The « pourquoi » phase is a milestone signaling cognitive growth in cause-and-effect understanding.

There’s a Buddhist saying that goes like this :

For the child, a mountain is a mountain. For the adult, a mountain is not a mountain. For the wise, a mountain is a mountain.

To a child, a mountain is a mountain.”: This is the stage of innocence. The child perceives the world directly, without prejudice, without intellectualizing. Reality is what it is.

“To the adult, a mountain is not a mountain.”: This is the stage of analysis and doubt. The adult intellectualizes, deconstructs, sees the mountain as an assembly of rocks and earth, an obstacle to climb, or a shape in the landscape. They no longer see the mountain, but their own thoughts and theories about it.

“To the wise, a mountain is a mountain.”: This is the stage of wisdom or awakening. The wise person has moved beyond intellectual analysis. They perceive the mountain in its wholeness, without getting lost in technical details or mental projections. They accept reality as it presents itself, with a free spirit, in harmony with it.

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