{"id":10842,"date":"2019-03-07T23:41:39","date_gmt":"2019-03-08T04:41:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gornahoor.net\/?p=10842"},"modified":"2021-03-19T22:31:23","modified_gmt":"2021-03-20T02:31:23","slug":"the-hedgehog-and-the-fox","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gornahoor.net\/?p=10842","title":{"rendered":"The Hedgehog and the Fox"},"content":{"rendered":"

\nA fox knows many things, but a hedgehog knows one big thing. ~ Archilochus<\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

People can be like foxes or hedgehogs. The fox has a wide-ranging mind that is able to synthesize many ideas. The hedgehog is more plodding, focusing on one major idea. The world needs both types, even if most people are neither.<\/p>\n

Tacit and explicit knowledge<\/h2>\n

Michael Polanyi<\/strong>, in his book Personal Knowledge<\/em><\/a>, made clear the distinction between tacit and explicit knowledge. Explicit knowledge can be communicated through the written or spoken word.<\/p>\n

Tacit knowledge, on the other hand, cannot be communicated in that way. It is more like \u201cknowing how\u201d rather than in knowing. Tacit knowledge comes only by doing. Polanyi provides examples like riding a bicycle, learning to swim, becoming a wine taster, and medical diagnosis. Just reading a book or attending a lecture on those topics will not make you proficient in any of those activities. With rare exceptions, it is necessary to learn under the tutelage of someone else with more experience. Nevertheless, many people prefer to bloviate, as a simulacrum of tactic knowledge, without actually knowing how.<\/p>\n

This distinction is even truer in esoteric matters. Reading a text has its place, but it is no substitute for the know-how of reaching higher states. The latter requires trial and error, with feedback from someone who has.<\/p>\n

Faith Journey<\/h2>\n

In this Lenten season, you may hear people discussing their effeminate sounding \u201cfaith journey\u201d. That sounds like some sort of horizontal motion, whereas the Tradition always spoke of an Ascent to God. Most famous perhaps is Dante<\/strong>\u2019s Divine Comedy <\/em>which describes the soul\u2019s ascent to Heaven.<\/p>\n

St Bernard<\/strong>, who was a direct spiritual influence on both Dante and the Templars, made that the centerpiece of his De Consideratione<\/em>. In the first book, Bernard criticizes the Curia for its worldliness and carnal spirit, even criticizing the Church as a den of thieves. Clearly, not much has changed in the past thousand years. The Church today, as an institution, seems more concerned about air conditioners and immigration than spiritual enlightenment. However, that has no effect on the Tradition itself, which is solid.<\/p>\n

In the fifth and last book, Bernard turns his attention to God and the Angels. In contemplating them, the soul transcends the realm of becoming to find her true home. He said that the higher things can be known in three ways:<\/p>\n