“There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.”
Like the first line of the Jedi Code this one can also be said in a simple way, “If you don’t know, ask.” This simple statement carries a great deal of power. It could mean the difference between passing or failing an exam or extend as far to facing life or death. I have had it said to me all my life, at home, school and work. I tell it to my own child and the people I train at work again and again, “If you don’t know, ask.” Ignorance is the lack of education and the lack of knowing. It stems from many things, some examples are, poor education, lifestyle, fear, pride, lack of experience, laziness and not caring. The code says there is very much a need for education, the more the better. Schools come in different forms, as building of learning to your everyday life. School and life teaches you social interaction and allows you to see that others see and think differently than you. All these things help eliminate ignorance in one form or another.
An education is there to give you a foundation from which you will be able to expand your knowledge on your own through life experiences. I believe the main idea behind the code is, knowing the facts of events happening around you and knowing your self and your feelings. A lack of information can cause untold chaos. It is impossible to accurately judge, come to correct conclusions, make beneficial decisions or understand circumstances without first knowing what is going on, in detail. Getting the facts not only includes information about what is happening right now, but also information from past events that have led up to the current situation. Knowing the history of events and everyone involved will give you a better understanding of why things are happening now.
To accurately see what is going on also includes information from all sides. A story told by one person can be very different when told by another. People see things differently and want you to see only their side of the story, for their benefit. Doing so would leave you bias and ignorant to the entire situation. People are so quick to jump on the band wagon without fully knowing what they are jumping into. If you are not careful you could be jumping into something that could get quite messy. 😉 There are people who like to join protests. At times they don’t know or understand what the protest is about, but it is protest, so it must be good. I graduated from Kent State University in Ohio. I was there ten years after the protest and shootings, for which Kent is famous. During the week of the ten-year anniversary of the May 4th tragedy, the TV movie of the shootings was released and discussions of what happened were big on campus. The whole situation was so confusing. So many people in charge were ignorant to what was happening, they didn’t want to know. They dismissed it and refused to see the trouble. It is not always easy to see the whole truth, to know all the facts. But miscommunication, misunderstanding, prides, egos, temper, different beliefs and ideas all lead to the deaths and injuries of the Kent students. Even when I talked to the professors that were there at the time, they still didn’t know how that could have been allowed to happen.
Ignorance causes people to judge others with half-truths or unreliable sources of information. They read a newspaper article and judge people by what they have read. Unless you were there or have discussed the situation with the all the people involved, should not judge them, because you don’t have all the information. Differences in cultures and traditions are another place where ignorance causes much trouble. People don’t bother or don’t want to learn about people who are different. It is easier to make judgments on what they believe to be true instead of finding out the real truth. An example of this is from an old TV show I once watched. It took place in an inner city neighborhood that contained mixed cultures. An oriental family had bought a grocery store and the way they conducted business caused conflict between the owners and the people of the neighborhood. The neighbors thought that the storeowner and his family were prejudice towards them because of their color or nationality. The clerks in the store would not look directly at or touch the customers when they paid for their groceries. The whole scene escalated until violence erupted. Tempers flared and people were not listening until a child was nearly killed. After that, the people started talking. The neighbors found out that the storeowner was not being prejudice. It was the custom of his people to look down and not touch customers. For him it was a showing of respect and honor to the customer not disrespect. The people of the neighborhood where ignorant to the customs of this man and his family and instead of asking, why the clerks did these things, the neighbors made conclusions based on what they thought was true.
I have seen that the Jedi at the FA have problems with ignorance also, not all follow the code. They give advice and come to conclusions before they know all the facts. There was a post at the FA about someone not allowed to take a drink outside of the school. They had just bought a soda and wanted to meet their friends outside but could not go because of the rule. They asked others at the FA what they would have done. Some said they would follow the rule and others said challenge the rule and protest. Keeping in mind there is no ignorance, there is knowledge, no one suggested why not find out why the rule was in place. There could be a very good reason for the rule or it could be that someone just likes making rules. Without knowing the reason for the rule how could they decide if the rule was fair or not. Once they understand the reason they could agree with it and comply, or not agree and find a way to change it.
Being blind or ignorant to your own feelings is another source of problems. Children are raised by parents or other authority figures that teach or impose their beliefs on the children. People need to be true to themselves. People say and do many things because that is what they were taught. But sometimes a person does something and it feels wrong, but they do it anyway, because they feel they are suppose to. They allow themselves to be ignorant of their true feelings because of pride, ego or fear of retaliation. Perhaps insecurity could be the reason, but whatever it is, people need to trust their feelings and seek for answers and knowledge in themselves and in life around them. Ignorance causes pain and knowledge brings enlightenment.
May the Force be with you,