What Is the Mind? — The Quiet Answers Philosophy Has Built Up: Chapter 3　Why Does the Mind “Learn”?

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Hello everyone. This is Akira.

In the previous chapter, we saw that Plato regarded death as the separation of the soul from the body, and positioned philosophy as the practice of that separation.

Then why is it that the soul can function apart from the body?

And why is it that our “mind” is able to “learn” so many things?

In the Phaedo, Socrates presents another important idea. It is the theory of recollection.

Socrates poses a question to one of his disciples, Cebes:

We know the concept of “equal.”

However, in this world, we never actually encounter two things that are perfectly equal. Whether it is wooden sticks, stones, or lines, there is always some slight difference.

And yet we are still able to judge that “these are equal.”

Where does this judgment come from?

If we had only experienced “equal” for the first time after we were born, where would we have obtained the standard of perfect “equality”?

Socrates finds an answer here.

Perhaps our soul already knew “equality,” “beauty,” and “justice” — eternal things (the Forms) — before it came to dwell in the body.

And after coming to dwell in the body, we learn by “recollecting” them.

This idea may seem strange at first.

However, if we shift our perspective slightly, we can see that it resonates with our modern experience as well.

For example, there are times when we struggle with a difficult problem for a long time and cannot find the answer.

Later, after taking a walk, zoning out, or getting enough rest, we suddenly have a flash of insight — “Ah, so that’s how it is!”

It feels as if we are “remembering” something we somehow already knew.

Of course, this is not exactly the same as the “recollection of the soul” that Plato spoke of.

However, many people have experienced the sense that the act of “learning” is not merely stuffing information in from the outside, but rather has an aspect of awakening something that already exists within.

In particular, when the brain is completely exhausted, it becomes difficult to absorb new things. If we try to force information in, it often leads to confusion or poor retention.

On the other hand, after getting sufficient rest or spending quiet, blank time, things we previously learned naturally connect, and new understanding emerges.

This kind of experience seems to resonate with the “depth of the mind” suggested by Plato’s theory of recollection.

Perhaps the mind is not merely a passive vessel that stores information, but an existence that already possesses certain connections and possibilities.

And in order to make use of those possibilities, it becomes important to distance ourselves from excessive stimulation from the body and the outside world, and to secure quiet time — this is a practical suggestion we can draw from Plato and apply to the present day.

Of course, Plato’s theory presupposes the pre-existence and immortality of the soul.

We today do not need to believe it literally.

However, the perspective that within the act of “learning” there exists something more than mere memorization or training — namely, inner realization and connection — gives us a valuable hint for understanding the mind in a richer and deeper way.

In the next chapter, we will continue tracing Plato’s thought, focusing on the discussion of “affinity” — why the soul was thought to have a different nature from the body.

Please look forward to it!

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Akira

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