Today, people spend vast fortunes on trying to optimise everything except what really matters! And what matters is attention, clarity, and discernment. People fixate on these qualities, claiming they are more precious than gold, yet very few realise they are direct functions not of our mind, but of our intellect.
But here lies the absolute tragedy: our modern understanding of the word “intellect” has utterly crippled its true meaning.
In English, we have given the word a dreadful reputation. We hear “intellect” and instantly picture an ivory-tower academic — someone stuffed with bookish knowledge, entirely divorced from what it is to be human.
For twenty-five years as a philosophy teacher, I found introducing the concept of intellect an uphill battle against closed minds. The moment the word left my mouth, semantic bias would slam the shutters shut.
People assumed I was preaching a gospel of academic elitism. They couldn't see past their corrupted definition to understand that I wasn’t talking about passing exams, but about the subtle tool required to navigate the complexities of human life.
By ignoring the intellect, modern society has effectively locked the door to the inner compass we all so desperately need.
The Mind Without Intellect
The mind constantly rambles from one thought to another. It lives in the past and future — and needs something other than itself to keep it in the present. That is the intellect.
The mind and intellect are distinct faculties. The mind is emotional and irrational, while the intellect is discerning and wise. The intellect is like a muscle; it needs strengthening to keep the mind in the present. Its role is to observe, supervise, manage the mind and keep it focused.
Left to itself, the mind behaves like a two-year-old child. A child is emotional, excitable, easily distracted, and prone to tantrums. It cannot manage a household or make responsible decisions.
The intellect acts as a loving parent. It watches and guides a child’s actions, preventing it from getting into trouble and hurting itself.
Similarly, the intellect watches the mind, guides it, and keeps it from running into worry, anxiety, fear, anger, addiction, and despair.
When the intellect does its job well, the mind stays calm, balanced, and happy.
But when the intellect is absent and the mind is left unsupervised, it’s like a child left alone in charge of the home.
No parent would say to a two-year-old, “Darling, mummy and daddy are going away for the weekend. " We’d like you to take care of the house.”
That would never happen. Yet it’s exactly what we do with ourselves. We let our immature, irresponsible mind run the show.
The world is what it is today because we have allowed the irrational mind to govern without the intellect.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.” —Albert Einstein
The Non-Thinking Mind
Most people assume they are thinking clearly. But much of what we call thinking is simply the mind wandering from one thought to another. The mind cannot think. It reacts. Worries. Imagines and rambles. Left unguided, it simply follows its feelings, preferences, desires, and emotions.
The Thinking Intellect
The intellect is different. It is clear, focused, rational, clever and wise. When the intellect is strong, it guides the mind toward better choices in life. Like a wise ruler governing his or her domain, when the intellect governs our thoughts, emotions settle, the body relaxes, and actions become measured and thoughtful.
So, What’s Next?
Earlier I mentioned that the intellect is like a muscle; it needs strengthening to keep the mind in the present. So now, we need to strengthen our intellect so we can observe, supervise, manage and keep the mind focused — and in the present.
Below is a practical discipline that serves as a gym for the mind and intellect.
Thank you for reading and watching.
Every day, I share reflections (notes) on Substack. They invite you to stop, think, and see life a little differently. Join me in my online sanctuary. Leave a comment on one of my notes to let me know you’re here.
Till next time, Be Well, Meredith ∞ The Elder Sage
I will never forget the day I felt/ became aware of/ experienced my mind and intellect as separate things. To hear my mind try and drag me into an emotional state, and then immediately hear my intellect say, no, don't go there. There is no benefit in behaving in that way. This is thanks to Meredith and her teachings.
I love how you bring us back to the discerning faculty of Buddhi, the intellect. The mind is doubt...doubting perceptions...that's where all the trouble begins, whereas intellect helps the mind to discern between the real and unreal... I love to think of the intellect like Saraswati's vehicle, the swan. It separates the milk from the water :)...As always your words remind me how powerful the art of contemplation is. Thank you