Wisdom of the language Jing Chen
Preface We all love wisdom. We seek wisdom far and wide. We seek wisdom at any cost. Yet we rarely seek wisdom from the language we use everyday. But language is the recording and witness of our evolutionary past. Language is the embodiment and distillment of ancient wisdom. We often try to relax and find it hard to achieve. But to relax is to re-lax. We have to be lax, stop being too strict on others and ourselves. Only when we are lax, we can re- lax. In modern days, we pile up one accreditation after another. Being credible is good. But being in-credible is great. We know that we are being fed with illusions. But we refuse to face the truth. We don’t want to get dis-illusioned. Language offers us so much wisdom. Learning language is a process of discovering the ancient treasures. It is a refreshing journey. In this booklet, I compile some short notes and poems from my understanding of the language. Hope you find them enjoyable. I am also interested in the relation between language and thinking. From the standard theory, language expresses thinking, but does not affect thinking. I feel that language affects thinking as well. The notes and poems collected here are examples how learning a language affects my thinking.
Contents 1. A homage to our home 2. Credible and incredible 3. Lax and relax 4. Illusion and disillusion 5. Kind 6. To invest is to vest in 7. Embryo and embroil 8. Inspire and expire 9. Fine 10. Victor or victim 11. Your pleasure is my pressure 12. Understand and overlook 13. Traps and trappings 14. Am is love 15. Prevent 16. Envelop and develop 17. Maked or made: When to break rule 18. Observe and serve 19. Pretend and pretender 20. Yes is for yesterday 21. Only the powerful can proclaim to be powerless 22. Who is a radical 23. The rulers and the ruled 24. Story and history 25. Strive and strife 26. Like and dislike 27. How to take a rest 28. Invent 29. What is knowledge? What is father? What is have?
A homage to our home We pay homage to many people We pay homage to many places The people we should pay homage most Are the people in our home The place we should pay homage most Is our home
Credible and Incredible It is nice to be credible. We pile up credits and accreditations. But you don’t chase after all the credits and accreditations. Some people might say you are not credible. I would echo them and say you are incredible. You are incredible because you follow your own heart. It is nice to be credible. It is a wonder to be incredible.
Lax and Relax We don’t like being lax. We all enjoy relax. But without being lax, How can we re-lax? To relax, Let us be lax To ourselves, and to each other
Illusion and disillusion If we seek truth We will reject illusion We will celebrate The achievement of disillusion Yet we need illusion To decorate our plain life We need illusion To hide the ugly truth We need illusion To keep us happy and high When reality trashes illusion When reality smashes illusion We become depressed And disillusioned We desperately seek new illusion We vigorously reject truth In the hope to avoid Being dis-illusioned
Kind
Why we are kind to our children Because they are our kinder
Why you are kind to me Because we are the same kind
Why you are kind to him Because he is a kindred spirit
Thank you for being so kind to me You rekindle the flame of my life
Note: Kinder is children, such as in kindergarten. To invest is to vest in We all want to invest successfully. What is the secret of successful investment? The word invest itself already tells the secret. To invest successfully is to vest in. When we have a passion on something, when we have a vested interest, we naturally excel at it. Currently, the stock market is where many invest their wealth. Are we deeply vested in those companies on the stock market? Not really! Stock market is there to provide liquidity, not vested interest, at least not for small investors. That is why most of us don’t do well in the stock market. Historically, few people invested in the stock market. However, due to the higher and higher pension deductions, more and more people are forced to invest in where they don’t have vested interest, the stock market. The high pension deductions also diminish our opportunity to invest heavily in where we do have vested interest, our families and kids. With heavy taxation and heavy pension deductions, few families can afford many kids. The current tax systems and pensions systems force us to invest in where we don’t have the vested interest and diminish our opportunity to invest in where we do have the vested interest. The is why our societies are not doing well. On a personal level, we may invest less energy in where we don’t have vested interest, such as social media, and invest more energy in where we do have vested interest, such as our families. You might feel family life is too vested. You can devest from social media any time you want. But to invest well, you have to vest in. Embryo and embroil Out of embroil Comes embryo All the conflicts, all the fights Give us so much sorrow Give us so much anguish Yet out of the ash of the embroil Comes new babies, comes new life Give us so much hope Give us so much expectation Out of embroil Comes embryo Out of embryo Comes embroil All new babies, all new life Give us so much hope Give us so much expectation Yet with their growing up All the conflicts, all the fights Give us so much sorrow Give us so much anguish Out of embryo Comes embroil
Inspire and expire We all want to Inspire Nobody want to Expire But you can’t Inspire If you don’t Expire Similarly, young aspirants can’t Inspire If old authorities don’t Retire and expire Old authorities enjoy Inspiring young people But if they themselves don’t Expire Where is the room for newcomers to Inspire P.S. Inspire is inhale. Expire is exhale.
Fine I eat fine food I dress fine clothes I wear a fine manner I am a fine man However I don’t want to be defined By the society’s expectation I don’t want to be refined To lose all my edges I don’t want to be confined To a tiny field I will be fined For deviating from the defined path I will be fined For trashing the refined sophistication I will be fined For escaping the confined field I may lose fine food I may lose fine clothes I may lose fine manner But I will gain a fine Final resting place
Victor or victim We are all victors All victors In the unbroken chain Of four billion years of Survival and reproduction We are put up By the grace of God To enjoy the bountiful world There are many more victims Many more victims On the treacherous road Of four billion years of Survival and reproduction They are put down By the mercy of God To enjoy the eternal rest We are all victors of the past Are we going to be Victors or victims in the future God takes time to give his verdict He spells out slowly VICT What are the last two letters OR, or IM We just have to wait Wait for his grace and his mercy It is up to him To determine If we will be gracefully granted The privilege of living gloriously Or we will be mercifully relieved The duty of fighting fiercely
Your pleasure is my pressure You take great pleasure Dining in a fine restaurant You demand fast, courteous service I am serving many customers At the same time I am struggling to keep up the pace Your pleasure is my pressure Your take great pleasure Feeling high From injecting cocaine I have to work hard To cough up all the taxes That support your doctors and social workers Your pleasure is my pressure You take great pleasure Showering your benevolence To help the helpless I was stripped off All my shirts and pants Until I am utterly helpless Your pleasure is my pressure
Understand and overlook We hope to better understand How things work But we often overlook Important signs To better understand We have to stand under To shoulder the burden Of life When we stand under We will understand How the lowly and the silent Support the high and glorious When we stand under We will understand The burden, the pain, and the sorrow The bond and the bondage When we stand under We will understand How much we want to escape Escape to the promise of religion When we stand under We will understand How much we resent and admire Those who stand over us When we stand under We will understand How much we want to turn over Turn over to stand over When we stand over The shoulders of the masses We are far sighted We lead the masses to a bright future When we stand over The shoulders of the masses We are unburdened and free Free to pursue our own interest When we stand over The shoulders of the masses We will celebrate our farsightedness We will celebrate our freedom When we stand over The shoulders of the masses We want to make sure We never have to stand under again When we stand over The shoulders of the masses We will shackle the mind of the masses We will overlook their misery When we stand under We shoulder the burden of life We shoulder the bruises and pain We understand the essence of life When we stand over The shoulders of the masses We enjoy the farsightedness and freedom We overlook the foundation of life With better understanding The standing under will topple The standing over Who overlook the standing under The turn over between The standing under and the standing over Keeps the soil of life Aerated and fertile The turn over between The standing under and the standing over Keeps us understand more And overlook less
Traps and trappings We actively avoid Traps We actively seek Trappings In the end, we are trapped By trappings
Am is love Am is love, as in amorous, enamour, amicable . Amateurs are the ones who do what they love. That is why great ideas are often initiated by amateurs. Mendel was a professional monk, and an amateur botanist. His discovery paved the way for genetics. There used to be easy flow between amateur and professional scientists. Take Einstein for example. He was an amateur when he was doing his most important works. And his contributions were acknowledged by the professionals immediately. But as the scientific profession becomes lucrative, the barriers between amateur and professional scientists become almost impenetrable. Today's stale environment of academics is largely due to the banishment of fresh ideas from the amateurs. Nowadays, amateurs are often belittled by the professionals. But amateurs should not belittle themselves. After all, one can never overestimate the power of love.
Prevent Prevent is from pre-vent. Pre-vent is to let people with different opinions vent their grudge early to reduce the tension. This is probably the meaning of prevent when it was coined. Now prevent generally means suppress something from happening. Over time, the interpretations of powerful social groups dominate. There is a parallel in ecological system. In a newly opened field, many small species flourish, or pre-vent. But as dominant large species, such as large trees, take over, the shade of large trees prevent small species from growing. Biological diversity declines in a mature landscape, just like diversity in ideas declines in a mature society.
Envelop and develop The earth is enveloped by trees and grasses They absorb and store solar energy They release oxygen Oxygen envelopes the earth Oxygen protects hydrogen from escaping the earth So water can stay on the earth and envelop the earth Of all the planets in the solar system The earth is the only one Enveloped by vegetation Enveloped by oxygen Enveloped by water We can only survive On this enveloped planet But we love to develop To de-velop the land en-veloped by trees and grasses We develop trees to erect buildings We develop grasses to pave the roads with concretes We pride ourselves as developed We urge others to keep developing
Maked or made: When to break rules? Long ago, the past tense of make was maked. That was consistent with the rule. But maked is awkward to pronounce. Over time, maked turned into made, which is easier to pronounce. Why didn't baked turn into bade? Bake is less often used than make. There is not enough benefit to break the rule to turn baked into bade. When we look at the world from the lens of economics, things become easier to see.
Observe and serve Most like to observe Few like to serve Most want to be observant Few want to be a servant Yet, only when we serve We will carefully observe Only when we serve We will perceptively observe When we start to serve Serve ourselves and others We strive to observe Observe ourselves and others To be a great observer We can’t be a mere spectator To be a great observer We have to be a genuine server
Pretend and pretender When life is harsh to you When life is hopeless You just pretend Pretend life is hopeful When you pretend You become the pretender When life is dull When nothing happens You just pretend Pretend life goes on according to your script When you pretend You become the pretender When the enemies are invincible When their fortress is impregnable You just pretend Pretend you will storm their fortress When you pretend You become the pretender When God is silent When he is not answering your call You just pretend Pretend God is listening When you pretend You become the pretender Yes is for yesterday Yes is for yesterday No is for now For tomorrow and for now I must say no To yes from yesterday P.S. Yes might mean maple, one of the earliest powerful cultures. No might mean elephant (nose), a later comer. Only the powerful can proclaim to be powerless The powerful dominate the media Only the powerful can proclaim to be powerless When the powerful are wronged once The media air million times When the powerless are wronged million times The media may air once The powerful control the government Only the powerful can officiate their victim status The powerful make laws to extract tributes From the powerless for their supposed sin The powerless make goods to pay tributes To the powerful for their supposed victimhood The powerful own the public opinion Only the powerful can dole out reward and exact punishment Many powerless kneel by the powerful And call it stand by They exalt the virtue of the powerful They condemn the vice of the powerless Who is a radical? Radical means root originally. In biology and mathematics, radical still means root today. A radical works hard underground to help the whole plant grow. He works silently for stems and leaves, for others. He doesn’t chase short term fame and glory. However, in popular press, the term radical is quite derogatory. Why is that? In any ecosystem, there exist establishment. They don’t want new plants to compete with them. Radicals, who are willing to be roots, help new plants grow. This is why the establishment hate radicals. The life of a radical is harsh. But if you become a radical, we are rooting hard for you.
The rulers and the ruled The rulers set the rules
The ruled obey the rules The rulers are above the rules The ruled are bound by the rules
The rulers are ruling with the rules
The ruled are ruled by the rules The rulers are empowered by the rules The ruled are enslaved by the rules The rulers are ruling the ruled The ruled are ruled by the rulers Until the ruled are freed from the rules They won’t be freed from the rulers Story and history History is written by the winner History is winner’s story History is his story History is not your story His story is no more reliable than your story History is no more reliable than your story One day, when you become the winner Your story will be history Strive and strife We want to strive We want no strife Yet when we strive Strife follows Yet without strife Few actually strive We want to strive We want no strife When we strive too much Too much strife follows With too much strife We could no more strive Like and dislike Why they like you Because you are like them Why they dislike you Because you are unlike them P.S. "Nothing," says Nietzsche, "so offended the German savants as Schopenhauer's unlikeness to them."
How to take a rest? The Chinese word for rest is 休,a person by the wood. This suggests that a great way to take a rest is to be close to trees or to be immersed in the woods. It will refresh and recharge us. It will boost our immune system. There is a tremendous amount of scientific literature to explore the benefits of staying in the woods. But our languages are a great depository of ancient wisdom. The Chinese word rest, 休, is a good example. Most experts believe languages are expressions of our thinking. But some feel that languages not only express our thinking, but also guide and constrain our thinking. When I read the word rest, 休, it encourages me to spend more time in the woods.
Invent Nowadays invent simply means design something new. But what was its original meaning? Invent is in-vent, to pump in air. Metal making is the most important technology in most of human history. The key technology to make high quality metal is to pump more air into furnace. Invent, or in-vent, becomes synonymous with important new technology. Interestingly, in Chinese, invent ( 发明 ) means make it bright. Do today's inventions make the world pump in more air or make the world brighter? Many patents are designed to block others from entering businesses. So many of today's inventions can be more accurately called block-vent, not in-vent.
What is knowledge? What is father? What is have? In Chinese, knowledge is 知,which means talking about arrow. The most important knowledge is about weapons and military. Historically, most technology breakthroughs and improvements are initiated from military applications. In Chinese, father is 父, which originally means 斧,or axe. Someone who uses an axe is a very skilled man, who is usually the father in a family. Axe is often used as a weapon. Father is the one who fights for the family. In Chinese, have is 有,which means holding a piece of meat. If you have meat, you are a have. You are a rich man. If you don’t have meat, you are a have not. You are a poor man.
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