Culture gives life meaning and makes us aware that our existence is part of a long human heritage. In reading something that others have written we are transported from our limited life to an infinite world.
Culture is everyone’s heritage. Even those people who may not have attained a high level of formal education can remedy that deficiency by setting their sights on a cultural agenda that expands their minds — they will never look back. Schools may educate but they cannot give a person culture. With the best universities and the toughest curriculums, those who excel cannot be compared to those who remain confined in their studies to a set curriculum and who limit themselves to their field of study. It would not be an exaggeration to call the latter ignorant; in fact, their ignorance can make them more dangerous than the illiterate. Their false pride can have serious consequences, as their opinions may have a direct effect on society and consequently worsen the already pitiful situation of the common culture.
Those who study religion must also study the knowledge on which society is built in order to turn their education into something useful instead of merely learning by rote and regurgitating at will, both of which leave no desire for learning more. This is especially critical when the students belong to a group of young people who are of the belief that what applies to religion and its scholars applies to all other fields of knowledge.
The lesson in life as in war is set by the plan we follow. Napoleon insisted on excellence and equipped all his battalions with horses, cannon and soldiers. He then picked out the battalion that excelled above all others. This battalion became a source of power that allowed him to strike at his enemy’s weak point and win.
It is the same when reading. You select a topic or field of knowledge or interest, and after general and preliminary reading begin to delve more deeply into the subject and look into its various branches until you become an expert in the chosen field. Thousands of years ago, a doctor was known as a wise man because he didn’t limit himself to knowledge about medicine but was also knowledgeable in history, religion, philosophy, language and literature.
As long as life is greater than any vocation, culture is a life requirement before it is a requirement of the vocation. The rule of life is constant development, and we must remain alive to that truth in a manner that allows us to maintain our individuality. It is not a matter of limiting ourselves. On the contrary, an open mind is vital. Extremism no longer has a foundation to stand on, and no one is easily tricked by ringing phrases or false claims.
Ideological destitution is the greatest calamity that can afflict a nation. Deficiency in the cultural reservoir and the lack of maturity and awareness are the key ingredients of passivity. A society whose culture is static will soon enough become a stagnant civilization. Such nations usually oppose reform and openness because they do not see the value in reforms and are afraid of the results. It is the misfortune of this geriatric nation to live in isolation, constantly clashing with the surrounding world.
Man breathes with his mind just as he breathes with his lungs. In order for his culture to grow and develop he needs freedom of thought. This should begin at home. Parents can ignite the love of reading in their children or douse it forever. If an environment is backward and repressive, it can only produce mentally and psychologically disordered individuals.
There are many homes today where no attempt is made to raise the cultural awareness of family members. In those homes books have no value and newspapers aren’t read or their content discussed. In those homes there are no family gatherings, and intellectual discussions are non-existent. Those families never visit exhibitions, museums, libraries or theaters. Since those families never know the meaning of cultural equality, children from such homes will be left floundering on the battlefield of life.
Those children have no reserves of language that will enable them to think and resolve issues. Some psychologists claim that we cannot think without a language. They say that thoughts are silent words and giving them expression is dependent on fluency and a structural organization of words when speaking. This can only exist through education of the mind.
At this point I would like to emphasize the role of friends and the need for care in choosing friends who enjoy reading and can help us become more cultured. Such friends understand that these matters require us to dedicate our time to their pursuit. Such friends will understand the need for a person to spend time alone during the day in order to develop his personality without becoming introverted.
The great German thinker and poet Goethe loved to socialize, but he also habituated himself to sitting alone, reading and becoming cultured — until he became a symbol of his country.
Culture does not mean disconnecting from the world. Until the tools of thought and civilization and the tools of action become definitions of a single term, what we read in books will remain unreachable in reality. Only when our culture becomes our civilization and our civilization becomes our culture will we have become a society that knows how to engender morality. It is only in such a society that life becomes an expression of human beings where there is no distinction between what ought to be and what is.
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(Suraya Al-Shehry is a Saudi writer. She is based in Riyadh.)
