If You Constantly Feed Your Intellect, You’ll Miss “THE” Intelligence
Don't confuse intelligence for intellect.
I live a hermit life. Not by force. But by choice.
Living on lower Himalayan hills is more than enough for me. I refuse to meet people. I often offend them deliberately so they remain far from me. I often refuse my friends to come and visit me.
But last night was different.
When my friend asked again, I agreed. Excitedly, she came to my door within hours.
We went for a walk on the hills. We laughed at silly things and slept under the stars.
This morning, when I was watering the plants, my friend asked, “What is intelligence? How do you suggest one should live intelligently?”
(Well, what to say? She is a bit of chatter and pokes me to say something on spiritual matters.)
I liked the question.
Many people mistake intellect for intelligence. Once, I was also one of them.
To prove my intelligence, I cracked the toughest competitive exam in the country. I was ranked in the top 10 in the prestigious leading dental college. I earned my bachelor’s and then my master’s in dental surgery. I proved my name and gained my share of fame.
But that was still not enough. The constant inner nagging didn’t leave me. But it eventually did when awakening happened.
Intelligence is NOT just intellect.
Intellect is a part of the mind. But intelligence can not be limited to the mind.
There is a massive difference between the two.
When my friend asked the question, I pointed at the plants and said,
“This is intelligence.
A seed knows how to burst open from a rigid shell and become a soft plant. A bird knows how to fly even when it fails to fly properly when starting. An animal knows how to die peacefully.
But humans pollute this intelligence with the mind.”
In an attempt to survive, we pollute the way of life.
Thoughts, expectations, desires, hopes, etc, are all pollution. This does not mean that thoughts, expectations, desires, and hopes are bad.
No!
(There is no if or but rule in spirituality. One thing can be said in many ways.)
You can have hopes or expectations. They are totally fine if:
You don’t cling to them.
There is no resistance.
You become aware of the invisible ripple.
You can get detached from that underlying wave.
When you go beyond the patterns of your mind, you may witness the possibility of infinite intelligence.
Human has immense possibilities.
Not just in mental or psychological evolution. But in terms of consciousness.
However, it is not possible if you get stuck on an intellectual level.
Intellect is good. It helps you sustain yourself, afford comfort, and travel. After all, money is needed for survival and comfort.
However, beyond it, there is no hefty need for intellect.
Unfortunately, we consider this intellect so crucial that we rely heavily on it and ignore all other aspects of life.
When you don’t know how to switch off the mental button, it slowly swallows you in chaos.
I’ve seen cases of disturbed sleep, constant anxiety, and panic attacks. Mind overwhelms so much that, like a tornado, it uproots the very existence. Then, even a tiny mis-happening seems immense.
Your own mind becomes an enemy.
The solution may seem dead when you are in the storm. But it is not far-fetched.
The answer is intelligence.
For years, my spiritual mentor often playfully said, “You are a fool.”
In return, I would reply, “No! I’m intelligence.”
I didn’t give it much thought when I used it for the first time. But now, every time I say it, I see the gravity of the sentence.
Although I say it in a jolly way, it has profound meaning.
Life is full of intelligence. From a seed to a stone. From invisible air to giant mountains. From tiny fish to magnanimous universe.
Look inside the body. You’ll find even the microscopic cell is full of intelligence. It has the wisdom to enable the body to function at its best.
Some might say it is science.
But still, science has not discovered the complex ways of life. It can not invent anything new. It only tries to understand and inspire from what already exists.
Science is a method to mentally grasp what is happening in this vast intelligence of the cosmos of life.
Mental vs. Heart Intelligence
Life’s intelligence is everywhere.
A sensitive heart may sometimes get a glimpse of this intelligence. But it is an extremely challenging task for the mind to taste it.
Mind worries. Heart enjoys.
Mind calculates. Heart lives.
Mind is rigid. The heart is vulnerable.
The mind needs to control. Heart lets go.
The mind wants safety. Heart flies in freedom.
You need mental intellect to earn a living on this planet. But you need the intelligence of the heart if you truly want to live light-heartedly.
Mental intelligence is intellect, memory, or thought processes. Heart’s intelligence is softer, trusting, and innocent.
The more open and softer you become, the more grace will shower you. The key is to realize your heart’s intelligence.
Going from mind to heart is not rocket science. It is more like going back from cunningness to innocence.
It might be hard at first. But the more you taste its sweetness, the more you’ll become addicted to its joyfulness.
Mind and heart are both important. Both have roles to play. You just need to know how to switch effortlessly.
The secret of balance lies in swiftly changing the gear.
The mind has been fed far too often. The overthinking, anxiety, and constant nagging thoughts have become their routine.
Many people have neglected their inner voice for long. They have forgotten their true purpose, preferences, and how they actually feel about them.
The trick is to -
Feed both heart and mind
To know how and when to switch the gears.
Meditation helps. Going back to being an innocent kid helps.
As you dive deep within the self, you’ll easily be able to switch off the mind and slide into the heart. Stillness and silence bring clarity.
But it won’t happen overnight. And do not punish yourself for it.
Decades of conditioning can’t dissolve in a few weeks. Be patient. Have compassion for the self.
Steps vs Jumps
Well, you can’t magically reach the perfect balance.
But you can be consistent in your inner journey where the actual shift happens.
Nobody can neglect the compound effect of small steps. Daily baby steps are far better than hoping for huge leaps in a short duration.
With consistent steps, you prepare yourself to take unexpected huge leaps, which are gifts of life.
Take baby steps.
Simply start listening and trusting your heart.
Make time for activities that fill your heart with joy.
And don’t over-expect anything.
Become like a child who plays without hoping for anything in return. Who laughs, smiles, and plays just for the joy of it.
Enjoy the process called life. It is a blissful gift if you know how to unwrap it.
Final Thoughts
To tap into the intelligence, you need to be sensitive to see and appreciate it.
Life’s intelligence can’t be described through words. Nobody can understand it through the mind.
But you can live in its delicious nectar every moment.
The key is to return to your inner being of intelligence. After all, you are that intelligence.
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