Socrates Demonstrating Desire

Burning desire for wisdom

Story of a young man who came to Socrates and asked him how he could gain wisdom. Socrates told the young man to come with him and they walked together into a near by lake. When the water had got to be about 4 feet deep, Socrates suddenly grabbed the young man and pushed his head under the water and held him there. The young man thought it was a joke at first and didn’t resist.

But as he was held under the water longer and longer, he became frantic and struggled desperately to get free but could not. He began to panic and try with all his might as his lungs burned to get air. Socrates then lifted him out of the water and said to him. When you desire wisdom with the same intensity that you had to breath then nothing will stop you from getting it.