What's Knowledge? Who Knows?

Knowledge might be power, but wisdom is liberation.

I’m on my way to San Antonio right now. My parents will scoop me up from the airport and take me to my alma mater, Trinity University. I’ll meet up with my college roommate, Dave, where we’ll be giving a named lecture on the topic: “What is Knowledge?”

Dave and I have been preparing the past few weeks, sharing ideas and stories that we think could help illuminate some core messages we want to offer. I’ve been keen to share what I’ve learned from Sikhi: that knowledge might be power, but wisdom is liberation.

At gurdwara this past weekend, we arrived early for the kids’ kirtan and table classes. As I sat with them in the classroom, I could hear Asa Ki Var in the darbar hall. The salok that stuck out to me, which has been on my mind since preparing for this lecture, is the one on accumulating knowledge.

ਸਲੋਕੁ ਮਃ ੧ ॥
ਪੜਿ ਪੜਿ ਗਡੀ ਲਦੀਅਹਿ ਪੜਿ ਪੜਿ ਭਰੀਅਹਿ ਸਾਥ ॥
ਪੜਿ ਪੜਿ ਬੇੜੀ ਪਾਈਐ ਪੜਿ ਪੜਿ ਗਡੀਅਹਿ ਖਾਤ ॥
ਪੜੀਅਹਿ ਜੇਤੇ ਬਰਸ ਬਰਸ ਪੜੀਅਹਿ ਜੇਤੇ ਮਾਸ ॥
ਪੜੀਐ ਜੇਤੀ ਆਰਜਾ ਪੜੀਅਹਿ ਜੇਤੇ ਸਾਸ ॥
ਨਾਨਕ ਲੇਖੈ ਇਕ ਗਲ ਹੋਰੁ ਹਉਮੈ ਝਖਣਾ ਝਾਖ ॥੧॥

Salok, Guru Nanak
You can read and read tons of books; read and read multitudes of books.
You can read and read boatloads of books; read and read trenchfuls of books.
You can read for years upon years; read through all the months.
You can read your entire life; read with every breath.
Nanak writes: Only one thing really matters. Everything else, in ego, is meaningless.

I’ve long found this salok to be provocative, a counter balance to our cultural emphasis on education. I understand the value of education: I’m an educator myself, and I was in school as student for the first 32 years of my life. I see how education can be a force for social good and social mobility and social justice.

So it feels all the more important that, given my predilection for education, I remind myself of its limits. Yes, learning is great, and knowledge is a tool – but what good does it do if it doesn’t transform our lives?

Here’s another way to put it that feels resonant to me, especially now that I’m back in a university setting: We can nourish our intellects, but we must also nourish our hearts.

This morning, before leaving for the airport, I was pleasantly surprised by the hukamnama that came up, a shabad from Bhagat Kabir that felt like validation of these thoughts, as if to say This is a reminder for you personally, and also confirmation that this a message worth sharing in your lecture today.

ਕਿਆ ਪੜੀਐ ਕਿਆ ਗੁਨੀਐ ॥
ਕਿਆ ਬੇਦ ਪੁਰਾਨਾਂ ਸੁਨੀਐ ॥
ਪੜੇ ਸੁਨੇ ਕਿਆ ਹੋਈ ॥
ਜਉ ਸਹਜ ਨ ਮਿਲਿਓ ਸੋਈ ॥੧॥

Why study? Why read?
Why listen to holy texts?
What’s the point of reading and listening
If it doesn’t lead us to inner peace?

Bhagat Kabir’s questions are small, prodding jabs, provoking us to reflect on social and religious norms, as well as our own individual practices. Are we really focused on what matters?

These questions interrogating reading feel even more provocative when we see them in their historical context. At a time when literacy and study was the exclusive right of elite castes and classes, the Sikh Gurus sought to democratize literacy by creating a script and scripture that’s accessible for all people. Literacy and education were tools for social and spiritual upliftment.

But in this shabad, it’s almost like Bhagat Kabir is here to remind us: Don’t be confused. Education is not the end itself. It’s the vehicle that brings us to toward liberation.

I love this reminder and hope you do too. It’s relevant and revolutionary, and it helps us ensure that we keep our vision clear. Knowledge might be power, but wisdom is liberation.