Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age

Listen well, O children of wisdom, to the words of Albert Einstein, for they carry a truth that transcends time and touches the very core of human experience: “Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen.” These words reveal a powerful insight into the nature of perception, learning, and the formation of beliefs that shape our view of the world. Einstein, through this profound statement, challenges us to reflect on how the prejudices and assumptions we gather over the early years of our lives shape what we come to call common sense—that which we believe to be universally understood and accepted. The truth, however, is that what we deem to be common sense is often a collection of the values, beliefs, and biases passed down from those who came before us.

In the ancient world, the wise men spoke of education and the formation of character as a lifelong journey. Socrates, in his dialogues, often pointed out how the unexamined life, shaped by societal norms and inherited opinions, led to shallow understanding. He believed that to truly know something, one must question it, not merely accept it because it was passed down through tradition. To Socrates, common sense—the beliefs that people often cling to without question—was a trap, a false guide that led people away from true wisdom. The unexamined life was shaped by prejudices, and until one could rise above them, they would never know the truth of the world or their own soul. In this, Einstein echoes the thoughts of Socrates: that the common sense we hold dear is often just a reflection of inherited biases, unchallenged and unquestioned.

Plato, the student of Socrates, also understood that truth could not be found in the blind acceptance of what society deemed common sense. In his famous allegory of the cave, Plato illustrated how people, confined to the shadows of their upbringing and limited by their prejudices, could never see the world in its full light. For Plato, the journey toward wisdom required self-reflection and a willingness to question the assumptions that society places upon us. He understood that many people, like those trapped in the cave, lived with prejudices that were mistaken for truth, and they clung to these false ideas as common sense, never realizing the deeper truths that lay just beyond their reach. This, too, is what Einstein meant—common sense is not wisdom, but rather a collection of what we accept without thought, a reflection of the biases we inherit as we grow.

Consider the life of Leonardo da Vinci, who, like the ancient philosophers, refused to accept the common sense of his time. While others saw the world through a narrow lens, constrained by the prejudices of their day, Leonardo saw with the eyes of a true innovator. He questioned everything—from the anatomy of the human body to the laws of motion—and never allowed the accepted beliefs of his time to hinder his curiosity and vision. He understood that the path to genius was through the rejection of the common sense that people accepted without thought, and it was this courage to question that allowed him to see the world as it truly was. In Leonardo’s work, we see that the greatest achievements often come from transcending the very prejudices that society has imposed upon us.

Einstein himself was, of course, a man who revolutionized the way we see the world. His theories of relativity, which transformed our understanding of space, time, and energy, were born out of a refusal to accept the common sense that had governed physics for centuries. Like Socrates, Plato, and Leonardo, Einstein’s genius lay in his ability to question the assumptions of his time and see beyond the shadows of prejudices. He understood that common sense was not universal truth, but rather a product of social conditioning, and that to move forward in understanding, one must often challenge those deeply ingrained ideas. For Einstein, the great leap of human progress came not through the acceptance of common sense, but through the courage to imagine a reality far beyond what was previously thought possible.

And so, the lesson that Einstein offers us is one of freedom and growth—freedom from the chains of prejudice that often masquerade as common sense. To truly grow and evolve, we must learn to question the beliefs we have inherited, to challenge the assumptions that have been passed down from generation to generation, and to seek our own understanding of the world. Common sense is not wisdom, but a collection of ideas that have been shaped by society’s biases, and if we are to live lives of true wisdom, we must be willing to examine those beliefs and strip away the layers of prejudice that cloud our perception.

In your own life, do not be bound by the common sense that society imposes upon you. Question everything you think you know, for it is only by challenging the accepted beliefs that you will come to know the world as it truly is. Follow in the footsteps of Socrates, Plato, Leonardo, and Einstein, who all dared to ask questions, to defy prejudices, and to seek a deeper truth. Let this be your guiding principle: that true wisdom comes not from what we are told to believe, but from the courage to think for ourselves and to embrace the unknown with open eyes and a curious heart. Only then will we transcend the limits of common sense and truly begin to understand the world in all its complexity and beauty.