"Understanding - Because understanding is of the mind, it connects you with Divine Mind. Understanding brings you up and away from the emotions and takes you into pure clear mindfulness. This is instinctual because in your understanding of yourself and of others, you come to understand at last - God.
Understanding can be limited to experience. An example of understanding that is limited to experience would be: having knowledge of certain things because you have personally experienced them, and therefore you understand it.
The Soul's memory of understanding begins with experiences. It begins with that which you have known because you have been there, as you call it in your day, in your time. When you take understanding past your personal experiences, then you are able to reach into the experiences of others and vicariously come to further understanding [as a result of what you have learned from another's experiences].
Because you understand something, it does not necessarily mean that you comply with it or that you embrace it as your truth. You may have a great understanding of someone who has done a terrible thing; however, that does not mean you condone the action. It simply means you know why they did it - not why, from what they have told you - but why, from the depths of your understanding.
Wisdom - As with understanding, wisdom is of the mind. Wisdom is generally without any particular passion, for passion is of the heart and of the feeling-nature. Understanding can bring you to wisdom. Whether or not your understanding brings you into wisdom depends on the degree of understanding you use. Wisdom relies not only on what you have learned, but also what you have put into practice. You can have knowledge, and not use it. But wisdom is knowledge in action. Wisdom is that which you know - [knowledge] - and in the knowing of it, you utilize it. It becomes an active tool for you. As you use wisdom, your understanding grows. As your understanding grows, your wisdom becomes more; for one feeds or balances the other, back and forth.
Wisdom can be limited by experience. It can be tempered or 'held in place' as it were, by experience. For example: Suppose a great teacher of a particular subject comes to teach you that subject. This teacher has great wisdom concerning the subject, knows all matter and form of it, and could explain the functions thereof from every direction. However, this teacher does not feel the wisdom he teaches applies to anything other than that particular subject because he has experienced the wisdom only in that subject. Because the wisdom has not been experienced outside of that subject, the teacher believes the wisdom is not present in other things. In this example, wisdom is held in or limited by experience.
Knowling-ness - Understanding begets wisdom; and wisdom begets knowing-ness. You can have great knowledge [or understanding] of a particular thing and not have knowing-ness. You can have wisdom of many things and not have knowing-ness. Knowing-ness is that which is instinctively felt as well as consciously known.
Before you become confused, understanding and wisdom are of the mind only while knowing-ness is of the totality of your being - therein lies the difference. Understanding can be limited to experience; wisdom can be limited by experience; however, knowing-ness is limitless."
01/08/2023 Blog. Archangel Gabriel, GETTING TO KNOW YOUR SOUL, Pgs. 68-70. Copyright © 2004 Springwell Metaphysical Studies. All rights reserved. To purchase this book, please click here.