Michael
25th August 2006, 10:34 PM
It was my daughter who caused the question of whether or not knowledge is good to bloom in my mind.
When she was small we had a game. At night when I was putting her to bed I would open her window and put my magic hand up into the night sky and search for a star. Not any star would do, I had to find the right star. If she was unhappy I would search for a happy star. If she was ill I would search for a star to make her better. When I found the right star I would tell her all it would do for her in the night and then put it under her pillow and she would snuggle up and go to sleep.
One morning we were having breakfast, she was just 3 years old at the time, when she asked me to reach up my magic hand and take her down a star. I was all morning fuzzy and far away from magic stars. I looked at her and asked, Aisling,where do you think the stars are?
She looked at me with an expression of panic, put her hand on my arm which was resting on the table, and said, Daddy, don't tell me where the stars are because if you do you'll only take away their magic.
I was stunned. The story of the Tree of Knowledge, of how Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden for eating from the Tree of Knowledge taking front of house in my mind. I also had recollections of tribes that had taboos around the name of things, particularly people. I also saw some relevance to the story of Babel - too much knowledge followed by punishment for challenging God.
The question is highly relevant as today our use of knowledge has brought us to a place where we are threatened on all sides, where the effects of our applications of knowledge put life on earth in great peril. Knowledge, or partial knowledge, is also at the root of many of our disagreements.
Is it possible that knowledge turns the stem cells of creation into something solid, that drains the magic from things? Is knowledge the substance that veils the face of the Creator from us?
The Tao of Physic while not directly addressing the issue of knowledge does draw interesting parallels between between the discoveries of quantum science and the insights of mystic. But this only says that knowledge can reflect mystical truths.
I would be very interested in any texts, myths or legends which show that other cultures had similar concerns about knowledge. And equally interested in substantial views which support the opposite.
When she was small we had a game. At night when I was putting her to bed I would open her window and put my magic hand up into the night sky and search for a star. Not any star would do, I had to find the right star. If she was unhappy I would search for a happy star. If she was ill I would search for a star to make her better. When I found the right star I would tell her all it would do for her in the night and then put it under her pillow and she would snuggle up and go to sleep.
One morning we were having breakfast, she was just 3 years old at the time, when she asked me to reach up my magic hand and take her down a star. I was all morning fuzzy and far away from magic stars. I looked at her and asked, Aisling,where do you think the stars are?
She looked at me with an expression of panic, put her hand on my arm which was resting on the table, and said, Daddy, don't tell me where the stars are because if you do you'll only take away their magic.
I was stunned. The story of the Tree of Knowledge, of how Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden for eating from the Tree of Knowledge taking front of house in my mind. I also had recollections of tribes that had taboos around the name of things, particularly people. I also saw some relevance to the story of Babel - too much knowledge followed by punishment for challenging God.
The question is highly relevant as today our use of knowledge has brought us to a place where we are threatened on all sides, where the effects of our applications of knowledge put life on earth in great peril. Knowledge, or partial knowledge, is also at the root of many of our disagreements.
Is it possible that knowledge turns the stem cells of creation into something solid, that drains the magic from things? Is knowledge the substance that veils the face of the Creator from us?
The Tao of Physic while not directly addressing the issue of knowledge does draw interesting parallels between between the discoveries of quantum science and the insights of mystic. But this only says that knowledge can reflect mystical truths.
I would be very interested in any texts, myths or legends which show that other cultures had similar concerns about knowledge. And equally interested in substantial views which support the opposite.