Are Emotions Prophetic?

[Still Waters]

For thousands of years, human beings have looked down on their emotions. We’ve seen them as primitive passions, the unfortunate legacy of our animal past. When we do stupid things – say, eating too much cake, or sleeping with the wrong person, or taking out a subprime mortgage – we usually blame our short-sighted feelings.People commit crimes of passion. There are no crimes of rationality.

This bias against feeling has led people to assume that reason is always best. When faced with a difficult dilemma, most of us believe that it’s best to carefully assess our options and spend a few moments consciously deliberating the information. Then, we should choose the alternative that best fits our preferences. This is how we maximize utility; rationality is our Promethean gift.

But what if this is all backwards? What if our emotions know more than we know? What if our feelings are smarter than us?

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[Beany]

Very interesting article. I've long believed in body wisdom, and have learned to listen to it. Maybe the body is like a huge databank that stores all of the information & experiences we've had, that we draw upon without being cognizant of doing it. I've read that intuition tends to be more accurate if it's combined with information & experience. The mind is a wonderful thing, but maybe works better in a holistic model, that employs mind, body, & soul all working together for common good.