Philosophical Musings on Knowing and Understanding

Janice Brown
Apr 17
8 min read

Updated: Apr 19

To ‘Know’ something and to ‘Understand’ something are different. You may Know something in an instant, but it may take you a lifetime to Understand.

by Janice Brown (Written March 20, 2026)

Knowing and Understanding. Image of a man with finger raised in an A-ha fashion.

Where to Begin?

In the Tao, the Energy of Thunder is the place we like to begin; however, many more seasons of construct are in place before we see the realization of such work.

The Taoists, the Buddhists, the Humanists, and the Spiritualists all have played their role in an unforgiving environment—the one that you believe to be True. When we explore the reality of the inner mind and landscape, we often do so with a circumspect lens, tending to preclude the joyful insight for the chagrined outcome.

Why bother with that lens at all?

Well, it’s not that the circumstance exists differently in either direction; it’s that it exists differently in all directions. And for illustrative purposes we’ll use my SolePath as a discovery tool. Once upon a time, I had my SolePath read at the SolePath Institute. Not as a favour to a friend but as an understanding of myself in a situation that I could not bear to be in any longer. That’s all it took, me saying, ‘I’ve had enough of this. I need my life to be a better way.’

Did SolePath change my life? Yes and no.

Did SolePath save my life? Probably. There are things I don’t discuss at the coffee shop or anywhere else, for that matter. These are the places I took a breath and could see clearly for the first time. The places I felt the overarching arc of pain through humiliation. The wonderment of desire. The absolute fear of being inexcusably misperceived. The ‘once I thought THIS, but now I’m not so sure anymore’ moments. These are the things I write about instead. And writing is my soul’s lip balm. It makes the world a more comfortable place, a soft easy landing, and a little bit pretty from time to time.

I can tell you I love myself more dearly than I ever have.

And I can tell you that I don’t think ‘THAT’ matters as much to me anymore.

And I can tell you the only reason I believe that, is because I don’t see it reflected in my life anymore.

And that’s a true indicator of gut feelings—do you see what you worry about or care about in your everyday experience? Yup? It’s mattering. And not to say that other things don’t or haven’t along the way, only that the delay mechanism or the guided missile got off track.

And here’s what I want you to know about that:

We All Matter. We All Care. And when the world starts working these rhythms together, we are going to see an entirely different space pop up before our eyes.

And this is what I know about that. It’s a Framework of Love embedded in the Tao. And what I know about the Tao I learned in the teachings of Chinese medicine and the important work of SolePath and also the teachings and yearnings of my very own Heart.

I know myself reasonably well, and that’s because of the tools and understandings of SolePath, what I would call a guidance system for every path home. And I don’t mean this makes life easier; I mean it gives you a shape of understanding your own perspective and belief system. Religious or not. Scientist or not. Beliefs mould the very nature of our experience, and we download a moment into our experience every time based on the current belief structure that we are having. And that’s how I’m going to be with you: a little bit frank, and a little bit straightforward, and often times dancing around a word pool because that’s what makes my heart happy—the spontaneous use of language put into form.

I can see that there are those that think this is all a little bewildering. And I can see that there are those that think it’s all a little bit fluffy. And I can see that there are those who are down to their last thin red dime and would do anything to understand, “Why this keeps happening to them.’ These are moments of forlorn self-worth, and we won’t see these definitions looking them up in the dictionary because they belong to the HeartMind in tandem, and that’s why you’ll see me write around a topic in a variety of ways because these are all hopeful circumstances that resonate at a different level of consciousness, or beingness, if you prefer.

Forlorn Self-worth: the act of mattering, not for the sake of the Self but for the sake of another in apprehension.

Now, I myself have been exploring the inner landscape for what feels like minutes sometimes but is more like centuries or eons and I can say that quite matter of fact because because I am a Girl who lives in rhythm with her Soul. And Souls, my friends, are timeless creatures brought to bear witness to our own understandings of self and patterns of behaviour. And that’s why SolePath is helpful, it is the written expression of every natural behaviour known to man in his completeness.

It’s not a fairytale story of some better way of being for anyone but you. And not because you are so deserving because of who you are, but because we all are. And we all get to know and understand ourselves as these realizations become more embedded and deeply profound.

I call it: A lack of ambition, some days, but really it’s my SolePath.

I call it: I can’t help myself, on some days, but really it’s my SolePath. And on other days...

I call it: This is the best day of my life! And I know that that is my SolePath too because that’s what a SolePath is; your own unique way of being in the world, in the landscape of your Heart, in the landscape of your Mind, and in the landscape of your expression of Being and Experience.

Now where are we going to go from here? Pretty much anywhere you want to. I’ve had to take some time out and anchor my own way of being into a construct I understand that makes sense for me. Being a mom and a caretaker has taken me a long way in life and these are experiences I cherish fully everyday. I can’t say enough how proud I am to be a mom and watch the realization of worth evolve for my children. It’s not always a pretty picture, but I have a deeper understanding of what’s important to them and why I let them choose their own path in certain circumstances and not in others.

It’s not about believing the world is a dangerous place; it’s about understanding they are walking a thin line on the edge of distortion and that there’s a real safety net for them in exploring another activity at this time instead of that one. It’s like driving in a single lane of traffic flowing in one direction, and you suddenly see oncoming traffic; someone has to make the choice to embrace the random widening in the road and pull over to let the other pass. It could be a confrontation, a collision, or nothing at all if you just go wide for a second when it makes a difference.

You see what I’m saying? Life is full of these experiences, and I’ll call them amplitudes, because even though it appears as if everyone is at the same level, what's really happening is one is rising up to a higher view or perspective that allows the other experience to carry on without their direct input. And that takes some serious getting used to. My highest awareness about these experiences is knowing the language of my own SolePath so distinctly that when I see a certain term or phrase pop up in my mind in response, I can sometimes redirect to new awareness instead of maintaining a collision path.

And I say sometimes, even though I think it’s probably most times; however, some of these phrases and experiences are so innocuous you don’t even realize they are happening. And that’s why it’s important to take time for yourself because as you pull back into your construct, you’ll see these fragments as distinct lines or thought patterns that become clearer, and that helps YOU identify them as constructs instead of ‘necessarily fact’.

We weave our own worlds and storylines with common and distinct threads, and that’s why it’s important to know your own nature. This week I took time for myself, and I’m watching the threads blow in the Wind as I step back into my daily routine, and that is allowing me to make fresh choices for certain reasons.

And do you know how that feels? Like relief. Like fresh air. Like a newness that I haven’t felt in a while. And that’s why I’m certain that today will be a good day. And also tomorrow. And probably the next one, and more than likely the following one after that because freshness and newness invigorate us All.

Back to Knowing and Understanding

I’ve known my SolePath for over a decade. Do I understand it? I would say yes, but here’s the caveat—I mean, I understand myself better; I can choose the lens of my perception more readily, and my connection to my own soul’s need and purpose is clearer, but I’ll be Knowing and Learning and Understanding these aspects of my Self for the rest of my life.

There are things I Know, they hit like an atomic bomb mid-stride through my day, and you’d never know it happened. But I do. And that’s Knowing with a capital K. And Understanding, I find, with a capital U, always has a relationship with the Self.

Thanks for being Here. I hope your day is the very best it can be and only getting better and better from here on in.

May you find Peace. May you find Light. May you find Love.

Cheers!

Janice

PS. If you found this little writing enjoyable or useful, I’d love it if you shared it along. Thanks! In all the ways that matter, I am here. Watch for my next weekly article because I’ve decided to give myself time to embrace my favourite pastime and write a bit more on the weekends than I have been.

Some Vocabulary Highlights:

In my writing when I capitalize a word in a non-grammatical way, it means there is a deeper metaphysical relationship and/or meaning in relation to the Tao to the commonplace word used. Below are some notes on the energy of words in relationship to the Tao and Emotional Relevance.

Know/Knowing has a relationship with Lake Energy of the Tao.
Understand/Understanding has a relationship with Heaven Energy of the Tao.
Learn/Learning has a relationship with Mountain Energy of the Tao.
Heart has a relationship with Water Energy of the Tao.
Mind has a relationship with Wind Energy of the Tao.
True has a relationship with Fire Energy of the Tao.
Think/thought has a relationship with Wind Energy of the Tao.
Gut feeling has a relationship with Lake Energy of the Tao.
See has a relationship with Thunder Energy of the Tao.
Peace has a relationship with the Tai Chi Energy of the Tao.
Light has a relationship with Fire Energy of the Tao.
Love has a relationship with Water Energy of the Tao.

You can find wonderful information on the Foundational vocabulary of the Tao in the work of Dr. Debra Ford Msc.D. Here are a few of my favourite books.

The SolePath Book of Knowledge, The Essential SolePath Academic Reference, Book I, by Dr. Debra Ford Msc.D.

Daily Pulse, rhythm of the Tao, by Dr. Debra Ford Msc.D.

Emotional Relevance

Forlorn Self-worth: the act of mattering, not for the sake of the Self but for the sake of another in apprehension.
Self: Soul Self, Higher Self, Energetic Nature of the Being