KNOWLEDGE VERSUS WISDOM

EVEN LEARNED PEOPLE OFTEN CONFUSE BETWEEN KNOWLEDGE AND WISDOM; THEY REGARD THEM AS ONE AND THE SAME THING. BUT THEY ARE TWO THINGS QUITE APART AND QUITE DIFFERENT. KNOWLEDGE CAN BE ACQUIRED BUT WISDOM IS NOT. KNOWLEDGE CAN BE ACQUIRED BY READING BOOKS. BUT WISDOM CANNOT BE SO ACQUIRED. IT COMES FROM WITHIN AND IS EVOLVED FROM ONE’S OWN EXPERIENCE AND MATURITY. EVEN A FOOL AND DUNCE CAN BE MADE TO ACQUIRE SOME KNOWLEDGE THROUGH PRACTICE AND HARD WORK, BUT HE CANNOT BE MADE TO ACQUIRE WISDOM IN THIS MANNER. IF KNOWLEDGE IS POWER, WISDOM IS FAR SUPERIOR POWER. POWER THAT IS DERIVED FROM KNOWLEDGE IS MENTAL AND INTELLECTUAL POWER WHILE POWER DERIVED FROM WISDOM IS NOT ONLY MENTAL AND INTELLECUAL POWER BUT ALSO POWER OF DISCRIMINATION BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL, BETWEEN SOPHISTICATED AND NOT SO SOPHISTICATED OR UNSOPHISTICATED AND BETWEEN SIGNIFICANT AND TRIVIAL.
KNOWLEDGE MAY BE ACQUIRED SOON BUT WISDOM TAKES ITS OWN TIME IN COMING. A MAN MAY HAVE KNOWLEDGE BUT THAT DOES NOT NECESSARILY MEAN THAT HE MAY BE WISE. A MAN MAY BE WISE AND YET HE MAY BE NOT BE A MAN OF GREAT KNOWLEDGE. KNOWLEDGE MAY COME THROUGH READING AND PERCEIVING BUT WISDOM COMES NOT ONLY THROUGH LEARNING BUT ALSO THROUGH EXPERIENCE, GOOD JUDGEMENT, PRUDENCE, ETC. AND EVEN THEN IT TAKES ITS OWN TIME IN COMING. KNOWLEDGE MAY BE PRESENT BUT IT REQUIRES WISDOM TO RECOGNIZE IT.