulsive and irrational mind.
All beings apart from humans have a built-in programme to live their lives. Their behaviour is determined by nature, in which there is no choice of action, but because human beings have intellect, they have the capacity to choose their actions.
Today, most people follow their mind’s preferences and fall prey to high emotions. They act on their emotions, only to regret their actions afterwards. Then, they’re faced with the embarrassing task of apologising for their bad behaviour.
If their intellect was available, it would choose the right course of action. It would not allow your emotions to run high and overwhelm you. It would guide and direct you towards a higher level of living, where you remain calm under all circumstances. Hence, a well-developed intellect is essential for a peaceful and prosperous life.
Intellect and Education
Today’s education system makes a grave mistake by acquiring intelligence instead of developing the intellect. With intelligence, you earn a living, but with intellect, you gain a life.
Intelligence is gained by acquiring knowledge from teachers and textbooks and memorising information. Intellect, on the other hand, is developed by one’s own efforts of questioning, reasoning and not accepting anything that does not agree with logic and reason.
Focusing on gaining intelligence rather than developing intellect results in a state of chaos in today’s world. Individuals, societies, and countries suffer, collapse, and destroy themselves, leading the world into a terrible state of confusion and uncertainty.
“Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel.” — Socrates
Educators, Wake Up!
Educators everywhere need to introduce teachers and students to the faculty of intellect. Not only will it change lives, but it will also save lives. Regardless of intelligence, a powerful intellect will hold an individual’s mind under perfect control and direct all actions towards peace and success in life.
Intelligence without intellect will ultimately destroy all peace and happiness in the world.
Therefore, educational systems worldwide need to encourage intellectual development alongside the dispensation of knowledge. Only with this correct balance can peace and prosperity be present in everyday life.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
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Till next time,
Be Well,
Meredith — The Elder Sage
thank you for this.
I appreciate your distinction here, Meredith. There is little active thinking that takes place and we must all being confronted from time to time with the question: Are we using our intellect or not? Thanks for the piece.