...WHAT DOES MEAN MAKING IN ACTION MEAN?
So, I downloaded Module 2 handbook and started reading it. And here I go, "boom!" "kapaw!" "puff!" feeling like I went back to point zero, trying to decipher what it is I need to focus on. So, I booked my Skype presto.
Sometimes academic writing just leaves me puzzled and ready to pull my hair!...When you think you start to understand things...
Earlier in September last year I attended a talk at Southbank with Akala - Author/Activist/Musician and his guest panel. It was a great talk. One of the things that I retained was something Prof. David Killingray, one of the distinguished panel members, said. He mentioned that academia ought to change its language in order to be more accessible to people. Buddhism did it. Buddhist texts were initially held by monks and were quite complex to study. It took another monk in the 13th century - Nichiren - that decided to simplify it in order that all people could practice it.
...I guess I'm just not used to not understanding what I read straight away. Is this meaning making in action? When you connect the dots while in action? No idea.
I was excited however to read about the classic philosophers. I did my A level in Philosophy and never thought I would utilise this knowledge for anything much aside from a basic understanding on how these philosophers influenced thought through time. I've often used Socrates saying " All I know is that I know nothing.." many times in my life as a reminder of my own continuous professional development and I translated Descartes " I think therefore I am" into a modern version of "what I think, manifests physically". So, reading Adesola's PHD extract was quite satisfying whereby it was a warm reminder of philosophical debates at school that only me ( the nerdy girl) and a couple of other students would participate in a half asleep class.
As I was reading it I also realised that I was, of course, interpreting it through a fresh lens due to my own acquired life experience, 20 years later! Was that meaning making in action? No idea.
Hopefully some of my questions will be answered and next blog will be more constructive. At the moment I'm looking through a binoculars lens and seeing an arid space filled with words and definitions that jumble together in a bowl of potential.
Hi Iris
ReplyDeleteThat's really interesting because I also haven't pinned down the exact meaning of 'Meaning, Making in Action' - but you pointing this out, made me understand how I felt about it. Sometimes I think meanings are a little like dance, if you stare at it head-on demanding, clarity and comprehension the dance will mean nothing to you, but if you let it just exist, experiencing it but not interrogating it, you will feel you understand and then 'bam' it will all become clear (I hope so anyway!). Also in keeping with your blog, it feels a bit like a Taoist approach to me and that's always a good thing. Not sure if that helps at all, but it works for me.
Hi Stella
DeleteThanks for your thoughts and comments. I have an impatient nature thought and a very low abstract mindset I think, so this "letting exist" approach doesn't often vibrate with me and has a tendency to do the opposite which is to fly away together with my interest. I recognise that in myself and have stopped trying to change it. Instead I prefer to work on clarity and accessibility for my own understanding and transmission of knowledge. One week on and I'm not really any closer. Let's see.
Hello Iris, So refreshing to read your blog post. I love the touch on Buddhism. As someone who studied Buddhism a bit in my undergraduate I related to your perspective. Buddhism is so vast and complex but if you take it in pieces and in a clear way maybe you can grow or take something from that knowledge. In a way any complex topic can still have meaning in action. Just by sifting through the vast material one is making meaning in action.
ReplyDeleteHuuumm I understand. Yes, that's a good point I guess. Thanks for the input!
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