Intellectual Humility Across Epistemologies

Sor Juana engaged with indigenous Mexican traditions, European scholasticism, Arabic philosophy, and Christian theology without assuming one system was obviously superior. She practiced what might be called epistemological humility—recognizing the limits of her own knowledge system while remaining critically engaged. This differs from relativism (all knowledge equally valid) and from hegemony (one system obviously true). The practice applies crucially to identity across cultures: respecting how different traditions understand personhood, kinship, individual rights, and collective belonging without uncritically accepting each system. Colonial contexts often forced false choices: abandon your tradition or reject modern knowledge. Sor Juana's approach suggests a third path—engaging multiple epistemologies with both respect and critique. Applied to contemporary identity work, this means honoring your inherited traditions' wisdom about identity while subjecting them to critical examination. It means learning other cultures' frameworks for understanding selfhood without assuming they answer all questions. Intellectual humility across epistemologies prevents both the arrogance of assumed superiority and the passivity of cultural relativism, enabling genuine intercultural exchange about how we understand ourselves.