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"The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift.

by j_baker 16y ago

"The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift." Albert Einstein

waru 16y ago
Einstein has some great quotes about intuition and creativity. I also like "Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere." His quotes are basically the proof of the pudding that rationality needs intuition, since he's thought of as one of the greatest scientific minds ever.
- jodrellblank 16y ago
  His quotes don't prove that "rationality needs intuition", they only prove that he could be one of the greatest scientific minds ever while also saying things people like to hear.
gruseom 16y ago
I can't track down a source for this. Do you have one? It's not that far from things that Einstein said (for example, he did say that imagination is more important than knowledge), but it's different in tone. He didn't typically speak in terms of the sacred and he wasn't this kind of social critic, so it would surprise me if it were authentic. Off topic but interesting: the wonderful definition of insanity that's always attributed to Einstein (doing the same thing over again while expecting different results) never came from Einstein at all. It has been traced to a 1983 novel by mystery writer (and one-time partner of Martina Navratilova, how's that for trivia) Rita Mae Brown.
- j_baker 16y ago
  I found it here, but I've seen it elsewhere (although neither one I would quote as a source in a scholarly paper): https://notes.utk.edu/Bio/greenberg.nsf/0/25f4f2f5e0cc667485256d330070aa70?OpenDocument https://notes.utk.edu/Bio/greenberg.nsf/0/25f4f2f5e0cc667485... Secondly, he did speak of the sacred very frequently in fact, especially later in life: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1607298,00.html http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1607298,00.... Regardless, it's a good quote either way, don't you think?
  - gruseom 16y ago
    I found it here Most such quotes on the internet are fake. I'm fascinated by how catchy lines get attributed to famous people, so this is a bit of a hobby. Secondly, he did speak of the sacred very frequently in fact The article you link to doesn't include the word "sacred". I think the word is significant. It doesn't quite seem like a word Einstein would use. Especially in the context of a "sacred gift", which implies a gift-giver. Einstein's deism was resolutely impersonal. As you doubtless are aware, Einstein's religious views or lack thereof are the subject of perennial quarreling among camps eager to claim his name for their own. It's all rather tedious. But it's at least a credit to Einstein's open-mindedness and tolerance that he wasn't a finger-wagging scientistic scold of the likes of Dawkins. Regardless, it's a good quote either way, don't you think? Not quite, no. Certainly my sympathies are all with this line of thinking, so I ought to like it, but it feels like it hits the nail askew. I mean, if the intuitive mind is a sacred gift, why isn't the rational mind also? Presumably there can be more than one gift. Also, the implied symmetry between "intuitive mind" and "rational mind" seems slightly facile. I'm a big relier on intuition but I'm not sure I'd call it a mind. But I'm just rambling out loud here. Thanks for an interesting discussion. Edit: do you know Eugene Gendlin's work on intuition? One of these days I want to read him in greater depth. But I'm familiar with his book Focusing which was an original contribution to psychotherapy. He speaks of intuition (actually, he uses the phrase felt sense) as a kind of bodily knowing distinct from cognitive knowing.

by j_baker 16y ago

"The intuitive mind is a sacred gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift." Albert Einstein

waru 16y ago

Einstein has some great quotes about intuition and creativity. I also like "Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere." His quotes are basically the proof of the pudding that rationality needs intuition, since he's thought of as one of the greatest scientific minds ever.

jodrellblank 16y ago
His quotes don't prove that "rationality needs intuition", they only prove that he could be one of the greatest scientific minds ever while also saying things people like to hear.

gruseom 16y ago

I can't track down a source for this. Do you have one? It's not that far from things that Einstein said (for example, he did say that imagination is more important than knowledge), but it's different in tone. He didn't typically speak in terms of the sacred and he wasn't this kind of social critic, so it would surprise me if it were authentic. Off topic but interesting: the wonderful definition of insanity that's always attributed to Einstein (doing the same thing over again while expecting different results) never came from Einstein at all. It has been traced to a 1983 novel by mystery writer (and one-time partner of Martina Navratilova, how's that for trivia) Rita Mae Brown.

j_baker 16y ago
I found it here, but I've seen it elsewhere (although neither one I would quote as a source in a scholarly paper): https://notes.utk.edu/Bio/greenberg.nsf/0/25f4f2f5e0cc667485256d330070aa70?OpenDocument https://notes.utk.edu/Bio/greenberg.nsf/0/25f4f2f5e0cc667485... Secondly, he did speak of the sacred very frequently in fact, especially later in life: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1607298,00.html http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1607298,00.... Regardless, it's a good quote either way, don't you think?
- gruseom 16y ago
  I found it here Most such quotes on the internet are fake. I'm fascinated by how catchy lines get attributed to famous people, so this is a bit of a hobby. Secondly, he did speak of the sacred very frequently in fact The article you link to doesn't include the word "sacred". I think the word is significant. It doesn't quite seem like a word Einstein would use. Especially in the context of a "sacred gift", which implies a gift-giver. Einstein's deism was resolutely impersonal. As you doubtless are aware, Einstein's religious views or lack thereof are the subject of perennial quarreling among camps eager to claim his name for their own. It's all rather tedious. But it's at least a credit to Einstein's open-mindedness and tolerance that he wasn't a finger-wagging scientistic scold of the likes of Dawkins. Regardless, it's a good quote either way, don't you think? Not quite, no. Certainly my sympathies are all with this line of thinking, so I ought to like it, but it feels like it hits the nail askew. I mean, if the intuitive mind is a sacred gift, why isn't the rational mind also? Presumably there can be more than one gift. Also, the implied symmetry between "intuitive mind" and "rational mind" seems slightly facile. I'm a big relier on intuition but I'm not sure I'd call it a mind. But I'm just rambling out loud here. Thanks for an interesting discussion. Edit: do you know Eugene Gendlin's work on intuition? One of these days I want to read him in greater depth. But I'm familiar with his book Focusing which was an original contribution to psychotherapy. He speaks of intuition (actually, he uses the phrase felt sense) as a kind of bodily knowing distinct from cognitive knowing.