Sometimes, ignorance really is bliss...

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I think I have too much knowledge. Albert Einstein and many others have said that "A little knowledge is dangerous, too much is too."

It bothers me alot. I know too much. I'm not trying to brag, but I have major depression and aspergers as well as body dismoprhia. I don't think anyone knows everything, but my grasp for knowledge has become too much. No one who truly knows too much admits it, most people who know too much realize how much more they have to learn, because one is always learning.

It is just beginning to interfere with my life. The more I read about psychology, (I have a couple college textbooks I read for fun, I want to major in it), magic tricks and the history of it (They are the #1 debunker of psychics and other spiritual phenonemon), science and history, the more I lose my faith and become more and more depressed.

I'm an athetist now, I used to believe in god. But I don't anymore, my knowledge has interfered with it. I feel so isolated all the time. I have met a new friend and am finally finding meaning in life, she also has aspergers. But, sometimes I wish I didnt know certain things.

I don't know everything. I hardly know much, considering what more there is to learn. We all don't know much. I don't mean to brag about this, just I feel my knowledge is too much, even dangerous to myself. Everyone is knowledgeable about different areas. But my knowledge is too broad...I really think too much knowledge can be dangerous and I read encylopedia's online for hours and hours everyday, 7 days a week, all the time I read. I am good with people too, and try to help others, but it's driving me insane. Realizing that god may not exist, realizing that throughout history religion has imposed unfair laws on people, such as when socrates correctly said that the earth revolves around the sun, and he had to drink poison (hemlock?) and kill himself, because it didn't agree with church.

I don't understand why one religion can make all others go to hell. I can't imagine how people can simutaniously be punished and rewarded at the same time. Shouldn't religion be equal? If there is heaven, shouldn't everyone be able to have a chance? I think alot. Why would god not treat people equally, fairly, and send people to heaven instead based on how they did in life, how they treated others and their intentions, rather than sending people to hell because they don't believe that particular religion? What makes someone a "good" person? Is it their actions or intent? I am curious. I always have been. Its weird. I don't want to bring up religion or the topic because people have very strong opinions and it sometimes brings up arguments, but, it bothers me alot.


Is it possible one can read and know too much? Knowledge is power, but can too much knowledge be dangerous? Is posible too much knowledge, knowing the dangers, risk, bleakness of life can lead to depression? What is the meaning of life? I think its about helping other people. "A life worth living is a one helping others." "If the only reason we do something good is to expect something good in return, we are a sorry lot indeed."

What do you think? I'm curious what your guys opinions are on this subject. I just can't take it.

I wouldn't suggest that I am very knowledgeable. I do try to learn a little every day though.

However, I have battled with myself on the religious front. I am not an atheist. I suppose you could describe me as I am a devout agnostic. If there is a god, he/she/it is not related to religion. I strongly believe that organized religion is man’s way of coping with things that he can’t explain with his limited knowledge. Unfortunately, organized religion has a very long history of being used by sections of people to control others and as a means for inciting hatred.

I am no saint but I do consider myself a good person. I endeavor to be ethical, fair, kind, companionate, etc, not because I am fearful of a wrathful, judgmental god, but just because it is the right thing to do. I try to treat others as I would like to be treated myself. Sometimes good deeds are returned, which makes me feel good. My AS often means that I do not read situations correctly and I get things wrong, which does trouble me but I doubt if I will get sent to hell.

I respect the beliefs of other people and I expect respect of others for my own belief, or lack of one. As for the meaning of life, it is what each of us wants it to be. Why should it be anything else? I am content in not having a religion and do not feel troubled. In observing people that do follow an organized religion, their faith does appear to give them something that I do not have. I can’t put my finger on it though. Perhaps it is a sense of belonging that those of us with AS rarely have anyway.

I don't think one can have too much knowledge. Yes you can gain knowledge of all of the bad, bleak things but there is also the knowledge of all of the good bright things as well to offset these. One just needs to take a balanced view.

I'm agnostic , there is no proof for me atm one way or the other and my religious knowledge is limited to attending a catholic school for 4 years. (Means very little in the overall scope of knowledge)

I haven't picked up any significant religious text such as a bible, so until my mind is made up I could never be considered atheist.

But tbh.. i'm also closer to agnostic/theism in the sense I believe there has to be at least one creator. Creator doesn't mean almight divinity, but even man kinds theorys (imo) such as the big bang have always seemed like nonsense. Nothing cannot begin by nothing and to be honest if there was a creator, who's to say he even uses the same knowledge base humans use? Or that humans who can't even come up with basic answers to "non-divine" problems could even understand such a being if we tried?

God to me would have to know every single thing that makes man tick, every possible utility for resources (I.E. computers, airplanes, ships), at least as defined by religion. He's all knowing, he'd have to dwarf our knowledge to shame.

Now just a basic creator.. or something we all originated from could just be a simple being that only "conceived" humanity. Sorta like a woman giving birth--women don't know everything about their child, what genes they have, what problems they'll have, heck its impossible to know whether its a boy or girl without running tests but innately they have no clue.

But yeah its depressing, I heard religiously that this was all a test, that the end of days would come and all the people who believed and held faith in their savior would get second chances but I can't believe that a "rebirth" would be just off of whether I chose to believe or not. There are good people who are put in such horrible situations or even not given the chance to build a "personal" relationship with whoever your religious deity might be.

Anyway, I'm thankful for life and all that was taken to give it to me, but sometimes life is simply TOO messed up to believe in that stuff.

I used to feel like this so I stopped trying to learn things for a long time but now I can't stop again. I just keep absorbing stuff.

You realise that Socrates's death had less to do with religious aspects than political ones, right? Link. Besides the fact that there was no church at the time (organised religion, but no church), religion is not only a bad thing. I know quite a few people who get great comfort from their religion. I envy them, honestly, as I simply find that I cannot believe. I am, therefore, an agnostic (not an atheist, as that is a belief just as well).

Lots of bad things have happened and will continue to happen because people disagree on religions. I have never understood this and probably never will. But when I start seeing religion as a bad thing, I always think of those people who get comfort from it, and it doesn't last long.

I feel the same way you do. For me, it's the little things in life that make me happy. A beautiful piece of music, a good joke, nature, these are all things which bring a smile to my face.

Thanks for reading my post.

I also wanted to clarify i think religion is a great thing, if people can find comfort in it and find happiness. Unfortunately sometimes religion tears apart people, but it also unites people.

Didn't einstein say all he needed was a violin and a cigar or something to be happy? In other words, its the little things like you said.

Sometimes I think its better to live life, let things happen sometimes. I think if one thinks too much about life, infinity, and such, you can probably go insane. I remember reading a book on a story about this women who was abused by her husband. Day after day, her husband woul abuse her. All she wanted was a great marriage and family, that was her dream. Well, unfortunately she didn't get that. So she made up a reality, a fantasy, where she had a new husband, a fantastic marriage and wonderful children. She was more happy in this fantasy than in real life. She couldn't tell life from fantasy. When asking the psychologist, he replied "I wouldn't wish it upon anyone. She is happier now than she ever was."

Despite this, she was happy.

I think the issue isn't ignorance, but the willingness to be ignorant vs willingness to learn more. One is easier than the other . . . it's easier to put faith into something that go forth into the world and expand on what was assumed. Knowledge and faith will always be at each others throats. I'm not a religious man either, and I tend to teeter between agnostic and athiest (I know that about everything can be explained, and more to be learned along the way . . . but some things just go beyond logic).

I'll admit that I'm in the same boat as you . . . depressed, faithless, feeling hopeless and helpless. Yet, I want to know more. I think the issue then becomes, "Are we addicted to information? Is knowledge (and acquiring it) a euphoric to some people?" As my therapist has told me, running on a euphoric that long is unhealthy (as recreational drugs have proven, not to mention the ups/downs of Bipolar).

Now, back to the religion issue . . . when groups of people get together, that's a recipe for potential disaster . . . especially with these orators with thunderous voices spewing their views. For some reason, it's in our nature to follow, so a person could speak nonsense and the rest would consider it Truth. There is nothing wrong with giving up something if it no longer holds up to your standards. And the whole heaven/hell issue is more an old tactic to bring people under control (ie Middle ages, and that was a messy era, and is responsible for our current issues with the East). They're more about control and order than about bonding and uniting humanity, and they use "blasphemy" as an excuse to silence or excommunicate those who disagree.

All I need for happiness is a piano and time.

It's just, the more knowledge I get, (The more I learn about math, science, philosphy, especially psychology) the more depressed I get. The more I realize there is no order to life, no point really, other than helping others in the little time we have in this world.

Yes I would like to be ignorant of the fact there are people even on this website who will claim pushing through life day by day while feeling suicidal and even managing to pass their college classes is a sign of giving up.......and that they are better because at least they have not given up.

I suppose being informed of our current knowledge can lead to a depressing outlook, especially when our leaders seem to have such a materialistic and dog eat dog mentallity. By learning about the world we see how bad it is and there seems to be more bad than good. I am sick of the wars and I am sick of hearing about the economy, they are depressing to me.

I think that ignorance promotes a happy outlook because those people are not thinking about the s**t in the world. Or they do not look deep enough into things to see that its not all black and white.

I've been a history nerd for over twenty years but have felt no such worthlessness and hopelessness. In fact, education is a continuous hunger. I don't understand how you can become depressed about math. I don't remember ever feeling that life had no meaning beyond self-sacrifice during Trigonometry. I think how you process this information is more trouble than that you have the information. I'd see a mental health professional to better identify what's going on here. Maybe s/he can provide you the tools you need to not become overwhelmed by education and spiraling into depression from it.

I think the issue is not by having too much knowledge, but how you treat it when you have it. While I have had a few moments where I think that perhaps this is all pointless, they don't happen often and only last a few minutes or so. I firmly believe that there is no such thing as evil. Nobody wakes up and says" I'm going to do great evil today, muahahahaha!! !!" In the end, everybody believes that they are doing good one way or another. Take pirating off the coastlines of some of the poor African countries. The people who commit those acts have lived through lives of poverty where they have to fight to get what they need to survive. They see these people sailing by in boats who have lived in apparent luxury and yet don't try to help out others in the poorer countries. When the pirates attack those ships, they believe they are doing something good by taking stuff from people who "apparently" have it all and giving it to somebody who needs the stuff just to live another day.

I also believe that the only person who can determine your purpose and point in your life is yourself. This is your life, and you are not a slave to everyone around you or even some divine being. This is your life and you are living it; they are not living it for you. After often being bullied and teased when I was younger, I have grown to not simply care about what random people on the street care about me. I like playing the games I do, reading the books I do, and watching the TV shows that I do because it makes me happy, and if they have a problem with that then that is there issue, not mine. I shouldn't let the happiness in my life be determined by people who I think are far stupider than I am.

I understand how you feel, the 'too much knowledge' aspect anyway. Everything I read is depressing, about all the crimes that occur a day, all the children who die a day, how drug use is increasing, and suicide rates, and recidivism, and political scandels, and divorce rates, and I could go on and on. The more I learn about the world, the more I hate it. It's funny. You're an atheist and I'm a hardcore Catholic, but we ask the same questions. "Why I am alive? Why does so much evil exist? What's the point?" Since there is no way to prove or disprove God's existence, I choose to believe anyway because it's the only hope that I have, the hope that when I die, there's a better place for me. According to M theory, there are 11 different dimensions, the first 4 we can perceive. The other 7? I don't know and no one else does either. Maybe one of those is Heaven. As long as I'm alive and trapped by those other 4 perceivable dimensions, I will never have peace. However, I'm in no hurry to find out. My time will come. All of ours will. And then we'll figure out who was right and who was not. In the mean time, my intellect, my life, and my faith are all that I have.