• Embed Doc
  • Copy Link
  • Readcast
  • Collections
  • CommentGo Back
Download
 
 
HHooppssttaakkeenn’’ss nneewwsslleetttteerr
 
WHAT IS WISDOM???
“The very moment a person realizes that reality has many faces,he takes his first step on the road to wisdom.”
2211OOccttoobbeerr22000055 11
sstt
EEddiittiioonn
 
Contents1.
 
Welcome to the first edition 12.
 
What do you know … 23.
 
Panta Rhei, or ‘This River Will Never Be The Same’ 34.
 
Meet Shi Lei 45.
 
A cultural note: Bob Dylan on being friends 56.
 
Developing a course in intercultural communication 67.
 
Wise quotes & -crackers 78.
 
News from across the planet 89.
 
Demand & Supply 910.
 
Our next issue … 91. Welcome to the first edition of ‘What is Wisdom???’
Survey
Thanks again to all those who replied to the survey. Two thirds of all who received the sample & survey, responded – which is highly satisfactory. Your answers are very helpful. I don’t want to make a product, appreciated by only a few.There are many workable suggestions, and most of these will be used sooner or later. Those who responded are allwilling to be interviewed. It was hard to decide about the format (Word or PDF). Most want to receive the newsletter inPDF, so we’ll do that. Downloading Acrobat Reader is easy, and available all over the world. The issue of using real or nicknames led to a variety of answers. I decided to use both, with - after the real name - the nickname between brackets.If I make a mistake in spelling, please let me know straight away. You do realize this is a Very Dutch Solution.
Wisdom
Jiaying (Wing): “I checked this word. It has many meanings. What do you really mean?” She hits the nail on the head.We all want to be wise, so later we’ll be able to look back and conclude: “That was a good decision.” Or, “I’m proud of that.” The problem with making decisions to do something (or not): it’s often very hard to look at the consequences.Deep down we know we are responsible for our actions, meaning: for their consequences. You may be very sure aboutthe rightness of your decision, only to find out later that it was not-so-right. You may feel ashamed: “How could I have been so stupid?” And of course, you are always responsible for your actions, and the world around you expects you takeresponsibility: repairing possible damage, making excuses, etc. What would have been wisdom?The quest for wisdom is a constant search for ways toimprove the thinking processes which lead to decisions wewill not regret. So the title of this newsletter refers to thisquest. If it helps us in any way to make better decisions, theones we’ll be satisfied with afterwards, then it serves itsfirst purpose. The second purpose: to function as aninternational communication platform for exchanging news,ideas and information. Exclusively for those who havesomething in common: 1. they live or have lived in The Netherlands, 2. know me in my quality as consultant /teacher, and 3. I have the honor to know and have workedwith them. (Only those, who actively communicated withme during their time at DDU and with whom I feel there isa basis for friendship, have received an invitation to be onthe mailing list.)
Galahad, Perceval and Bohors carry the silver case containing theHoly Grail to the Spiritual Palace at Sarras.A crippled beggar, miraculously cured, leaps up to help them. From
 La Queste del Saint Graal,
France; circa 1316
Copyright © The British Library Board 
 
DDU
Some suggest that this newsletter should contain DDU news. However, this is not a ‘DDU Newsletter’. It’s published bymy company, Hopstaken. So for news about DDU, I refer to … DDU (www.ddu.nl). Nevertheless, for many subscribersof What is Wisdom??? DDU has been (or is) their playground. So yes, there will be news about DDU, or the school will be mentioned in passing.
Suggestions
Many of you came up with useful suggestions:“I like to read about (…) successful business people, (…) because we can learn from their real life experience – not onlywhat we can read in books.”“I would like to know about my classmates, how they are doing (…)”“Maybe an update on what’s going on in the Netherlands.”“Information on new business ideas, or new subjects. (Such as) ‘Future Management’.”“I will choose Consultancy as my major (…) I think sharing your experience will be of value to me.”There were many suggestions. The next issue will be focusing on ‘consultancy’. How to become a consultant, tools andtips, and in particular, the communication aspects of this profession.
 I received so many suggestions; it would be easy to continue filling this newsletter for two or three years. Thanks a lot. I take a bow to all of you who came up with suggestions, and feel truly honored by your feedback. Yet, you know how it is: feedback is always appreciated. So don’t stop!
2. What do you know …
Shocked
I was shocked to find out that three days after the disaster, many current students were not aware of the earthquake thatdestroyed the lives of 100,000’s of Northern Pakistani, Indians and Afghani. The death toll at this moment is over 54,000. I know – there’s nothing you can do. No. Actually, you can. It’s very simple. By showing some sympathy to thePakistani, Indians and Afghani you meet. I asked one student, Nasir, about it. He was born and grew up in a Kashmir village that doesn’t exist anymore. He was sad, but bravely tried to keep his wits together. Can you imagine???
References (1)
Looking for an online encyclopedia? Tryhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page.I use it all the time. If you want to know my secrets, this is one of them. 761,669articles on anything you want to know. But beware: not
all
is high quality. Never  blindly trust anything that is writen, or on your screen. Always check your facts.
References (2)
Words can be tricky. Especially when they are used in a meaning that differs fromthe one you know. Then sentences don’t make sense anymore, and even a whole textmay confuse you, or put you to sleep. Next to a good dictionary I regularly usewebsites such aswww.yourdictionary.comandwww.alphadictionary.com. Both  provide a daily newsletter concentrating on one English word. The descriptionsinclude the word’s origin, their basic meaning. Often highly enlightening.
References (3)
 The world has news happening every day. Much of it is bad news, as good news is‘not profitable’, according to the Media Moguls. And governments use them to filter info. As a result, it’s almostimpossible to know what’s
really
going on. Nevertheless, there are numerous possibilities to keep you aware of what’sgoing on this planet. Even MSN and Yahoo! provide some highlights. But if you really want to be informed, find peoplefrom the area where the events take place. Or if that’s not realistic, find a good online newspaper that focuses on what’shappening in your home country. Some international online newspapers aren’t too bad. Personally, I’m quite happy withmy New York Times weekly update (free), and certain online newsletters on professional topics. Some universities alsooffer great services in this field. A few tips:http://country-studies.com, andhttp://www.careeronestop.org. On business ethics / corporate governance this site can help:www.csrwire.com. But the best way is to find these reference sitesyourself, of course.However, if you know of any reference site(s) that could be of interest to the readers, let me know.
Today, October 21, 2005: It’s Women’s Day in Viet Nam.How to escape the madnesses of planet Earth
Check http://earth.google.com. And try to find the place you consider home, paradise, where NEVER to return, etc.Google Earth is free. However: it’s only fit for broadband (it’s BIG, earth).Hopstaken Bedrijfsadvies – www.hopstaken.com 
2
 
3. Panta Rhei or ‘This river will never be the same’
– by Peter van Oosten
 
‘Everything flows’ is the meaning of this ancient Greek expression of which many people believe that Heraclites of Ephesus, who lived in the 6
th
century BC, was theinventor. (Loek and I have been in Ephesus last year; it’s a beautiful ruin city inTurkey. The picture shows the ‘bathroom’, an excellent place for philosophers.)Heraclites, by the way, in his Logos-(Reason, the way of the world-) philosophy,came very close to Lao-Tsze, the Chinese philosopher, with his famous Tao (Dao,The Way). Hegel, the later (1770-1831) German philosopher, was very fond of Heraclites and his book ‘Logic’ is one straight reference to the ancient Greek master and, of course, to Immanuel Kant, his own direct inspirer. Karl Marx and hisfollowers, impressed by Hegel, entwined these thoughts into their ideals and – crazily enough – also into their dogma’s (rather static principles, as you know…)! Nietzsche (1844-1900) also was a great admirer of Heraclitean philosophy,especially where it concerns ‘war’, its ‘necessity’, and its believed universal aspects.The 1
st
and 2
nd
World War, and all the other similar happenings since, might havehad some links to thoughts like these.But I intended to talk about ‘Love’ …Well, in fact it’s not such a big leap, from ‘hatred’ or ‘hate’ to ‘love’, as many of you will realize. Maybe you remember me saying at these moments, while explaining matters like these: “There’s only one second difference between bad and good, maybe even less…”. And perhaps you can also remember my Yin Yang (shady-sunny) drawings on the whiteboard. My explanations and your own discussions around it, beginningwith “how to pronounce it” and traditionally ending with “female-male”. You might recall myeverlasting wondering about why the shady side of the symbol must stand for “feminine” and the sunnyside for “masculine”… Starting this discussion now at DDU brings – once again – totally differentoutcomes and point-of-views! We gathered many new students from Pakistan, gender-type: male, who – most probably – also believe in the ultimate reunion of male and female aspects, but in daily life keep a great distance.I hear you think: Hofstede… Yes, of course! But some other thinkers have even better ideas about those topics.Loek took over the intercultural backpack of Larry and – just like before – every other teacher in school always openlywonders about the many different aspects, which give color to our global world. We still talk a lot about ‘ethics’ and‘social/corporate responsibility’. Recently we built in some ‘Manners’-lessons. Etiquette, in a certain way. Good and/or less good or even bad behavior. The Why’s and the Why-not’s. And: how to be clear about it.Ex-students and –teachers probably remember the sidewalk in front of DDU-building, the favorite place for students andsome teachers in-between, before or after lessons. Coffee, tea, Coke, cigarette, some snacks accompanying theconversations, complaints and gossips. When everybody was back inside or gone again, the leftovers marked thesidewalk: empty cups, cigarette cartons, and bags, whatever. ‘Leftovers’, but to whom? And: why?‘Respect’ certainly is the word of magic and what else than “Love” is meant with it?“This river never will be the same” are the wise words, spoken to Siddhartha, the youngBuddha, according to the Buddhist Holy Books and according to the famous novelSiddhartha, written by Herman Hesse in 1922. In most classes I have been teaching, Ihave mentioned that specific part of the story. About Siddhartha, standing on the banksof that river, having to say Goodbye after some period of ‘internship’ with ascetic monks.Siddhartha said words like: “some day I will return here, at this beautiful river…” Whereashis mentor told him, that such would be impossible. “The water flows, Siddhartha, whichmeans, that what you see now and which you seem to like, is not
 here
anymore at thefollowing moment, but
 there
… While the river consists of such water, the river is always adifferent one. In fact: The River does not exist!”At some precious moments I’ve taken students to our beautiful riverside in Deventer.The IJssel river was created for meditation objectives, in my humble opinion. At those same precious moments we wereable to talk more ‘privately’, although in a group, but being outside ‘the institute’. I happened to learn more about thesestudents then and I bet they had the same experience concerning me. These experiences really show and become clear, atmoments like Graduation Day and, occasionally, at the railway station or at Schiphol airport.Tears in my heart, pearls in my eyes, cascades in my throat…Hopstaken Bedrijfsadvies – www.hopstaken.com 
3
of 00

Leave a Comment

You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...
You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...