Pages

10 February 2017

Understanding the unintelligible

Most of us agree to the notion that there are things which are beyond conceptualization. There will always be things which we can never fix into words and meaning.  They will always elude intellectual grasp.

Theologians and believers would call that the realm of faith. Philosophers would mostly not agree to this fact and try all the same.  For the latter, this exercise is what keeps alive the inquisitiveness of human life. Thus in a way it is healthy, for the mind and for life.

In an effort to conceptualize the unintelligible, most often we think of what harm we would be doing to the reality itself.  By trying to fit it into our mental categories we somehow distort it, at times beyond recognition.  But today it struck me that there is something else that is harmed too: the tools by which we try to conceptualize the yet-to-be-conceptualized.  By tools I mainly mean language.  No wonder, the first thing that goes for a toss in philosophy and mystic talk is language.

And how does one grasp that which is beyond language?  Primarily without language one cannot think; even to name a sentiment we need language; even to express what is felt, one needs a medium/language...

No comments:

Post a Comment

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...