Yaqueen
There are different kinds and degrees of yaqueen or
certainty. Yaqueen is very much tied to the sort of
experiences one has had.
Consider some of the ways in which an individual might come
to learn about, say, one, or more, of the oceans of the world.
There are various degrees of certainty associated with
different kinds of knowledge or understanding.
For example, let us imagine there is a person who has
overheard some puzzling conversations by travelers passing
through the region about something called an "ocean".
These wayfarers even may have described various aspects of
this 'ocean'.
If the individual does not know the travelers and does not
know about oceans, she or he has no way of knowing if they
are telling the truth or telling stories. All the person knows is
that, prior to the overheard conversation, he or she had
never encountered such an idea.
Next, let us suppose, the individual goes to a regional library
and begins to look up information on oceans. The person:
reads a few books on oceanography; sees a variety of
photographs of different oceans; and, maybe, watches an
educational film or two about oceans.
Certainly, the person now has more information at his or her
disposable than before. However, this information still is
secondhand and removed from the actual ocean.
The individual begins to think a lot about oceans and desires
to see one. Consequently, the individual makes arrangements
to go on a journey to the ocean described in the library
material as being closest to where the person lives.
The individual goes on a trip to the ocean and reaches the
desired destination. Soon, the person is walking along the
shore and gazing at the ocean.
Let us assume the person eventually comes to a marina
where there are boats for rent. The individual is the
adventurous sort and decides to take a small boat out on the
bay.
While rowing or sailing about, the person sees some people
in the water engaged in various kinds of activity. Later, after
describing the activity to someone on shore, the individual
finds out these people were swimming.
Swimming seems a rather intriguing thing to do. Therefore,
after buying the appropriate apparel, the individual proceeds
to wade into the water and splash about in the shallows near
the shore.
During this "swimming" session, the person comes across
some people who are getting ready to go scuba diving.
Questions are asked, and answers are given.
When the individual comes out of the water, someone gives
the person a flyer about a school for scuba diving which has
just opened at the marina. Naturally, the individual signs up.
After receiving the appropriate instruction, the person rents
some equipment and begins seeking someone with whom to
dive. As luck would have it, such a person is found, and they
begin diving at various locations near the marina.
During various conversations with the new found companion,
our wayfarer finds out one can go much deeper in the ocean
than had been the case on their previous dives. However,
different equipment is necessary, depending on how far down
one wants to go.
Having come this far, our wayfarer is not interested in being
limited to diving only a hundred feet, or so, beneath the
surface. This individual wants to go as deeply into the ocean
as possible.
The person begins finding out all about deep-sea submergible
vehicles. One of the things learned during this period of study
is how dangerous such voyages can be and that only a fool
would try to undertake such a project alone.
Therefore, the individual sets about trying to find a
knowledgeable diver who would be willing to tolerate the
ignorance and inexperience of the wayfarer. Not being sure
where to look first, the individual goes to the Yellow Pages.
The Yellow Pages contain listings for: deep-sea
tele-presence; deep-sea mapping; deep-sea secrets; deep-sea
advisory boards; deep-sea consultants; deep-sea vision;
deep-sea explorations; deep-sea books; deep-sea imaging;
deep-sea mining; deep-sea virtual reality; deep-sea resources;
deep-sea junk; deep-sea mysteries; deep-sea salvage;
deep-sea treasures, and quite a few other entries. The
individual is confused with all the choices.
Eventually, after spending considerable time and effort in
checking out various possibilities, and after a few false
starts, the individual stumbles across the path of an authentic
expert. Fortunately, this expert also has a weakness and
compassion for training novices in the area of deep-sea
diving.
The expert, nevertheless, sets one condition on the
arrangement. At some point, the individual must choose
between the life on land or the life at sea.
The individual spends a number of years learning about
submergible vehicles, currents, navigation and so on under
the guidance of the veteran diver. Finally, the time comes for
the individual to dive into the depths of the ocean.
As the two get prepared for the dive, they are beset by people
protesting their proposed venture into the deep. Some of the
protesters believe the dive is in contravention of various laws.
Others among the protestors believe the resources being
assigned to the dive could be put to better use elsewhere.
Some of the people fear the dive could upset the balance of
nature.
Protests notwithstanding, the dive is made. During this dive,
the individual sees and witnesses all kinds of incredible,
beautiful things which, previously, had not been conceived of
by the individual.
The individual reaches a depth which is beyond the scale of
the vessel's gauges. Suddenly, there is incredible light all
around, where previously there only had been darkness. The
light is alive with knowledge, love and many other qualities
as well.
The person wonders if this is a symptom of some form of
depth psychosis about which the individual once read. The
veteran diver says this is not the case. The person is told
something similar happens almost to everyone who reaches
this depth, although the precise character of the experience
varies with the individual.
The wayfarer comes away from this voyage determined to
commit the rest of his or her life to being a deep-sea diver.
The experiences encountered in the depths of the ocean have
had a transforming effect on what the individual feels and
thinks about the purpose, meaning, value and significance of
life.
Moreover, this new found understanding is not conceptual in
nature. It is experiential, direct, and essential.
When the two deep sea divers return to land, there are some
media people waiting to interview them. These reporters
have come to find out both: about the controversy created by
the encounter between the divers and the protesters, as well
as about some rumors concerning their extraordinary
experiences during their dive.
Most of what transpired during the dive is really beyond
description. However, the two divers try their best to give the
media people a sense of what the dive was like.
The reporters ask a lot of questions and seem rather
skeptical about the story of the two divers. With all due
respect to the two individuals, the account of the divers,
nonetheless, seems to the reporters to be rather vague,
phantasmal and far-fetched.
A number of the media group have advanced degrees of one
sort or another. However, none of them has ever done
anything more than a little snorkeling.
The reporters all feel, based on their years of media
experience, quite certain there are ample reasons for not
taking the accounts of the divers seriously. Consequently, if
they report about the divers at all, the pieces will be treated,
at best, as some sort of entertaining, weird human interest
story and not as hard news.
The two divers invite the media people to join them in the
next dive as participant-observers. The veteran diver
indicates one really cannot understand the experience of
deep-sea diving unless one undergoes the experiences
oneself.
Details concerning departure time and so on are given.
Several of the reporters indicate considerable interest in
following up on this invitation.
When the time arrives for the next dive, none of the media
people show up. Apparently, the reporters have something
else in mind when they speak of investigative reporting.
The veteran diver reminds the individual of the condition set
some time ago when the person first came seeking assistance
in deep-sea diving. More specifically, the individual has to
make a choice between the ways of life on land and the ways
of life in the ocean depths.
The veteran diver points out that, now, the wayfarer knows
what people, such as the reporters, and those influenced by
the reporters, think about deep-sea diving. The individual is
asked: "Which is more important: the theories, opinions and
conjectures of others concerning experiences which they
have not had, or one's own experiences which have been
confirmed by an expert in such matters?"
The wayfarer says the latter is more important. Therefore,
the choice of the individual is to opt for the way of life of the
ocean depths.
The two divers proceed to head out to sea. They again dive
to the depths and find it as exhilarating and joyous as the last
time.
During this voyage, there are many difficulties and problems
which arise. As a result of these challenges and tests, the
individual comes to learn many important things concerning
life, character and identity.
Over the years, a deep bond of love and friendship arises
between the two divers. The veteran diver shares a wealth of
understanding, knowledge, wisdom and experience with our
wayfarer.
Several decades later, there are reports the two have been
lost at sea. Some say they are dead. Some say they found a
hidden treasure in the deepest part of the ocean. Some say
they are in the Bermuda Triangle or aboard the Flying
Dutchman. God, alone, knows the truth of any of these
accounts.
The disappearance is covered by the same group of media
people who interviewed the divers many years earlier. These
reporters really don't know anything more now concerning
the ocean than they did before. Furthermore, they know very
little about the lives led, or the experiences encountered, by
the two divers since they last were all together.
Nonetheless, at least, these reporters had some personal
contact with the divers. Therefore, they go about reporting
their stories. This is, after all, what they do for a living.
Every year, around the time of the reported disappearance,
there are public gatherings. These functions commemorate
the spirit of commitment and exploration exemplified in the
lives of the two divers.
On these occasions, learned speakers come and deliver
various kinds of addresses. Some of these lectures are based
on studies and experiments, completed under simulated
conditions in the laboratory, concerning the lives of deep-sea
divers.
Some of the speakers talk about their computer models of
deep-sea diving. Still others have worked out an impressive
array of mathematical equations and formulae which purport
to capture the spirit and essence of deep-sea diving.
There are some people who commemorate these occasions in
a slightly different way. On the basis of a variety of evidence,
including eye-witness reports, they feel certain the divers still
are alive. Consequently, they organize search parties to go
looking for the divers who have disappeared.
The travelers, the library, the marina, the boat, the
swimmers, the person passing out handbills, the scuba-diving
school, the scuba divers, the organizations and businesses in
the Yellow Pages, the deep-sea divers, the protestors, the
media people, the learned scholars, and the search parties,
all have a relationship with the ocean. All of these
relationships are rooted in experiences of one kind or
another.
Some of these experiences are quite removed from the
realities of the ocean. Other experiences come from the
ocean depths. Still other experiences fall somewhere in
between the foregoing two possibilities.
All of the parties feel varying degrees of certainty concerning
the truth of their experiences. Some of those who feel certain
actually may be correct. Still others not only may be correct,
but they actually also may know this to be so.
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