Gaining Wisdom

One of my favorite books of The Bible is Ecclesiastes.

I said to myself, "Come now, I will make a test of pleasure; enjoy yourself." But again, this also was vanity. I said of laughter, "It is mad," and of pleasure, "What use is it?" I searched with my mind how to cheer my body with wine-- my mind still guiding me with wisdom-- and how to lay hold on folly, until I might see what was good for mortals to do under heaven during the few days of their life. I made great works; I built houses and planted vineyards for myself; I made myself gardens and parks, and planted in them all kinds of fruit trees. I made myself pools from which to water the forest of growing trees. I bought male and female slaves, and had slaves who were born in my house; I also had great possessions of herds and flocks, more than any who had been before me in Jerusalem. I also gathered for myself silver and gold and the treasure of kings and of the provinces; I got singers, both men and women, and delights of the flesh, and many concubines. So I became great and surpassed all who were before me in Jerusalem; also my wisdom remained with me. Whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them; I kept my heart from no pleasure, for my heart found pleasure in all my toil, and this was my reward for all my toil. Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had spent in doing it, and again, all was vanity and a chasing after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun. So I turned to consider wisdom and madness and folly; for what can the one do who comes after the king? Only what has already been done. Then I saw that wisdom excels folly as light excels darkness. The wise have eyes in their head, but fools walk in darkness. Yet I perceived that the same fate befalls all of them. Then I said to myself, "What happens to the fool will happen to me also; why then have I been so very wise?" And I said to myself that this also is vanity. - Eccles. 2:1-15

The book gives us a taste of our own frustrations and disappointments with this life which is too short and amounts to little or nothing if that is how we choose to value it.

Of course, we say, we will die and all that we have done in this life of ours will be left behind or forgotten.  Is that the purpose of living, to leave nothing to show for ourselves?

But the author is missing the most important point, I think.  He is ignoring our impact on others, those we love and those who love us.

We cannot take the wisdom we acquire with us, at least we don't believe we can, and what good would it be to us if we did?

We have to leave it behind, and what better way to do that than to pass it on?

Some people have talent in the arts and can pass on the beauty they see in their paintings, poems, writings and plays.  We have the works of those who have come before us to appreciate and study.

But passing on a legacy is not just for artists.  Everyone gives something to someone else, something they cherish and remember.

If we were designed to be solitary beings, the author would be right to say it is all chasing after the wind, but we are not alone in life and we leave our imprint on others.

Most animals, in the air, in the sea and on land live for the next generation, to keep the species going.  We are a little different in that we live for ourselves as well.

And that, I agree, is vanity.

More to come...