Letters in Chinese

李察通訊 Letters in Chinese
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10/07/2024

What is "left-brain dominance"?




The term "left-brain dominance" is an inaccurate label. Humans think with  minds, and both the left and right brains are simply tools of the mind. So far, we can have a vague impression that the left brain is responsible for language, data collection and arrangement of information.... while the right brain handles integration,  composition and intuition, et cetera.. Although the capabilities of the right brain are far more complex, including creativity, imagination, and higher forms of inner understanding and more. However, the left and right brains are always working together. Without the left brain, the right brain would be difficult to function, and vice versa. 


But what is left-brain dominance? 


Because we are not just "humans," we are also "rainbow people." When the Creator create humans, it must not be based on a single template only. People come in various heights, weights, and skin colors—red, yellow, blue, and white. There are many innate tendencies among people. Some lean towards music, others towards painting, some prefer technology, and some love nothing but food. Therefore, we are not merely human; we are "rainbow people". When all these tendencies come together, we become truly human.


So when we say someone is left-brain dominant or right-brain dominant, it may sound like an insult, but it merely states a fact.  Some people are more inclined into using their left brains more.


There is also an important reason: when you recognize a tendency, you are actually identifying a direction. When you see a direction, you can also find balance.

Leftward going will result in the deficiency of the right. Left dominance people will find it difficult in composing or using their intuition. Seldom could them see situations from within.


Both the left and right brains are just tools. There is automatic communication between them. This communicative ability is natural. One might wonder if humans can actively facilitate communication between the left and right brains. When you can do this consciously, you are in a awareness state.  So, there is still a hope for the left dominance people.


This is an abstract concept, but it's easy to grasp; in other words, it requires deeper thought.


Experts in chess always strive to think several moves ahead. If your opponent can think seven moves ahead, but you can envision nine, it seems impressive. However, this is merely a linear left-brain thinking approach, which arranges ideas step-by-step. If you can suddenly leap to a higher level, thinking from a different angle and striking from there, that is truly remarkable. Unfortunately, your left-brain friends around you may have anticipated your move and pinning you down. All you can do is sigh and lament that the time is not in your side.


High-level left-brain dominance people and low-level left-brain dominance people are in two different worlds. A financial expert adept at organizing numbers is vastly different from someone arguing over two cents at a market. While both use their left brain, they are at different stages. Low-level individuals are common everywhere, while high-level individuals are more complicated and harder to find, they are high in the clouds.

Sometimes, the signs of brain dominance can be seen early on. A child with severely low-level right-brain dominance may struggle with language and arithmetic learning, and some may even be unable to tie their shoelaces. Yet, they may grow up to achieve something great.


As for the fictional character Ah Q, he likely represents low-level right-brain dominance. Although he is selfish and often employs mental victory tactics against his enemies, he certainly does not understand calculated strategies. His life is muddled, he knew almost nothing to the external world, and he treats public display before his own execution as mere performances,  he did not know he is going to die soon. However, high-level right-brain dominance may perceive the world from within, but low-level right-brain dominance fails to see even the immediate external realities.


The opposite of Ah Q is the common "clever boy" (叻仔)in Hong Kong.


"Clever boys" are left-brain dominant.  They saw only external details. They are particularly sensitive to financial matters, skillful at pleasing others, and their sole goal in life is to make money. They are perfect and charming in their dealings.


Left-brain dominant "clever boys" are extremely detail-oriented and leave no stone unturned. They work smoothly and discreetly, often making money, yet they may be failures in family life.

 They could not see in passions. Their lust is for external details.

They can never free themselves from the trivialities of the external world to see things as they truly are. They also do not transcend to observe from a higher perspective. They are on the left side of the rainbow.


The question is, can they step over and have a look?


Can those on the left see those on the right? Can those on the right see those on the left?


The Creator anticipated this when creating the rainbow.

 Humans have feet and the capacity to choose. A seed of a plant, lacking feet, can only wait to die in the desert. But humans can balance themselves and choose.


The question is, how do we achieve balance?


Apart from the distinctions between left and right brain, there is also a complex emotional mechanism.

The emotional mechanism of humans can help to balance the brains.


"This is also a kind of rainbow-colored design. Some people are emotionally indifferent, unaffected by anything unrelated to money.


Others, however, are a bit richer in their emotions: 我是多情誤了卿,難得知己難為情。天外關山風更好,悄無霞彩悄無聲! 'I am too sentimental to betral  you.  It’s hard to find a kindred spirit,  I might be going soon. Scenery otherside is more beautiful. Quietly without color, quietly without sound and I am gone. Without a hint of clouds, I gently left, ignoring you....


This is also the rainbow effect in the emotional realm. When encountering such people of simple emotions, one must take care of oneself and make their own choices.


The so-called emotional realm is not simply love and hate. It is also a form of "passion", a word that is difficult to translate. However, regardless, you need to have passion to be smart.

 Why I need to have a real passion but not the shallow lust of feelings?

 It is because passion could bring in the left and right hemisphere to work together. You are sure to have a better life experience with a passion while those lacking passion  could be living like a machine.


Even something like passion has direction; it is also part of the rainbow. You cannot complain that the creator did not give it to you. Furthermore, those who know how to complain are fortunate, for they already recognize their shortcomings, and the next step is that they will seek to make amends themselves.


With passion, one can turn back. They will always ask 'why.'  They will seek. They want to seek beauty and fragrance. They know where their redemption lies.


The left brain, right brain, and emotional areas are not just individual issues.


From a broader perspective, culture also has this tendency.


Chinese culture uses square characters, which do not require spelling or phonetics. Therefore, the general impression is that Chinese culture leans towards the right brain.


In contrast, Western culture leans towards the left brain.


In Western culture, the focus of observation often lies in the external aspects of things. During the Renaissance, it seemed as if they have suddenly gained a left eye. They learned to measure and calculate. It wasn't just about measuring the Earth; with the rise of colonialism, it was also about dominating the world and denying the mind.


In the bias of Western culture, there is little concept of a "community of shared human destiny." The left-brain inclination prevents them from seeing the full landscape of things. They only focus on immediate profits and short-term gains. It's like a highly skilled chess player who has already planned every move in advance. He always tries to stay one step ahead, but he can never jump high enough to flip over and see the complete picture.


As for the left-brain inclination of Chinese people, it only began around 1911. This is merely a moment in the long river of cultural development.


In the midst of the economic frenzy of competition, will they pause for a moment to truly see the distant scenery? In the gap between leftward and rightward inclinations, can they, driven by a passionate sense of righteousness, point out the landscape and inspire with words?

In fact, the scenery is not important. What matters is a hidden trap. The clever enemy will lure you to the ring, but in fact, the ambush in the dark has already been prepared. You always feel that this is the stage, but you don’t know that the crisis of cultural bias is lurking and will affect it for another three hundred years.




Lastly, it should be noted that the so-called "brain," whether left or right, is merely a tool. Humans think with their mind. The so-called "left-brain inclination" is just a bias in thinking styles. A skilled anatomist, upon cutting open a brain, cannot see this kind of bias. Some might ask, where is the mind? Please show me your mind.


In fact, the mind is already here. After reading so much, one still cannot see it. It is  because those with a left-brain inclination can only see the external, and nothing more.


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