IS IGNORANCE BLISS?

Photo by Maxim Berg on Unsplash

When Man ate the fruit from the tree of knowledge in the Garden of Eden, we were plunged into the depths of ambition where we constantly try and strive to reach — and possibly be better than God.

Highly unachievable as this is — it birthed an advancement in knowledge and technology. The impulse to advance the human cause has essentially birthed the career ladder. We watch with interest to see how high a man can climb in influence and wealth, and how far he can exert his power across the earth.

At first, it was physical influence; a man’s worth was measured by sheer brute force and the strength of his hands. As time progressed, there was a migration to intellectual strength — brains overtook brawn and ruled. The sharpest minds seemed to amass wealth better and easier than those with just muscles. The intelligents were chosen to lead the rest and wisdom held sway.

However, intellectual strength morphed and evolved too — power no longer just lies with what you know but with who you know. It is in how you can exert power over the people by pulling and tugging at strings of influence — like a crafty puppet master. Blackmail, nepotism, alliances, cocktail-party friendships, common interests; these are the gears that turn the wheels of power in the world we live today.

However, knowledge and clout comes with its own curse — it’s an itch which pushes a person to always want to climb higher. Just as the Biblical tower of Babel, the ultimate goal seems to be to gain godlike levels of influence and to exert it at will. This has led to the rat race and the wealth crave. The need to better one’s self so that they are in a position of value.

“I need to know more to be more!”

Somehow, you never seem to be comfortable with where you are, you need to climb higher.

“Comfort is a killer!”

In this world, I ask: is ignorance bliss?

One time, while under the burden of several deadlines and deliverables, I took a trip to my village, a small town in Imo State — South Eastern Nigeria. I was greeted by an environment cut off from the madness and chaos that reigned supreme in the heart of Lagos. The morning air was clear and fresh, the smell of fresh dew hitting grass and tree leaves hung about the air. The lull of the breeze and the sounds of tree branches crashing against each other was almost hypnotic. I wondered, for a bit, why this place felt welcoming and peaceful while my home in Lagos felt like a guesthouse. Then, I realized — this place was devoid of the constant cacophony which was a city staple. Asides from the occasional animal noise or the people talking, it was quiet. I could hear myself think clearly without having to tune out ambient noise.

I toyed with the fantasy of not going back. I imagined being born here and living here all my life. Then I would never have to bother about deadlines and deliverables. I wouldn’t have to worry about office politics and whatnot.

Just pure ignorant bliss!

I only have to worry about these things now because my life has been shaped by an exposure to the allure of an advanced life — like a donkey with a carrot dangling in its front; so close yet so far.

What if I hadn’t seen or tasted these things?

A person can only grow to the size of their exposure. If you have never been exposed to certain levels of possibility, you would never know or believe they are possible to achieve. You can either be motivated or be demotivated by this. You could go,

“I would like to know so much so I can become this much”.

However, the deeper you go in the rat race, it becomes,

“I know so much — but am only able to reach so little — and so I suffer”.

Like my father would often say,

“If wisdom is of no benefit, then to know is to suffer”

So as I sit, typing away furiously at keyboard, ignoring the deadlines looming over me in the background, I ask,

“Who dig this pit for me?”