The Nature of Wonder

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious*

                        

 

 

 

                         

 

 

                       

Berkeley said that ' knowledge is having it to apply it.' This may well be a matter of great concern to fathers, who wish they had the words to convey to a child, in his hour of need, the right word or expression that would put to order the troubled mind of the child.

 

In much the same way, we wish that, those in the know, would come to inform others of the content of their knowledge and help others to prepare in advance, for the  trickiness that one encounters in life. Yet are we all strangled in our attempts to convey our true feelings or understanding about issues to others.

 

In the mind of the native, in his relations with his group, there is much that remains unsaid, which on account of the commonality of experiences, is conveyed in a non-verbal understanding of the matter. But what would a person do with a child/person that is insistent that he/she doesn't understand?

 

The answer lies in an understanding of the nature of wonder. Long a companion of man, re-cultivated from the days of the group identity, it refers to a  condition in our physiology that is impossible, and yet the mind creates an association with it, as if familiar. It is a contradiction that is treated as non-contradictory.

 

In the expression of a deliberate lie, the speaker is presented with a sensation of the experience that is tantamount to saying  ' I fabricated something that wasn't there.' Such an expression, in the original, has an illustrious history. Where the quality of the human brought himself to participate in the forces of creation, he would certainly have created something from nothing.

 

So when we engage in a deliberate lie, something curious takes place in us. It calls into offense our relations with the soul, if that's what its called, a deliberate contradiction that we, as the human quality, have created with respect to our own original position. In time, this causes us to distance ourselves from the experience of the soul, and wander into such trespasses as the consequences create.

 

In a review of the situation, man consoles himself with the response that the flesh is weak and we are not able live life to the letter, and nor should we be required to. In the life of the living, we invent such experiences as ' freedom' and 'liberty' to create a re-qualification of our experiences as we encounter them.

 

The result is consternation added on to our experience of wonder. This is experienced  like a light bulb in us, that goes on and off, to deny or allow the cognition of authentic experiences. This is not unfamiliar to many.

 

In the legend-based representation of the issue to man, the story of Vulcan sitting by the volcano, casting the forms to accompany one's thoughts, comes to mind. Where such forms encounter a subsequent contradiction in man, one also encounters denials of the original accuracy, causing a broken-down sorrow and the accentuation of the new and present experience.

 

This compounds the issue. As a general observation, the effect of these is thereafter brought into gravitation in the lives of the innocent and women, by the social centrifuge, whose actions thereby are defined as lacking in reliability. In consequence, this cultivates the definition of the male experience as being in some way super by the practices that condone it as superior.

 

In places outside of the work environment, which is guided by a work ethic, such manifestations of the male experience becomes subject to scrutiny and not without some malicious intent. The impact is quite significant, it diminishes the naturally occurring experience of the ' I ' experience and causes much confusion over its nature.

 

Here and there, a fine gentleman, sometimes takes the trouble to study the phenomenon and to refine the experience in himself. Quite often, this takes place when a  person can no longer continue with his avoidances of the issues.

 

There is much that we lose in the confusion. Our original child-like qualities of  innocence become subject to a strong will of necessity and the ends are used to justify the means. Eastern writings refer to this as ' Karma ' or the sum total of our past actions or sin, if you will.

 

The causes of our unhappiness, where the symptoms are treated by a fresh coat of paint, or a new automobile, doesn't reliably deal with the issue. We are strapped with something within that will not give, without a proper response and confrontation with the issues as there are. These are not difficult but it takes time to deal with them. It may also involve an elevator experience that causes us to rise and fall with regard to the matters unearthed.

 

In re-discovering our basic store of ' cittas ' or former wishes, we come to understand the nature of the world and the experience of human existence. It takes place in relation to the events that have occurred in our lives and as a corollary to the lives of others. To bring this to a expression of our socio-physical experience, provides us with a satisfaction of our learning and takes its place as a contribution to the understanding of others, who are as yet too busy to undertake such an exercise on their own.

 

Our consternation mixed with wonder can be its own resistance to our faithful understanding of the experiences of others. ' How is that possible?' may be a common response. In such situations, the pre-requisite of ' learning to learn,' may well be required.

 

A man of understanding comes to be the teller of the story of man. In that he may be following an old tradition. He is a tool in the hands of the forces that guide the destiny of the world. In a instrumental combination of consternation and wonder, he experiences a rare view of the apparent vagaries of life's experience, including his own.

 

 

Source : Mary Poppins, Walt Disney, 1964