This is an idea from the Lost Symbol by Dan brown:
Well directed thought is a learned skill, like the violin it may take years of practice to develop, but with patience, effort and enough drive we can become proficient at the violin if we so desire. So it is with thought, We make a choice to become better thinkers, to study it’s evolution, digest the insights of the world, study it’s great masters. Like a musical instrument, we are not required to learn how to play. It is there if we so desire. Our skill set is complete at birth if we choose to use it.
Life without music, is life. Many would say why develop such a skill, why waste so much time perfecting our technique, mastering our tone, tuning our senses? Life without thought is similar, it is still a life. But as anyone who has ever developed a skill to play music knows, in that moment where our hands or lips or fingertips resonate with our instruments, it is a perfect peace.
Many accounts of the development of expertise emphasize that it comes about through long periods of deliberate practice. In many domains of expertise estimates of 10 years experience or 10,000 hours deliberate practice are common. Who among us dedicates such time to deliberate thought?
My cousin in his last comment said
“To think and truly understand our impermanence I really believe is pointless… it’s like trying to think about really where you physically are… we’re not made to comprehend it”
To that I respond:
Maybe comprehension of life’s greatest questions is like learning to play the violin, to someone who does not take the time to comprehend it, it is just a violin. But inside the case, lies it’s innate, God given potential. We may never know what we are missing until we take the time to sit down and play. Yes, life either way is still life, but when learned, it can be filled with such beautiful music!
Stephen, I really like the idea that learning about life and thought is like learning to play the violin. This is an excellent analogy and also points out why we never can fully master life. It’s a journey the same as a violin player will never learn to perfect the violin or a pianist to perfectly learn the piano. It’s called being human.
Thanks Dad, This idea was mentioned towards the end of the Last Symbol, I loved it and then thought about this as I sat down to write last night. I realized that nothing will really ever have purpose if we think that life itself does not have purpose. We think of philosophers and poets as chronically depressed aimless people. But I don’t think that thought was the enemy of many a great mind, but only the minds perception of it’s own thoughts!