SHAFAQNA- Alkafeel: The Supreme Religious Authority determined the essentials that form the cognitive system of people.
This was the important point stated by Sayed Ahmad al-Safi in the second sermon of Friday prayer of the 27th of Sha’ban 1440 AH corresponding to May 3, 2019 in the holy shrine of Imam al-Hussayn (peace be upon him), stating:
Brothers and sisters, I would like to try to answer briefly to the following question: How does the cognitive system of human being formed?
We are not talking here about the intellectual and cultural schools of various philosophical foundations, and we are not willing to talk a general social knowledge, but it is more about the mechanisms in which the human’s cognitive system is formed in each of us.
The first of these mechanisms are probably the book, which is read and discussed by people, so the book is remains an important pillar in shaping the knowledge system.
The second mechanism is the teacher, as each of us has benefited from the knowledge transmitted by the teacher, so a teacher is essential to increase one’s knowledge. The third mechanism is the education of one’s environment or mainly the family as it is what refines one’s cognitive system and helps to gain more experience in life by learning from fathers, mothers, and grandfathers.
Today, in addition to these mechanisms, our cognitive culture started used new tools that were not previously present, but are currently influential as they provide the knowledge for everybody in a clear way. I mean here the modern numerous mediums of information – internet websites and social media are now part of people’s lives, and like the book the information can be useful or harmful but most of those information sources are anonymous, which may provide disinformation that causes confusion to people, especially the young who greatly rely on such information sources.
The problem that this culture and getting information from anonymous internet websites is easy but dangerous, for some information is meant to spread ignorance among people.
Then these tools promote obloquy as it became easy to praise or slander someone in a total chaos. Therefore we express our resentment toward what’s being promoted such as obloquy exercised against people on social media, as this phenomenon aids and abets those who are not well educated to lash each other using bad words that are unacceptable in common-sense morality.
This culture is lacking the simplest language and understanding basics. And as you know that a teacher can diagnose and rectify a student’s misconception, while internet websites and social media are unable to do that. In front of people, we might be ashamed to pronounce some words, but in front of a computer the shame disappears. And as it is said: “If you do not feel shame, then do whatever you like”.
Brethren, we are saying these points as they need more follow-up, which means the culture of use, as it is our right all to develop our cognitive means, but this needs the culture to use these knowledge tools. Therefore we are calling for spreading the culture of the appropriate use of the internet, as a traditional society can be exposed to misconceptions if it is not educated well.
Therefore, within the means of cognitive systems, there must be a culture, as even in the modern tools, we need a teacher and a guider who teaches us how to use them. As this culture is distorted and maybe in few years we will witness negative results that threaten our cultural system because of the misuse of these tools and this might create a blind lame culture that will not preserve our cultural heritage or the authenticity of our culture.
We ask the Almighty to grant us success and protect our country from all evil and to forgive all believers, men and women, alive or dead. And, the latest of our prayers is; praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, and Prayers and Allah’s Peace be upon Mohammad and his pure and virtuous lineage.
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