11/01/2026
The Indian parable of the Blind Men and the Elephant addresses the limitations of subjective views, where the blind men are arguing over the true nature of an elephant, each believing it to be something different (e.g., a wall, a snake, a spear).
The story teaches that human perspectives are often incomplete, highlighting the importance of combining viewpoints for a deeper understanding, and warning against dogmatic declarations of absolute truth.
"The ability to observe without evaluating is the highest form of intelligence." ~ Jiddu Krishnamurti
"The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.." ~F. Scott Fitzgerald, “The Crack Up,” 1936
These observations by Krishnamurti and Fitzgerald highlight the insight that deep wisdom and intelligence involves embracing complexity and paradox, rather than seeking simple, one-sided answers.
This is sometimes called Paradoxical Thinking, recognizing that seemingly contradictory truths can coexist and actually provide deeper wisdom when unified.
Also referred to as Dialectical Thinking, moving beyond "either/or" to "both/and" thinking, acknowledging the value of multiple perspectives.
Divergent Thinking and Creative Intelligence are also rooted in this way of seeing situations from many angles simultaneously. In modern cultures, young children are often much better at Creative Thinking than adults.
As we grow older, most of us were indoctrinated by systems of standardized education and testing, that train us to believe that difficult questions always have only one right answer.
Creative Systems Thinking involves a unity of different views, being aware of how multiple perspectives form greater wholes when we connect them together, rather than rejecting the divergent ideas and observations of others.
Niels Bohr noted that while superficial truths have false opposites, "deep truths" often have opposites that are also true.
An example of this would be the spherical nature of our planet, and how time is experienced subjectively. Right now half of the world is experiencing night, half are experiencing day. And all of us are experiencing different times of day.
Arguing about what time it is on our planet would be an exercise in futility, as it is simultaneously many different times at once, and paradoxically always the same time, NOW.
~Christopher Chase
Fukuoka, Japan