Human Nature

The subjective nature of wisdom As humans, we often assume that wisdom is universal—that what’s true in one man’s life must apply equally well to another. Nothing could be further from the truth. Imagine a primitive man (Mr A), who has spent his entire life in the cold solitude of snowy mountains. His routine involves seeking warmth, conserving body heat, and surviving icy winds. Let’s now picture him talking to another primitive man (Mr B) who has lived forever in a scorching desert. Mr B tells him how difficult desert life is, but Mr A finds it hard to believe it could be any worse than his own frozen abode. He’s inclined to think that if he were to live where Mr B does, his life would be very comfortable. Similarly, Mr B would find it difficult to accept that a life without scorching heat could be any less than a paradise. Both Mr A & Mr B have a mere theoretical understanding of the other man’s situation. They’re unaware of the other man’s lived experience. Even if they offer each other well-intentioned advice, it’s unlikely to be useful to the other due to the absence of context. We are often quick to prescribe solutions to others based on our own experience, forgetting that life’s terrain shifts under every pair of feet. What soothes one person might scorch another. True empathy requires listening rather than merely assuming things. Before we offer counsel, we ought to pause and ask ourselves,” Do I truly know their ‘climate’—the storms they weather, the heat they bear”? The wise do not pretend their story fits every landscape; they acknowledge the diversity of human experience.