09-16-2012, 07:06 PM
It seems that individual defintion of the word experience is the problem here right now.
As Zen is applying it to mean experience as in wisdom accrued through experience.
And some are responding to his remarks with an understanding that experience is simple interaction between consciousness and environment. In this context it is not a matter of wisdom but merely interaction.
a field's very first encounter with an event or circumstance can be defined as an experience, whereas in Zen's application of the word a first encounter would not result in experience, but rather it is many interactions and encounters of the same type that experience is gained.
this is actually more wisdom and understanding than mere experience.
A lobster may have experienced getting caught in a trap a dozen times and been thrown back because it was too small. It could be said to have had much experience with traps, and yet it would continue to get caught again and again. Experience in this case does not equate to the experience in the sense that Zen us using it.
Now if you apply that to the more intelligent ability of the fox, which would soon learn to avoid the trap, through experience with it, one would see that it is not experience that causes the avoidance, but higher intelligence.
Experience is nothing more than interaction, and we often use the word to denote wisdom, but that would not be an accurate way to apply the word, and I think this is what Zen has been doing that caused the confusion.
As Zen is applying it to mean experience as in wisdom accrued through experience.
And some are responding to his remarks with an understanding that experience is simple interaction between consciousness and environment. In this context it is not a matter of wisdom but merely interaction.
a field's very first encounter with an event or circumstance can be defined as an experience, whereas in Zen's application of the word a first encounter would not result in experience, but rather it is many interactions and encounters of the same type that experience is gained.
this is actually more wisdom and understanding than mere experience.
A lobster may have experienced getting caught in a trap a dozen times and been thrown back because it was too small. It could be said to have had much experience with traps, and yet it would continue to get caught again and again. Experience in this case does not equate to the experience in the sense that Zen us using it.
Now if you apply that to the more intelligent ability of the fox, which would soon learn to avoid the trap, through experience with it, one would see that it is not experience that causes the avoidance, but higher intelligence.
Experience is nothing more than interaction, and we often use the word to denote wisdom, but that would not be an accurate way to apply the word, and I think this is what Zen has been doing that caused the confusion.