Question:
The more you have knowledge, the more miserable you are....true or false?
anonymous
2007-03-31 03:29:45 UTC
Early men did not have much knowledge on many things, they were far happier than we are, they had more peace.

Man invented and discovered many things every day we try to find answers but the more knowledge we gather we become more miserable.

may be that is why god asked not to eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge...............comment.
36 answers:
Brittany J
2007-03-31 03:32:08 UTC
false
Timaeus
2007-03-31 04:09:56 UTC
Knowledge is often defined as related to facts and practical techniques that have to do with the world. As such, most knowledge generate little for us in terms of sorrow and misery. In fact, it proves remarkably helpful for us to have knowledge and provides us with much happiness and emotional fulfillment. The misery that often comes from knowledge happens as a consequence of our misuse of worldly ideas and things-- that we are limited in or intentionally frustrate our ability to direct things to the good. It is wisdom, the insight into things like the human condition and the ultimate nature of reality, that can bring much sorrow. Why? Because the great mysteries of existence bring us face to face with our desires, our limits, and the radical nature of finitude.



As far as your intepretation of the opening of the story of the Fall from the Book of Genesis... The prohibitions to take and eat from the two trees in the garden are very strange and mysterious. Why is humanity so commanded? The answer is unclear. Some, believe that what engenders the Fall, is not the desire for what the trees represent (knowledge, immortality) but our grasping to take something that is not our own. The trees and what they represent do not belong to us, and therefore, when we attempt take their fruit, its effect is not at all what we had thought and expected-- and what we had imagined to be a benefit, becomes a curse. Remember also, that it is not simply "knowledge" that is represented by one of the trees, but "knowledge of good and evil." And this distinction makes the story all the more strange and compelling.
anonymous
2007-03-31 03:53:54 UTC
Well, it depends on what knowledge you are talking about. Knowledge in the sense that you find out some bad news then yes, it does make you miserable. If you are learning academic knowledge, then I think you will be happy as you can revel in the beauty of the world and be able to explain things to others which leads to self satisfaction.
Komy
2007-04-04 06:54:25 UTC
well before i say True or False.....The reason that man is miserable is because he is selfish....He ate the fruit cause he thought of immortality and divine and heaven an didn't think about god....so he is selfish...early man had peace but not fun so he make things to have fun with by thinking man reached this point...then those things who he invented he used to kill people after because he wants something they have.."Selfish"....see the problem in man that he is selfish....but the more knowledge and thinking and understanding...you reach the point where you know that man is asshole...so you become miserable...Cause now you understands...so the answer to your question is TRUE
anonymous
2007-03-31 04:10:01 UTC
More knowledge reveals reality and truth, which can come as a total surprise from what one is expecting. One may have a certain ideology that one wants to stick to and reality can be very mean to him/her.



However, the less you know can make you gullible and vulnerable in certain situations.



So I don't think knowledge will make us more miserable. We need a balanced lifestyle. Just knowing too much philosophy and being unrealistic will surely make one miserable though.
Chaz
2007-04-07 21:41:50 UTC
Knowledge does not ever make one "unhappy". It can lead one astray in a fit of hubris, no question about that. We are most dangerous when we "think" we know something. Just ask Rumsfield (hahaha). But to "shun" knowledge on the basis that it may make us "miserable" is an exercise in futility. Ignorance is what truly makes for unhappiness. Not knowledge. Just ask Martin Luther King............
canron4peace
2007-04-07 11:42:29 UTC
Must have been the Lord of the Manor speaking this way wanting to keep his peasants ignorant so he could keep taxing them to the hilt. Nothing has changed, has it?

Only some of the spins are different. Weapons of mass destruction! Wake up people! Personally I have never been as happy as in this moment and getting happier by the moment and all of it caused by my attention and awareness of the available knowledge. The truth will set you free!
don n
2007-03-31 03:43:51 UTC
Starting with the core of your question, I think the tree of knowledge is symbolic of man leaving childhood and being given free will and the choice to do right or wrong.



I do not think we are more miserable because we have more knowledge. Imagine what your life would like without any electricity, without mechanized transportation and without long distance communication except by horseback and or a boat with sails.
EchoHound
2007-04-05 04:19:31 UTC
false. if we take children as an example, who, by and large, know very little of the world, you could make an argument that they are happier for it. but i've met children who know very little and live in poverty and suffer precisely because they lack education. knowledge would help them out of their situation.



it's not the quantity of knowledge, but the quality of our actions when we use what we know.



but then again, einstein said something like this...



"there are two things that are infinite: the universe and human stupidity. i'm not sure about the universe."



guess he was saying that even though we've come so far, we're still as dumb as ever.
PBeaud
2007-03-31 04:09:26 UTC
FALSE.



People were only happy as babies because someone else did the thinking for them. Even children have a thirst for knowledge, and their curiosity is boundless. Does that mean they strive for misery? I think not. Here's a way to test your theory about ignorance being a cause for happiness:



Tomorrow morning, take plane flight to another country, but be sure that it is one that you are unfamiliar with, and one where you don't speak the language. For example, China or Vietnam. Again, make sure you don't speak Chinese or Vietnamese, and try to go someplace rural, where they don't readily speak English (or any language you currently know).



After a few hours/days/weeks, you will be truly miserable. Your inability to speak, read, or understand local customs will be the cause of your misery, not your current knowledge. You may even begin to resent the locals and even yourself for your misery.



Eventually, you will begin to understand some of the language and customs of the local people, and you will begin to become familiar with your surroundings. You may begin to appreciate the beauty and wonder of the country and its people. You may even be happy with your new knowledge.



To summarize: Ignorance = misery, Knowledge = happiness
theutopian7
2007-03-31 03:54:42 UTC
People and circumstances are what can make you miserable-knowledge of this enables the soul to remain strong when those people or circumstances or both as it maybe wants you weak. Knowledge is power when it is the heart guiding and guidance with knowledge can only strengthen
Elias
2007-03-31 06:44:42 UTC
I believe that the more knowledge we have, the more different we see life. So, people who have a lot of knowledge sometimes see life in a different way. They see problems and disadvantages that other people do not see and understand so, they take things more seriously. So, yes what you say can be true!
uhohwhatswrong
2007-03-31 04:15:50 UTC
TRUE: Ignorance is bliss. When someone is in a miserable situation and doesn't know it, then they are in a far better place than one in a miserable place and stressing about it daily. Generally the ignorant never get out of that miserable place, but what difference does it make if they don't know they are there.
Piano Man
2007-03-31 08:28:14 UTC
I agree and disagree. No, people aren't more miserable now than they used to be. Just look at what our ancestors have been through the past 6000 years. Having said that, I do believe there is a 'disappointment' in todays society due to technology advancing and more devices out there designed to make life better - but it's not working.



http://www.straightshots.co.nz
anonymous
2007-03-31 04:41:38 UTC
What makes you think early men were happier? They had to scrape for every morsel of food they got, faced freezing to death in the winter and dying of dehydration in the summer, watched their friends and family die at an early age, and had no time to just have fun while trying to just stay alive. Doesn't sound so happy to me.

Knowledge won't necessarily make you happy, but it won't make you miserable either. I personally enjoy learning new things.
Lovie dub
2007-04-06 17:06:57 UTC
I think you are right because I used to always pray god please let me be regular and not so concerned about stuff like my friends so i could fit in with the crowd and not worry so much about doing the right thing all the time but I found to whom much is given much is required so i can say that i was much happier when i was much more innocent in my motives .
anonymous
2007-03-31 06:47:03 UTC
False. It is not the knowledge one acquires that makes one miserable...it is what one does with that knowledge. Adam and Eve reflect pride before the fall....wanting it all when they already had what they needed. The question is, what will you do with all this knowledge?
anonymous
2007-04-07 00:27:15 UTC
False. Take for example a person on trial and not knowing his rights.



Guess it depends on the topic!



Another example: is a homeless person who really most are very wise. But not enough to come out of their comfort zone!
Skyline
2007-03-31 06:15:51 UTC
False, knowledge can sometimes help you overcome fears. Also, how boring was life when you were a little kid? After years of growing in knowledge, life seems a little less boring.
anonymous
2007-04-04 23:18:53 UTC
Well, only by knowledge can we start to understand how small we really are, where is it taking us, how far should we go, are we going to spend our lives answering these questions?,and if it is the right way. yes, when people were more humble, simple, appreciating, accommodating, sharing, free, they were more vital, real, content, joyful, they enjoyed life, not dominated by it., they were smart.
rockchick
2007-03-31 05:38:38 UTC
ummmm......this is a hard queston but i would have to say false

when you are a toddler you do not understand things such as war etc. so when you grow up and see wars and death on the news it makes you sad.

but of we didnt know these things it would be like trying to block everything thats bad out of our life.

sometimes you have to take the good things with the bad and if that means knowing somthing that makes you miserable i guess thats just life
mrjones502003
2007-03-31 06:59:46 UTC
one-hundred-percent true! lao tzu said that the happy man is one who lives in a place where he cannot even hear his neighbor's dogs bark...and a proffesor once told me that the definition of an expert is a person who learns more and more about less and less until he knows everything about nothing...ignorance truly is bliss, and i must say i;m one of the happiest men on the planet!
?
2016-12-03 06:49:00 UTC
to a level. ultimately you comprehend it really is not any longer your interest to fix the international and issues get a lot more convenient. i imagine the bible tale about the fruit of the tree of comprehend-how is merely allegory for the style of the human trait of self understanding and the comprehend-how that ones existence is finite.
anonymous
2007-03-31 03:51:32 UTC
It depends on what sort of knowledge. Self knowledge doesn't make you more miserable, it is empowering and leads to greater inner peace.
Floyd B
2007-04-07 16:08:12 UTC
The more you find that you know, the more you find that you don't know.



Yes some times it seems that knowing more things don't make us happier.



But that is our lot in life, to always seek more knowledge.



Some times it makes us happier, some times it makes us sadder.
NomadMom
2007-04-06 20:15:58 UTC
False. I believe that it's what you do with that knowledge and how you live your life.
akash anand
2007-04-05 07:28:53 UTC
both depends on what ur attitude is. its not knowledege its user for what he is using. GOD creats human. only he is able to think and do good for this world. percentage of good people is much greater than bad ones.
Vinni
2007-03-31 03:44:41 UTC
Sorry but Absolutely false buddy. Knowledge is Power, we are born for it only, just we have to take it the proper light.



The goal of mankind is knowledge. That is the one ideal placed before us by Eastern philosophy. Pleasure is not the goal of man, but knowledge. Pleasure and happiness come to an end. It is a mistake to suppose that pleasure is the goal. The cause of all the miseries we have in the world is that men foolishly think pleasure to be the ideal to strive for. After a time man finds that it is not happiness, but knowledge, towards which he is going, and that both pleasure and pain are great teachers, and that he learns as much from evil as from good. As pleasure and pain pass before his soul they have upon it different pictures, and the result of these combined impressions is what is called man's "character". If you take the character of any man, it really is but the aggregate of tendencies, the sum total of the bent of his mind; you will find that misery and happiness are equal factors in the formation of that character. Good and evil have an equal share in moulding character, and in some instances misery is a greater teacher than happiness. In studying the great characters the world has produced, I dare say, in the vast majority of cases, it would be found that it was misery that taught more than happiness, it was poverty that taught more than wealth, it was blows that brought out their inner fire more than praise.



Now this knowledge, again, is inherent in man. No knowledge comes from outside; it is all inside. What we say a man "knows", should, in strict psychological language, be what he "discovers" or "unveils"; what a man "learns" is really what he "discovers", by taking the cover off his own soul, which is a mine of infinite knowledge.



We say Newton discovered gravitation. Was it sitting anywhere in a corner waiting for him? It was in his own mind; the time came and he found it out. All knowledge that the world has ever received comes from the mind; the infinite library of the universe is in your own mind. The external world is simply the suggestion, the occasion, which sets you to study your own mind, but the object of your study is always your own mind. The falling of an apple gave the suggestion to Newton, and he studied his own mind. He rearranged all the previous links of thought in his mind and discovered a new link among them, which we call the law of gravitation. It was not in the apple nor in anything in the centre of the earth.



All knowledge, therefore, secular or spiritual, is in the human mind. In many cases it is not discovered, but remains covered, and when the covering is being slowly taken off, we say, "We are learning," and the advance of knowledge is made by the advance of this process of uncovering. The man from whom this veil is being lifted is the more knowing man, the man upon whom it lies thick is ignorant, and the man from whom it has entirely gone is all-knowing, omniscient. There have been omniscient men, and, I believe, there will be yet; and that there will be myriads of them in the cycles to come. Like fire in a piece of flint, knowledge exists in the mind; suggestion is the friction which brings it out. So with all our feelings and action — our tears and our smiles, our joys and our griefs, our weeping and our laughter, our curses and our blessings, our praises and our blames — every one of these we may find, if we calmly study our own selves, to have been brought out from within ourselves by so many blows. The result is what we are. All these blows taken together are called Karma — work, action. Every mental and physical blow that is given to the soul, by which, as it were, fire is struck from it, and by which its own power and knowledge are discovered, is Karma, this word being used in its widest sense. Thus we are all doing Karma all the time. I am talking to you: that is Karma. You are listening: that is Karma. We breathe: that is Karma. We walk: Karma. Everything we do, physical or mental, is Karma, and it leaves its marks on us.
mr.kotiankar
2007-03-31 03:36:01 UTC
I agree with you! True



The reason I feel is that you cannot do many things that you were doing before as you are now having more understanding than before.
anonymous
2007-03-31 03:37:38 UTC
True, I was a very happy ignorant child. I wish I could go back to those days.
A C
2007-03-31 03:40:12 UTC
maybe not miserable, but make u feel like tat because u know things that u cant do anything about
fridgearms
2007-03-31 04:01:49 UTC
knowledge reveals how crap the world is but it makes you feel good because you're not blind to the world like every other ignorant dick



and Christianity/catholicism doesn't like knowlege as it needs stupidity to lead people like sheep
morebidd
2007-03-31 03:34:17 UTC
FALSE!

Man got greedy and deceitful....a major contributor to the problems in the world today.
les miserables
2007-03-31 03:57:45 UTC
haha, yeah...



mabuti pa ang mga hangal kahit papano nakapag iisip sila ng malaya..
catherine
2007-04-05 19:22:38 UTC
false
Lefty
2007-04-04 02:00:02 UTC
true


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