“There are two roads to knowledge–the longer, slower, more arduous road of rational combination and the shorter path of the imagination traversed with the force and swiftness of electricity. Aroused by direct contact with ancient remains, the imagination grasps the truth at one stroke, without intemediary links. The knowledge required in this second way is infinitely more living and colorful than the products of the understanding.” –Johann Jacob Bachofen in 1854, quoted in Joseph Campbell, “The Mythic Dimension”
While this quotation in a Joseph Campbell essay is directed at the viewing of myths more interms of their central meanings and intents (grasped intuitively) rather than only through laboriously studying the outer-world chronology of their “plots,” I see here a wider application.
I do not suppose that any of us has the skill to obtain 100% of our knowledge–especially about the day-to-day events of our lives–via intuition, dreams, Tarot cards or readings from the I Ching. I do think, as Einstein observed, that even within the most scientific of displines, intuition often paves the way to our discovery of empirical facts.
Learning how to to trust our hunches will, I believe, allow us to walk down the shorter path to knowledge more often–and to great advantage.
Both roads clearly need to be traveled upon, I think, but perhaps under different circumstances. There is certainly a need for the academic pursuit in a classroom or controlled setting, but also a need for the intuitive when in a discovery mode, where often knowledge can come to the senses very quickly and vanish just as quickly.
I see this so often w/ my son. I am the one who takes the slow path of research and he is so intuitive that he can get the “right answer” just from thinking about it! well, that is not really true, more like educated guesses, but I do see him travel that path so much more often than myself. of course I agree w/ montucky’s statement above. both are necessary though I had not thought of the knowledge vanishing quickly in some circumstances….
I agree, Montucky, a time for every purpose under Heaven. I tend to emphasize the intuitive because, I think, so many people dismiss it.
An interesting point of view, Silken, watching your son zoom forward while you are morr cautious–and probably right more often!
Malcolm
I don’t know if I am right more often…though he does tend to have to “back track” regularly! is it age or personality or some of both I wonder…
Maybe he just goes with the flow, silken.