EINSTEIN ONCE SAID, “The intuitive mind is a sacred gift, and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.”
While academic philosophers will quickly dismiss any argument which appeals to “authority” for its validity, we who live out our lives in the everyday world of endless decision making (whether deciding issues of a minor nature or those which become life-altering), the question of intuition is both significant and profoundly important.
Paying heed to the considered opinion of Albert Einstein is, therefore, something we should all do. After all, Einstein is not just the most famous of any of history’s physicists, he is also regarded as being a renowned figure of sagely wisdom whose insights while alive extended far beyond the scope of his numerous scientific theories, many of which have altered the way virtually all of us view the universe.
I might just take a moment to note what Time magazine said about the great man when he was named the “Person of the Century” in their December 31, 1999 edition. Why? Because if we cannot give “intuition” any importance in our lives because we believe it to be some abstract, unreal aspect of the mind which “real scientists” discount since it cannot be measured by any form of technology now in use, then Einstein’s opinion clearly refutes that belief.
Briefly, for starters, Time magazine’s Walter Isaacson, states that the magazine’s choice for Person of the Century was the individual who “for better or worse, personified our times and will be recorded as having the most lasting significance.” Consider the competition: Gandhi, Churchill, Roosevelt, Truman and Hitler, among others. (Hitler? Yes, because for better or worse the individual had a lasting impact.)
Frederic Golden in the article following Isaacson’s opening remarks called Einstein “unfathomably profound – a genius among geniuses who discovered, merely by thinking about it, that the universe was not as it seemed.” He also called him, “relativity’s rebel”, a man who “combined rare genius with a deep moral sense and a total indifference to convention.”
These attributes speak volumes as to why we should listen to the man and there are, of course, countless quotes which we could bring forward here, but the theme of this post is intuition, hence the quote at the outset: “The intuitive mind is a sacred gift, and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.”
The great man does not call intuition simply a “gift”, but a “sacred” gift. Why would a scientist do that? Isn’t it only theologians who speak in such terms?
Let us look at that word sacred. It comes from the Latin sacer sacri meaning “holy”. The word holy, in turn, comes into use in the English-speaking world via the Germanic halig, which is related to the word whole and is defined as something that is “morally and spiritually excellent or perfect, and to be revered”, as well as “belonging to, devoted to, or empowered by God.”
The question thus arises as to why Einstein would use that word with intuition. Is it “Godly”, then, “angelic” or quite simply the mysterious machinations of an unidentifiable “higher intelligence”? Or is it just one’s own “higher self” speaking to one’s “lower” worldly self?
As most artists know when they launch into any form of creative activity, whether writing a poem, a work of fiction, a new song or pondering an inspirational image to paint, the idea or imagery for that work can simply spring into the mind, often with such power and force that one cannot but bring it into the world. In other words, the artist is literally compelled to bring it into the world.
Many an artist has publicly stated that some particular work arrived inexplicably into their mind “full-blown”. For example, both John Lennon and Paul McCartney, two of the greatest songwriters in modern times have made comments to that effect, as has Bob Dylan who once said that as a young man he was almost afraid to go to sleep at night for fear of missing out on yet another song coming through somehow, some way from right out of the blue. Bach, Beethoven and Mozart in their day all enjoyed the fruits of their musical intuitions with works that simply poured out of them. Countless poets, of course, have spoken of the “muse” whispering into their inner ear as they sat with pen in hand. Likewise, writers as diverse as Charles Dickens and William S Burroughs have indicated that their most inspired works came to them in such a rush that it was as if they were doing little more than taking dictation.
Dictation? From whom?
That is the question…
The answer is: Nobody knows for sure. Yet, thanks to intuition, works of art and scientific breakthroughs do come surging forth into fruition from time to time to secure a particular person’s place in history and it has sometimes even been known to save a life.
Equally important for the majority of us, intuition can give us the kind of guidance that can carry our lives in a whole new and significant direction.
Indeed, guidance is a huge thing and it occurs to all of us whether we are an artist, a scientist or a butcher, a baker or a bricklayer. This guidance can save us from getting involved with people who will do us no favors and all kinds of troublesome situations. What we may sense when intuition speaks can be surprisingly simple: the impression that “Yes,” we should do this or that or “No, don’t!” Such a statement generally does not come to us in the form of words, but as a feeling – a so-called “gut feeling”: if we sense a palpable rise in our mid-section that is a yes. If the gut turns palpably downward that is a no.
So pay attention. When intuition speaks… Listen. If your gut tells you yes or no, go with that guidance and show it the respect it deserves for looking after you.
In other words, be humbled before this superior source of knowledge and wisdom, for it is your divine, sublime connection on high. It is your greatest ally.