What is really the true enemy of knowledge? Have you ever asked yourself why some people just don't seem to learn or maybe asked the question of yourself on occasions?
Below is possibly the answer to this question though it may seem a little strange.
You may recall if you read a previous blog I wrote that I referred to Socrates the Greek Philosopher, and that the Oracle of Delphi had said that Socrates was the wisest of men. If you don't recall this or never read it then let me give the short version as it leads on nicely to the conclusion.
The Oracle of Delphi was asked who was the wisest of men and the answer was Socrates. When Socrates was told this he disagreed and said he wasn't. He decided to visit all the wisest men he knew of to see how wise they were. On his return, he said the Oracle of Delphi was correct. And the reason he gave for this was because after talking to the others he realized that unlike them Socrates didn't pretend to know what he didn't know. In modern language Socrates was basically saying "they were bluffing quite a bit on subjects they didn't know about".
So, this leads to the conclusion quite nicely with regard to the true enemy of knowledge. Most people will call someone ignorant when they are lacking in knowledge and this is referred to very often as the enemy of knowledge. But this is not the true enemy. The illusion of having knowledge is the true enemy to gaining knowledge.
Once you believe you are knowledgeable on a subject, then you are no longer open to learn more about it or hear any other intelligent information on it from another source. Thus, you learn no further because you believe you know it all.
Keep in mind the following-
You only know what you know
You don't know what you don't know
And what you think you know may be wrong
If you truly want to continue learning then always start from a position of ignorance. Listen as if you have a complete lack of knowledge or information.