Pride comes before the fall...or at least that's what the common adage would have you believe. And incidentally, I believe it.
I just discovered something about our culture (let's call it western) and pervading philosophies versus the eastern culture and philosophies. Western philosophies don't like simplicity. If I were to say, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." I would be right and wrong. In our western paradigm that sentence doesn't work.
An apple a day? What is the doctor a vegetable vampire and can't stand fruits? Is the apple the cure all fruit? Western philosophy as sprung from our greek tradition demands answers to these questions. We can't accept the simple adage that eating healthy fruits (an apple for example) is a healthy activity and in general if you eat healthy then your overall health will increase and if you are more healthy then you will be less likely to require the aid of a doctor.
But my wife doesn't like apples and she goes the Doctor much, much more than I do...Maybe there is something to this apple thing. Ah, I digress.
In Eastern philosophy analogies, parables, and anecdotes (okay, maybe not anecdotes) are often used to explain complex ideas. And that's okay. An apple a day? Great, fill me up.
It is interesting to note this difference because it also seems to extend to western vs. eastern medicines.
On the one hand, western medicine has moved past the old wives tales to a more detailed understanding. Is this good? It may be. However, it may be beneficial for the average joe to follow the old wives tale if it is founded on scientifically valid principle; even if he doesn't know why it works.
Now don't get me wrong. I'm all for the education of the masses. There's nothing but darkness and the bubonic plague if we go the other way. And I sure think that eating healthy is...well, healthy. But I also think that overcomplication can be just as bad as over simplification.
If I am teaching a child how to do addition, and I start out by saying, "Multiplication is just addition on a different level." I have defeated myself. Everyone doesn't need to be an expert on every subject in order for the world to operate. I don't know how to program a web page (well, I do, but that's beside the point) but I still have this here blog up.
So, is it good to try to learn everything? Yes. Is it necessary to force advanced knowledge on everyone? No.
Let's just everyone progress. And when you want to know how the atom is really made up, then we'll go ask someone who knows. But if eating an apple a day really is healthy then for goodness sakes, don't tell them to stop eating apples.
Just wait, and when they're ready then tell them why eating apples is healthy and maybe let them know they can eat other fruits as well.
