Intelligence Lessons:- From Experience

13/02/2011 05:41

Intelligence is not to do with the information that you have or receive. that is only intellect. In other words,Intelligence is not the totality of your experiences. I t is the lesson learned from those experiences. for example, a person touches a burning matchstick and learns that it burns, Next, the person touches a gas flame and learns that it burns too. Next, he touches a blazing fire and finds that also burns. If the person waits for learning this way that fire burns, then when he finally learns, it will be time for him to go to the burning ghat!

                The intelligent person figures, after touching the first fire of the matchstick, that any type of fire burns! But the even more intelligent person does not even wait to touch the fire of the matchstick; he learns even when he sees another person touching it!

                There is a beautiful story from the life of Buddha. Once a Philosopher came to Buddha and asked, without words, without the wordless, will you tell me the TRUTH? Buddha remained silent.

                 The Philosopher bowed down to Buddha saying, with your loving kindness you have cleared away my delusion and I have entered the truth path.

                  After the Philosopher had gone, Ananda, one of the closest disciples of Buddha asked Buddha what the Philosopher had attained. Buddha replied, A good horse runs even a the shadow of the whip.

                   There are three types of horses. With the first type, unless you beat him he will not move even an inch. If you beat him , he will move forward a little but then again will stop and he has to be beaten again for him to move.

With the second, type there is not as much coaxing needed. If you even threaten to hit him he will start moving. The third type is the most intelligent. He does not even need to see the whip, just the shadow of the whip is enough, he will run!

                    It was similar in the case of the Philosopher who came to Buddha the urge to know the truth was burning so much inside him that he only wanted the truth and nothing else. He had enough of words and techniques; that is why he wanted the truth from Buddha in neither words nor wordlessness. So in the silence of Buddha, the philosopher saw the shadow of the whip and got his answer.

                    Deep understanding happens only when you are open and spontaneous without prejudice to what you hear and see around you. If you are open, then the complete understanding penetrates you and you become intelligent. Be Blissful!