Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Intellectuality vs Intellectualism


Had a conversation with an undergraduate over breakfast over the weekend and she kept lamenting about the conversation sliding into being non-intellectualised. I shall try not to be judgemental over the event but it reminds me of some wisdom - along theological lines.

One must distinguish between intellectuality and intellectualism: intellectualism appears as an end in itself; it is an intelligence contented with its multiple visions of the true and forgetful that it is not alone in the world and that life is passing; it practically makes itself God. The intellectualist acts as if he had concluded a security pact with the Eternal.

Intellectualism cannot fail to engender errors. It confers self-complacency and abolishes fear of God; it introduces a sort of worldliness into the intellectual domain. Its good side is that it may speak of truth; its bad side is the manner in which it speaks of it. It replaces the virtues it lacks by sophistries; it lays claims to everything, but is in fact ineffectual.

In intellectualism, the capacity to understand the most difficult things readily goes hand in hand with an inability to understand the simplest of things.

Pure intellectuality, on the other hand, is as serene as a summer sky - with a serenity that is at once infinitely incorruptible and infinitely generous.

Intellectualism, which "dries up the heart", has no connection with intellectuality.

The incorruptibility - or inviolibility - of truth, involves neither contempt nor avarice.

What is the certitude possessed by man? On the plane of ideas, it may be perfect: but in the plane of life, it rarely pierces through illusion.

Everything is ephemereal; every man must die. No one is unaware of this, yet no one knows it.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

you are too "chim"

intellectualism lah intellectuality lah

kalau pandai tu pandai

haha

Frankly speaking, I can't understand your post and wouldn't be trying to. It's out of my league.

---kaypoh---

Anonymous said...

I've always felt that sounding intellectual may not necessarily be intellectual. One should be able to get their point across intelligently and in a way that others could understand. Using terminologies or bombastic words may make the topic seem intellectual but could actually be raving about the most mundane things in life.

Sometimes in life, it's the simplest of things that is so difficult to understand.

TheHoopoe said...

Thank you for your entry and I do agree with you:

"In intellectualism, the capacity to understand the most difficult things readily goes hand in hand with an inability to understand the simplest of things."

"Intellect" - for lack of a better choice of word - varies in degrees between each individual. Whatever that level may be, it remains a blessing and a gift from the Creator.

Praises be to God...