Daily Quote, Saturday September 12, 2009.

Good sunny morning everyone,

Just picked up some terrific Kale from the Farmer's Market!!

Here is today's quote:

Wisdom cannot be replaced by knowledge.

In our search for knowledge, in our acquisitive desires, we are losing love, we are blunting the feeling for beauty, the sensitivity to cruelty; we are becoming more and more specialized and less and less integrated. Wisdom cannot be replaced by knowledge, and no amount of explanation, no accumulation of facts will free man from suffering.

Knowledge is necessary, science has its place; but if the mind and heart are suffocated by knowledge, and if the cause of suffering is explained away, life becomes vain and meaningless.

And is this not what is happening to most of us? Our education is making us more and more shallow; it is not helping us to uncover the deeper layers of our being, and our lives are increasingly disharmonious and empty.

Information, the knowledge of facts, though ever increasing, is by its very nature limited. Wisdom is infinite, it includes knowledge and the way of action; but we take hold of a branch and think it is the whole tree. Through the knowledge of the part, we can never realize the joy of the whole. Intellect can never lead to the whole, for it is only a segment, a part.

Education and the Significance of Life, p 66

Here is my reflection.

How often do you go from class to different class, teacher to different teacher, seeking knowledge; seeking that piece that will give you the understanding of the whole thing? Can't you see that you are just seeking comfort in all your seeking, that it keeps you distracted from what you fear? You already know what you are seeking otherwise you wouldn't seek, so you are just comforting yourself, keeping yourself occupied. Can you now see the difference between being interested in your yoga practice and learning about yourself from observing yourself in it? This self-observation is what I am facilitating in my classes; I'm not offering knowledge. It you want that, go to class and a teacher who seeks comfort. Those teachers are full of knowledge and will talk to you endlessly about what you should do and how to do it. They'll be keen to give you a method to follow. Your taking their method is their comfort. There is a place for method, technique in postures, one doesn't want to break one's neck, but when this takes the place of inquiry into the ways of the self, then the self has become the purpose of the practice. Piling technique upon technique, you keep yourself distracted.

Best wishes

Robert