What do you think is the purpose of Wisdom?

Question

There are a few factors as to why I wrote this question, one of them is the fact that my jaw is currently aching due to one of my wisdom teeth coming through, the other is that it looks like we have some knowledgeable and intelligent individuals on right now and I want to take advantange of that. :)

So, in your own words, what do you think the purpose of wisdom is? Although it is only a concept for certain types of thinking, cultural terms wisdom is considered to be achieved at later points in life, a perception of the world garnered through experience of many things or personal philosphies.
It could be considered a learning tool, to educate the young.
Perhaps you think of it as a mark of character.
Heck, it could even be something that younger people describe the older folks as, so as to make them seem more important and valued.
How do YOU see it?

Answer 1

I perceive that wisdom is gained, either through personal life experiences or is granted through empathizing, witnessing and observing the lessons of the hardships of others,some of whom may have needed to learn this first hand.

Usually one learns from ones own mistakes.

Once this state of awareness has been achieved or gathered, it should be utilized to avoid repeatedly and consistently making the same errors in judgement.

How can you pass on this information to any other if you have not processed the lessons to be learnt first hand?
This is what wisdom essentially means to me.

You do not necessarily have to be old to comprehend and utilize life's lessons.
Some young people have very old souls, are wise, far beyond their chronological age and those of their peers.

Answer 2

To pass down our hard earned wisdom to younger generations who will, in turn, do the same someday. It is a mark of character, an aspect of what defines us as individuals and everyone has different bits to add to the overall puzzle of this bizarre journey we're all going through called life. Wisdom is something that is attained gradually, over time, through our own trial and error and experiences, good and bad; we learn from all whether we enjoy the lesson or not!

Answer 3

The purpose of wisdom has to do with survival. Similar to the survival of the fittest.... survival of the wisest.
A good use for wisdom is to teach others.

Answer 4

Wisdom is the payback we get for losing our hair, strength, health, looks, and sex drive.

Answer 5

to enlighten those around us, b/c no one person knows anything, we can share wisdom with eachother, i may be able to explain the rotation of the planets to you, while you can explain the beauty of a piece of art to me.