Five Ways Answers to Problems are Found

The following are five ways to arrive at a solution or an answer to a problem.  The first two are through reason.  People often think intensely about a situation using reason to try and solve a problem.  This can sometimes be what is called brainstorming when at random solutions are thought of or written down no matter how outrageous they are in order to come up with an answer. The other type is also through reason, but the thoughts about the situation become obsessive.   In both cases, if the person is lucky, understanding of the problem becomes clear, but not without a lot of mental effort.  Another way solutions come is through insight, a grasping of the inner nature of things intuitively or by our sixth sense.  This usually happens quickly and is sometimes a hunch or something reacted to instinctively.  Then there are epiphanies and enlightenments.  These are more esoteric in nature.  Rather than solutions or conclusions derived from effort, they appear out of the blue. An epiphany is a sudden intuitive perception or insight into the reality or essential meaning of something usually initiated by some simple or common place experience or occasion.  Similar to having an epiphany is enlightenment.  Like an epiphany, an enlightenment occurs when someone thinks about a problem and then suddenly experiences a moment of clarity.  In both cases inspiration comes out of the blue.  The basic difference between an epiphany and being enlightened is that enlightenment is something that is brought "into the light" out of what was previously mysterious, and usually has a spiritual connotation.