| Maybe it's just my misunderstanding, but I've always equated wisdom with experience, rather than a refinement of throught - when, as a child, you touched the hot stove, you thought no more clearly, but certainly had knowledge of the stove, fire, and heat.
I've always placed refinement of thought in a separate category, something of a cross between education and intelligence - if it needs a label, I would probably call it philosophy. You can train your mind, refine your process of thought, deeply and precisely consider the workings of the universe, but if you don't go out and experience the world, that clarity of thought comes with little or no wisdom.
It's very important to balance things - intelligence alone, without wisdom, experience, or education is worth little. Education alone is worthless, without the intelligence to use it or the wisdom to put it in perspective. Wisdom is little good without the others - it's good to know the stove is hot, but it's also good to know or be able to figure out uses for that heat - wisdom alone only sais not to touch the stove again. Education sais to put a pot on it and make tea. |
