Philosophical Musings - Part IX
Whilst studying, one should focus fully to the task at hand and seek to understand the material being taught. If one does not learn things in the right spirit, such knowledge merely superficial and useless!
What is the point of learning things half heartedly and memorizing things without understanding? Such knowledge is worst than none at all! Here is what Hong Yingming has to say about studying!
Doing Things in the Right Spirit
For the person who would study
It is necessary to collect one’s spirit
And to apply oneself in earnest
But if in cultivating virtue
There remains any idea of merit or fame
Learning will invariably amount to nothing
And if in reading books
There is a tendency towards recitation and stylishness
Surely, there will be nothing in the depths of the heart!
11 comments:
I took theoretical physics as an elective in college and although I passed, I had absolutely no idea what it was for. A few years later thru an accidental observation of life, everything suddenly clicked into place. You can understand in class but somtimes you can only appreciate a few years later.
Dear Damien,
It shows you sub-consciously absorbed all that knowledge. Share with us your SpongeBob technique of studying-lar.
:)
Rgds
Actually Spongebob failed every single one of his classes, hehe. ^_^ Ask his teacher Mrs Potts.
Something tells me you were a straight-A student, unlike me. :)
Dear Damien,
My Avatar must have misrepresented my academic abilities LOL. No-lar, I'm just an average student.
When I work hard, I do well. When I don't, I suck. Besides, doing well academically is not as good as doing well in life, yes?
SpongeBob might fail in his class, but I'm sure Mr. Crabs loves him just the same. An A1 worker with a cheerful attitude everyday. If I could just emulate 1% of his upbeat attitude in life, it'd be great :)
Rgds
i still cannot get away from day dreaming even in a meeting =(
Dear Keong,
Day-dreaming is okay. Just don't let your boss find out :)
Rgds
Avatar : well, I think it takes alotta gray matter to be an accountant. I could never tally those balance sheets while I was in school. Subject I hated most after math and chemistry.
Hi Avatar! My first comment on your Blog. Very interesting Blog about philosophy..I was once a humble student of the discipline.
I was never a bright student. I love to learn and I usually learn beyond what was taught in my textbooks. I absorbed everything like a sponge. From Archeology to Astrophysics, I love them all. I spent my teenage days in the library. Oh happy days.
Guess why I did not make it to be an A star student? It's because I wasn't Exam-smart. I hated the idea of learning for the sake of exams. I was wrong then? Nope. Those knowledge that I've read and learnt stuck with me even to this day. I may not have remembered them all but I'm glad to have known them. To this day, I'm still learning... that should be the spirit of learning! :)
Dear Sher,
Hi! Thanks for dropping by. I wish there were more students like you. Learning to understand things and applying them is indeed a sign of a great student (and by default - a great teacher).
A string of A's is useless especially if one doesn't understand the wisdom contained in the words. When the master points to the moon, a great student realizes that one should focus on the moon. A poor student without discernment looks intently on the finger instead.
Rgds
Dear Yours Truly,
You overestimate the grey matter of accountants. I think the ones with the most grey matter are successful entrepreneurs as they need all kinds of intelligence (spacial, social, mathematical etc...) to succeed.
Rgds
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