Knowing knowing

I was struggling to define knowing: how do you know a subject?
Seemed to be a bizarre question; even perhaps without object
But it seemed important to me, considering that we make distinction
Between the known and unknown, thus making quite bold predictions

A considerable effort is spent in defining this nebulous boundary
And then an equal amount in reducing the extent of our quandary
When faced with ignorance a fear grips our entire mental faculty
Reducing us to a state of impotence, facing great difficulty

And then it is such a fickle attainment, this goal of knowledge
No sooner attained than to disappear entire without salvage
Like water running out of a closed fist, it leaks away swift
Leaving the mental fabric in a state prior, setting it adrift

I used to think that knowing is an acquisition of mental wealth
Quite akin to its physical equal, to be hoarded with like stealth
But I have since been taught that knowing is a shift in mental state
Which causes all knowledge to reveal itself, quietly and without haste