Scurrying on the hamster-wheel of life for the most part of our existence has left us with no time to wonder. We are so overwhelmed by the pressures of our corporate ways and consumerist lifestyles that it leaves us with neither the interest nor the inclination to discover more about the world around us.
Children today are not taught how to think or how to be wary against propaganda. Neither are they taught—except in the most cursory fashion—anything about the natural and physical world around them and how things work. What is deemed “useful” knowledge is just that which will get them into college and prepare them for a lifetime of drudgery behind a computer desk or being at someone else’s beck and call.
I believe that equipping the mind with what Bertrand Russell satirically and sarcastically referred to, as “useless” knowledge is an enterprise that we all ought to pursue with gusto. It is an enterprise that is as productive as it is enlightening and is something in which people ought to indulge in if they wish to fully appreciate the wonder of the world around us and marvel at the incredible mysteries of life and being alive.
I believe “useless” knowledge is the sort of knowledge Francis Bacon was referring to in his famous aphorism “Knowledge is power.” This knowledge is of a mildly scientific and historic nature and allows us to better understand our place as an individual on this beautiful blue jewel of a planet flung in a random corner of this vast and ancient universe.
It is such a cause for concern that it may be fair to generalise and say that people today, even in the 21st century, are woefully ignorant of scientific ideas and historical events. There is an almost bourgeois tendency on the part of people to cover their ignorance of science and history with a smirk of indifference. Who cares whether the earth revolves around the sun or the sun revolves around the earth? Why bother about the Boer war or the French Revolution? Why vex the mind about what causes seasons? For many people this kind of knowledge is superfluous—what difference does it make to us which way the planetary bodies move or what the causes that sparked olden-day wars and revolutions were? What is valued by society is knowledge of a technical and utilitarian nature—knowledge that will help us construct buildings and create computer software and launch satellites into space. Knowledge that will allow people to sell stocks and bonds and increase client bases and interest rates.
All these are undeniably important to us. However, there is an ineffable joy to be had in knowledge for the sake of knowledge—knowledge without overtly practical use. I believe the purpose of knowledge should be to give us a deeper understanding of ourselves and the world around us, and better equip us to make decisions of a moral and ethical nature in a calm, rational, and compassionate manner.
The great figures of the Renaissance era such as Bacon, Walter Raleigh, Da Vinci et al. revelled in this kind of knowledge. These were men who filled their minds with knowledge from almost every field: History, Literature, Art, Music, Science, Sculpture… And it made them all the nobler for it.
A little “useless” knowledge of History is urgently called for in our day and age. The philosopher, George Santayana, wisely remarked that those who don’t learn from the mistakes of the past are doomed to repeat them. This truism has more import and significance today than at any other time in the past—mainly because nations are armed to the teeth and the nuclear weapons they possess can destroy the planet several times over. Many lessons are there to be learnt from history, which once learnt will put us in a position to judge the actions of our political masters more shrewdly and pragmatically. At the moment, people say they don’t trust politicians but at the same time such is their gullibility that they are more than willing to naively gobble up every piece of falsehood and propaganda uttered by them.
The actions of the Bush administration in Iraq is a case in point that can be better understood in the light of America’s actions in the past. For example, in the First Seminole War, in 1818, the U.S. president justified their invasion of Florida because the area was a “failed state,” and was therefore a threat to the existence of America. However, the truth was that there was no threat from Florida. The invasion was mainly to wrest power and control over the area from the Spanish.
The only “threat” was from the “lawless” Indians and runaway slaves. Noam Chomsky rightly points out that the only reason they were lawless was because they were being driven out of their homes and murdered. The slaves ran away simply because they didn’t want to be slaves. The few attacks by the Indians in retaliation against Americans was termed “Terror” and was used as justification for the war. America had to invade Florida to protect itself—just as it had to invade Iraq to protect itself.
The lessons to be learnt from history are profound and immeasurably relevant to a better understanding of the world around us. If nothing else, “useless” knowledge from History will make us more sceptical and less inclined to blind faith in our governments.
When I was young I used to take a perverse delight in catching flies and poking them with pencils to overcome the ennui of a dull classroom. They seemed such insignificant creatures. Today, as an adult and an avowed admirer of Richard Dawkins, the renowned Biologist, and David Attenborough, the distinguished Naturalist, I recognise what a marvellous insect it truly is and what a loss it is to kill it or any living creature. I say loss because the genes of a fly or a mosquito or a panda or any animal for that matter have travelled down generation after generation over hundreds of millions of years in biological time. The genes themselves are inanimate – made up nucleotides, or mere chemicals in other words. But combine them and in their different combinations they make up every single living thing we see on this planet, from redwood trees to octopuses to pelicans to bacteria.
The genes of that fly existed in an unbroken chain of ancestors stretching back 3 billion years ago when life first originated on our planet. To scupper the fly’s existence is to swat away a lineage that stretches back 3 billion years. This is a sobering thought, indeed. Never again will I kill another living creature wantonly and recklessly.
The term “useless” could be applied to such refined knowledge as that possessed by a wine connoisseur. For most people alcohol is seen as something you drink to get drunk. However, the wine connoisseur drinks for pleasure and his pleasure is immeasurably amplified by the knowledge he possesses about the different grape varieties and the different areas in which they are grown. To be able to distinguish between a Cabernet and a Shiraz or a Chardonnay and a Semillon or any of the different varieties of grapes adds several extra dimensions to the experience of drinking wine that the uninitiated non-connoisseur will never know.
“Useless” knowledge has a Geographical element to it as well. Most people sheepishly admit that their knowledge of Geography is poor. But in the same breath they aver that it’s no big deal. After all, who cares what the capital of Mongolia is? (It’s Ulan Batur, if you were wondering). However, the point isn’t that people are unaware of obscure capitals—the point is that many people simply don’t care about what happens around the world.
A well-travelled person is invariably more interesting because he has first-hand knowledge of the different cultures and customs of different countries. His knowledge of the different countries of the world allows him to understand that at the end of the day people are people are people. No matter where we come from we are all human beings: we all smile and laugh when we’re happy and we all cry when we’re sad. We all feel hunger, anger, jealousy, and a multitude of other emotions. The astute traveller or perceptive student of Geography or Anthropology will be able to see that behind the apparent difference in out cultures there is a bond of similarity that ties all humanity together. For example, in India, Hindus wear white to a funeral; however in Denmark people wear black. These are superficial differences. What is truly significant is that both cultures follow the same practice of actually wearing a different colour when in mourning. Knowledge of this kind allows for people to realise that no country or culture is better than another. The most we can say is that cultures are different. This in turn leads us to be more tolerant of people who are different from us.
To gain all this “useless” knowledge I believe we must have one useful trait: Curiosity. The desire to know and the quest for answers drive the seeker of truth. It all starts with a series of questions: Why is the sky blue? Why is the sun red at sunrise and sunset? Why does the moon look bigger closer to the horizon? These are some of the questions that plague the curious. Life can be incredibly fulfilling and exciting if one of our aims is to simply know why.
I do not believe ignorance is bliss. On the contrary, I believe ignorance is a curse. It is Ignorance, more than anything else, that makes people cruel. It is in the idle mind that the primitive reptilian part of the brain dominates and causes people to behave in a barbaric and cruel manner. Lynch mobs that form in different parts of the world invariably consist of the ignorant and impoverished sections of society. It is rare to see teachers and lawyers and doctors running around like rabid troops of baboons setting fire to cars, wielding machetes, and hacking people to death. The bully at school is rarely the intelligent boy; on the contrary, it is invariably the dullard who delights in tormenting people weaker than him. He grows up to become part of the countless herd of people who delight in activities such as bullfighting, bear-baiting, football hooliganism, general rioting and so on.
Far too many people today are too quick to act and too slow to think and reflect. “Useless knowledge” promotes a contemplative habit of mind. Bertrand Russell says:
“Action is best when it emerges from a profound apprehension of the universe and human destiny, not from some wildly passionate impulse of romantic but disproportioned self-assertion. A habit of finding pleasure in thought is safeguard against unwisdom and excessive love of power, a means of preserving serenity in misfortune and peace of mind among worries.”
The famous philosopher Arthur Schaupenheur was tormented by doubts, plagued with questions, filled with curiosity and afflicted with the desire to know. He visited India in his quest for knowledge and the Truth. There he passed by the house of a Brahmin woman surrounded by her children. Schaupenheur was asked if he did not envy the Brahmin woman’s ignorance since it evidently afforded her such contentment. To this the philosopher replied that he did not care for the kind of contentment that sprang from ignorance.
I find myself in agreement with Schaupenheur. It is easy to isolate oneself in a cocoon of contentment that springs from an ignorance of the world around. Having no knowledge of the trials and tribulations of people and the vagaries of life is not the path favoured by those who wish to live life to the lees and savour the few decades of consciousness that we are blessed with during our brief sojourn on this planet.
The priests and witch doctors of this world wield too much influence over the minds of the masses. “Useless knowledge,” is one of the few antidotes to the evils of superstition and dogma. An intelligent mind, a calm and rational approach, and a contemplative habit are the only defence we have against their malevolent influence.
Curiosity and “useless knowledge” allow us to see ourselves, and people around us in the proper perspective. We are a young species on an ancient planet in a universe where life might well be rare. An asteroid from space could easily destroy all traces of our very existence. Then, all that will be left will be the rodents and the insects. So while we are lucky to be alive, let us make the most of life. Let us be less hasty in judging others and more prudent about our actions.
