Three Stages of Wisdom
The ascension of a person to the state of wisdom spans three stages: erudition, perspicacity and sagacity … in that sequence.
The foundation of wisdom is knowledge, accumulated and aggregated during the erudition stage. The discrete elements of knowledge are of some value in and of themselves, giving us descriptive power. But it is in the collective that knowledge transcends its composite facts and becomes fertile ground for the next stage.
The second stage begins when aggregate knowledge reaches a certain critical mass, at which point patterns emerge that span diverse disciplines and sources. From these patterns arises perspicacity, a fundamental understanding of linkages between disparate facts and of the forces that bind them. This allows us to apply patterns learned on one hand to new circumstances found on the other, giving us predictive power. As we collect the threads of understanding that link various causes and effects into repeating patterns, those threads begin to form a tapestry … the final stage. Sagacity arises when the tapestry of understanding begins to reveal the shapes of principle, purpose and judgment. This is the point where the tapestry takes on the hues of human nuance … passion, inspiration and leadership. Here lies the fruit of true wisdom … prescriptive power. This is the power that enables us to both transform ourselves into the people we choose to be and shape the world around us into one of our design.
- David Pully, June 2020
