11 Posts found for Author: Pico Iyer

The unrest you feel will always have more to do with you than with what’s around you.

Author: Pico Iyer | Source: The Marginalian (Brain Pickings) | Subjects: Personal Improvement, Psychology | Behavior

We cherish things, Japan has always known, precisely because they cannot last; it’s their frailty that adds sweetness to their beauty.

Author: Pico Iyer | Source: The Marginalian (Brain Pickings) | Subjects: Insight, Life & Society, Perception | Observation

It’s precisely in matters of highest importance — love, terror, is there a God, and why is Iago possessed by the Devil? — that we’re outside the domain of knowledge.

Author: Pico Iyer | Subjects: Education | Scholarship, Intelligence | Knowledge

Wisdom sometimes depends on seeing how much knowledge doesn’t know and how much every day is shaped by unexpectedness.

Author: Pico Iyer | Subjects: Education | Scholarship, Insight, Wisdom

But one thing that happens when we acquire too much “knowledge” is that, like Othello, we sometimes fail to distinguish it from what can never be known, which may not be untrue. Another is that we’re tempted to lose sight of the distinction between those realms, like science and health, where the more data we have, the better, and others, like human relations, where the … [ Read more ]

Author: Pico Iyer | Subjects: Education | Scholarship, Intelligence | Knowledge, Relationships

The pool of knowledge is limited; it’s the pool of ignorance, speculation and misunderstanding that is infinite.

Author: Pico Iyer | Subjects: Education | Scholarship, Intelligence | Knowledge

The secret to happiness in almost any relationship is knowing what not to say.

Author: Pico Iyer | Subject: Relationships

It takes courage, of course, to step out of the fray, as it takes courage to do anything that’s necessary, whether tending to a loved one on her deathbed or turning away from that sugarcoated doughnut.

Author: Pico Iyer | Source: The Marginalian (Brain Pickings) | Subject: Personal Improvement

It’s only by taking myself away from clutter and distraction that I can begin to hear something out of earshot and recall that listening is much more invigorating than giving voice to all the thoughts and prejudices that anyway keep me company twenty-four hours a day. And it’s only by going nowhere — by sitting still or letting my mind relax — that I find … [ Read more ]

Author: Pico Iyer | Source: The Marginalian (Brain Pickings) | Subjects: Personal Improvement, Productivity & Time Management, Thought | Inquiry

Not many years ago, it was access to information and movement that seemed our greatest luxury; nowadays it’s often freedom from information, the chance to sit still, that feels like the ultimate prize. Stillness is not just an indulgence for those with enough resources — it’s a necessity for anyone who wishes to gather less visible resources. Going nowhere […] is not about austerity so … [ Read more ]

Author: Pico Iyer | Source: The Marginalian (Brain Pickings) | Subjects: Concepts, Information, Life & Society, Personal Improvement, Senses

The secret to happiness in almost any relationship is knowing what not to say.

[…]‌

The pool of knowledge is limited; it’s the pool of ignorance, speculation and misunderstanding that is infinite.

[…]‌

But one thing that happens when we acquire too much “knowledge” is that, like Othello, we sometimes fail to distinguish it from what can never be known, which may not be untrue. Another is that we’re … [ Read more ]

Author: Pico Iyer | Source: The New York Times (December 31, 2016) | Subjects: Articles & Links, Excerpts, Intelligence | Knowledge, Wisdom