The Origins of Knowledge and the Anxiety of Missing Out

In his book “Contemplations…and Other Free Ideas,” Jean-Louis Schefer suggests that humans have a natural inclination towards a wild life that aligns with nature in all its details. This means that activities like living in the mountains or on beaches, walking barefoot over long distances, and eating plants are all natural behaviors that do not require knowledge about the weather.

People who embrace this way of life are not interested in knowing when it will rain, and they align themselves with animals in their characteristics by not wasting time on nonessential issues. The only things that matter to them are imminent dangers.

The motivation behind human pursuit of knowledge, accumulation of sciences, and transfer of experiences has always been serving their worldly interests. Knowledge is evolutionary in nature, and thus, exploring things that do not serve a purpose is a reflection of the ignorance and misunderstanding of the individual.

If we take the story of Hayy Ibn Yaqzan as an example, we can see that the biggest concern in producing human knowledge is the “need for knowledge.” Without that need, without explaining its limits and dimensions, there is no need.

Need is a stimulus, driver, motivator, and catalyst, and not meeting that need is contrary to nature or, in other words, it contradicts the idea of “man” who is eager to meet his desires in a way that ensures psychological, economic, and civil stability.

The extent of one’s intellectual existence is determined by the satisfaction of their needs and desires. Without that, a person is like a wandering question on two legs, searching for meaning. This is what the famous Arabic philosopher al-Jahiz meant when he said “meanings are scattered along the roadside, and people are distinguished by their words.” In his journey, a human being seeks a meaning that may not align with the current state of their expression – will it be adequate? Comparing humans to walking questions is a reasonable analogy because both the question and the human share a common aspect of being a “style.” The former for inquiring and expressing, and the latter for being a complex pattern of self-awareness and outward manifestation.

Throughout their lives, people are mindful of how they present themselves to others. They arrange and tidy up their appearance, behavior, and words to reflect their choices and identity. This is similar to what Descartes meant by “suspending judgment.” People control what they reveal to the world, and others judge them accordingly. Those who listen to them eagerly await their words, as the saying goes, “speak so that I may see you.” Once they speak, the listener’s perception of them is set, either positively or negatively. This is why the famous quote says, “Men are like locked boxes, and their words hold the key.”

The human being is essentially a question, which implies that it arises from a “need” with boundaries and measures. Any deviation or exceeding of these limits is considered an intellectual hallucination. Failure to respect the “need” to ask questions has created a generation of chatterboxes who say everything and nothing at the same time. There is no question without a motive, and no request for knowledge without a need. In our age, the pursuit of life’s details has become an obsession driven by fear of missing out on something. This fear is rooted in our psychological needs, as noted by researcher Andrew Przybylski at the University of Oxford. It is also possible to add another explanation, which is the overwhelming emptiness that leads to disturbances in decision-making. Our disturbed choices are the cause of the vacuum that erodes our thinking cells.

The need for knowledge is similar to other needs such as hunger and sexual desire, as our desire for knowledge is emotional rather than rational. We are not inclined towards knowledge by choice but by a natural inclination. However, knowledge can be both pleasurable and painful and can lead us down paths of confusion and loss if we are not careful. Every piece of knowledge is not necessarily reliable, just as not all pregnancy leads to childbirth. Barren knowledge results from not considering the conditions necessary for success. Pursuing knowledge is a precise process, akin to sexual readiness, and success depends on mental preparation and creating suitable conditions.

The scope of knowledge is limited by the need for it. It’s important not to destroy the hope and aspirations we build without purposeful direction. Our technological advancements have created a psychological contract, making us “anxious beings,” as if we’re awaiting a new prophet or curse. We ask ourselves in panic: “What should we do?” even though there is nothing to act upon. We question “Where is the escape?” even though there is nowhere to flee. The anxious being is truly a strange creature, like a feather in the wind. Recently, I heard about a young German woman who dropped out of school in protest of the government’s environmental policies. To a lazy and apathetic student, this might seem like a crazy idea. Is this how it all ends for us? Thought patterns change, and I don’t know what the future holds for humanity after a while.