About 10 days ago in my Chinese class, my teacher asked me to describe the difference between three words:

        知识           学问           智慧

        zhi shi        xue wen        zhi hui

Translated, those words mean “knowledge,” “learning,” and “wisdom.”  It was a fun topic for discussion.

The concepts of learning and wisdom have a long and rich usage in the Chinese language throughout time, with Confucius standing as the epitome of “learning.”  The word for “knowledge,” on the other hand, is a much more recent entrant into the language.  It is a newer word, its birth necessitated, one can assume, by the changes that have happened over the years in Chinese society (and indeed, throughout the world).

The word for “knowledge” in Chinese conveys the idea of a body of information.  One is “knowledgeable” when she possesses a large body of information.   Perhaps she keeps up with political changes around the world and understands how it all fits together, is always in touch with the latest advancements in technology, or has a very good understanding of  her own field of expertise.  And “expertise” is no exaggeration when speaking of the truly knowledgeable person — he always has at his fingertips whatever information is needed, and is probably quite good at using it to solve problems efficiently.

Learning and wisdom are in closer relation to each other than either is to knowledge.  While learning might share with knowledge the fact that it can be gathered from books and study, it differs in that it cannot be gathered from books and study alone.  Wisdom, on the other hand, can be acquired with or without recourse to books. 

In Chinese the word “learning” is particularly expressive.  It is made up of two characters.  The first, 学 (xue), means to study; the second, 问 (wen), means to ask.  Learning comes from the scholarly pursuit, a combination of study and inquiry.   Knowledge, while it requires the “study” part of the equation, seems to stop once the knowledge is acquired, without necessarily pondering the topic any further than is needed to gain the information desired.  Wisdom does not necessarily include the aspect of “study,” and can be gained through experience just as easily as through reading.  Wisdom, like learning, requires contemplation, and implies a practical application, shown through continued good judgement in one’s actions.  Learning might exist in an ivory tower, but wisdom is only evident when it is lived.

To the untrained eye, the pursuit of wisdom and learning might seem to be a foolish thing, a waste of time.  Asking questions and pondering conundrums can be very time-consuming — time that could be spent doing other things.  Knowledge is the quickest of the three to show itself useful, but I don’t think that means it is the most valuable of the three.   While wisdom and learning are slower processes, their impact can be much more far-reaching than we often realize.

I think my teacher only wanted a short answer to the question, simply demonstrating an acquisition of language.  All the same, I thought the question was a good one, and have had fun considering it since it was raised.

© 2008 Shelly Bryant