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SPIRITUALITY FOR THE MODERN YOUTH Series

DISCOVER

Your Self

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Compiled by :

Radheshyam Das M.Tech., IIT Mumbai

Rekindling Wisdom, Reviving Love

Vedic Oasis for Inspiration, Culture and Education (VOICE) ISKCON, 4, Tarapore Road

Next to Dastur Boys’ School, Pune – 411 001, Phone: (020) 26332328, [email protected]

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Readers interested in the subject matter of this book are invited by the Vedic Oasis for Inspiration, Culture & Education (VOICE) to correspond with our Secretary at the following address:

Sales Manager: Krishnakishore das

A-102, Bharati Vihar, Katraj, Pune – 411 046 Phone: +91-020-24306330

Email: [email protected] Web: www.iskconpune.com

Edited by Chaitanya Charan das Cover design by Jaigopal das Layout by Vrajananda das Previous Printing: 15,000 Copies

Revised Edition: October 2007 / 2000 Copies

VOICE Pune expresses its gratitude to the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT) for the use of verses, purports and pictures from the books of Srila Prabhupada. All such verses, purports and pictures are © BBT.

COVER: Since time immemorial, eminent scientists have been trying to discover the origin and purpose of life. Similarly anti-material scientists - the great devotees of God - have discovered their true identity as a servant of God by living according to the Vedic scriptures. Having experienced boundless ecstasy in their relationship with God, they dedicated their entire lives to preaching and inspiring humanity to discover themselves.

Published by Radheshyam das for -

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Eminent Personalities Say...

“This is a well illustrated, easy to understand book and I know the author to have a genuine care for the well being of the young people of India, making him the true representative of the ‘Best Friend’ of youths today. Using his years of experience in this field Radheshyam Prabhu, has managed to produce a systematic, highly effective study of Srimad Bhagavad-gita.

I strongly recommend that a serious study of these books is done to discover India’s ancient heritage and wealth of Vedic wisdom. I am confident this study course will inspire and motivate many to delve more deeply into the fathomless purports of Srila Prabhupad’s books.”

His Holiness Lokanath Swami Maharaj,

ISKCON Padayatra Minister

“The Spirituality for the Modern Youth series is a lucid explanation of the most profound Truths revealed to mankind through various religions. An all-encompassing presentation written in a very rational and scientific manner.”

Hrishikesh Mafatlal,

Chairman and Managing Director, Mafatlal Group of Industries.

“The Spirituality for the Modern Youth series is an invaluable contribution to the realm of higher dimensional science, which directs the exploring spiriton an adventurousjourney in the world within…Every adherent of the scientific spirit of enquiry will relish it.”

Dr Sudipto Ghosh, M. Tech. & Ph D, IIT Kanpur

Scientist, Tata Research Development and Design Center, Pune – INDIA

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“The Spirituality for the Modern Youth series comes right down to where the reader is - lost amidst a plethora of philosophies and beliefs and elevates him step-by-step to the highest understanding of the fundamental truths of life.”

Dr M. K. Patel, M.D., D.G.O., F.I.C.O.G.

Consulting Obstetrician and Gynecologist, Coordinator, Dept. of Bio-Ethics,

Bhaktivedanta Hospital, Mumbai.

“To present pristine spirituality to the modern scientific mind is no easy task. Coming from a dynamic spiritualist with a distinguished academic background, the Spirituality for the Modern Youth series meets the challenge wonderfully.”

Dr Bhaskar Hosangodi,

Emeritus Prof and HoD,

Chemistry Dept., Bombay University

“The Spirituality for the Modern Youth series uses the analytical approach to present the profound philosophy of the Vedas in a way appealing even to the skeptical youth of today. A must-read for every scientifically-minded person with an interest in spirituality.”

Ganesh Ramkrishnan,

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Acknowledgements

The book has come out successfully by dint of the untiring efforts of many VOICE members. Mr. Shekhar, Jai Gopal das and Shankar Pandit das together conceived and designed the fascinating front cover. Special thanks are due to Sankirtan Anand das, Sundar Var das and Vrajanand das for their unflinching dedication to this project by doing all the taxing computer work – formatting, inserting pictures, taking printouts etc. Thanks to Chaitanya Charan das for his valuable proofreading and editing. All these devotees have toiled day and night to bring out this book.

I also express my heartfelt gratitude to the many other devotees including Vrishabhanu das, Sriman Haresh Daswani, Akinchan Krishna das, Vamshi Vadan das, Sundershyam das, Radha Madhav das, Ram Nitai das, Aniruddha das, Sri Anant das and Sriman Sharma who assisted us in bringing out this book. I also thank all the VOICE sector and core-group members who encouraged me to take up this task of bringing out the lessons in the form of a book. Their encouragement is their practical surrender and dedication to youth preaching and to using these lessons effectively.

Radheshyam Das,

Director, Vedic Oasis for Inspiration, Culture & Education (VOICE), Pune.

President, ISKCON, Pune.

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Introduction

The Vedic texts are the panacea for all problems for all times; they give a crystal clear understanding of all the fundamental and essential truths of life including who we are, what the true goal of life is and how we can attain permanent happiness.

Unfortunately however, in the modern times, the Vedas have generally been misunderstood to be books of sentiment and blind faith or a bunch of empty rituals. And due to such preconceived misconceptions, the scientifically minded youth have reservations in even approaching them. Also, these texts being in intricate Sanskrit are not easily accessible to them.

With these considerations in mind, a need was felt for a systematic and scientific presentation of the five essential themes of the Bhagavad-gita: ishvara (the Lord), jiva (the living entity), prakriti (nature), kala (time) and karma (activity). A humble attempt towards making such a compilation was first made in 1994. Those notes were based on the teachings of Srila Prabhupada, who is internationally acclaimed as an erudite Vedic scholar and as the greatest exponent of Krishna consciousness in the modern times. References were also taken from Back to Godhead magazine articles and from discourses by senior devotees of ISKCON like His Grace Devamrita Prabhu, His Grace Radha Gopinath Prabhu and His Grace Krishna Smaran Prabhu. Those notes were refined over the years as we came to know more about the nature of doubts and questions that youths generally have.

Now we are presenting those refined notes in a handy form as a series of five books, entitled the Spirituality for the Modern Youth series. The books in this series are ‘Discover Your Self’, ‘Your Best Friend’, ‘Your Secret Journey’, ‘Victory over Death’, ‘and ‘Yoga of Love’.

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We have been using these notes for vigorous youth preaching in Vedic Oasis for Inspiration, Culture & Education (VOICE), Pune. VOICE, Pune was started and is being run by the divine inspiration and blessings given by H.H. Radhanath Swami Maharaj, H.H. Gopal Krishna Goswami Maharaj, H.H. Lokanath Swami Maharaj, H.G. Devamrita Prabhu, devotees of Shri Shri Radha Gopinath Mandir, Chowpatty, Mumbai and Shri Shri Radha Kunjabihari Mandir, Pune.

The approach of having a systematic presentation of the Bhagavad-gita has produced amazing results in effectively conveying the message to the youth and inspiring them to take to Krishna consciousness seriously. VOICE presently has hundreds of engineering students, who are chanting Hare Krishna and leading a pure life free from all bad habits like meat-eating, intoxication, illicit sex and gambling.

We hope that this book will therefore act as a beacon light for every sincere seeker of the truth, especially among the youth and the young at heart. It is our hope that the book will also serve as a useful guide for all preachers throughout the world in their attempts to take Krishna consciousness to the youth in particular and to the masses at large.

This book is nothing but a systematic presentation of the remnants of the bold preacher, Srila Prabhupada, and my beloved spiritual master. It is therefore a humble offering at their lotus feet. We will consider our humble efforts successful if this endeavor can assist in fulfilling their pure desire to flood the entire world with Krishna consciousness.

Radheshyam Das

Director, Vedic Oasis for Inspiration, Culture & Education (VOICE), Pune.

President, ISKCON, Pune.

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Appendix 1

Evolution or Creation: Let the Data Speak 117

What is the Theory of Evolution? 118

Dilemmas over Origin of Life 118

Theory of Spontaneous Generation 119

The Primitive Atmosphere 120

Formation of the Organic Soup 121

Formation of Proteins 123

Formation of the Genetic Code 124

Why Not Produce Life? 125

Is it Scientific? 126

Not all Scientists Accept it 127

Dilemmas over Origin of Complex Organs 128

Dilemmas over Fossils 129

What Fossil Record Says about the Origin of Living Things

129 Record of the Rocks Contradicts Darwin’s Theory 130 Fossil Record is the Final Court of Appeal 134

Creation or Evolution? 134

The Vedic Model for Evolution 135

Appendix 2

The Universe: How did it Begin? 139

On the Role of Faith in Science 142

What the Vedas say… 146

Appendix 3

Srila Prabhupada - The Ambassador of the Kingdom of God 149 xii

Appendix 4

Vedic Oasis for Inspiration, Culture & Education (VOICE)

153

What is VOICE? 154

Objectives of VOICE 155

How Are The Students Trained in the VOICE? 156 Personality Development and Character Build Up 156 Yoga, Meditation and Nutritious Diet 157

Topping in Academics 159

Public Speaking and Discussion (PSD) 159

Team Playing and Synergising 160

Devotional Qualifications 160

Personal Care And Counseling 161

Developing Interpersonal Relationships 161

Leadership Qualities 161

Preaching 162

VOICE Youth Centers managed by ISKCON, Pune 164

Girls VOICE 167

For Social Cause 168

References 169

VOICE Publications 170

Appendix 5

Courses Offered By VOICE 177

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Foreword

The modern times have seen remarkable discoveries in the various sciences. These discoveries have revolutionized the lifestyles of people all over the world, with sophisticated gadgets being used for practically every activity. No wonder then that the present age is said to be the age of technology.

Yet a disconcerting undercurrent of emptiness pervades the entire society. Even individuals having the best of all that the modern world can offer – wealth, fame, prestige, the latest technological appliances, the maximum comforts – are prone to depression, stress, hypertension and even suicide, as is evident from statistical surveys in the prosperous Western countries, especially the US.

Intelligent thinkers worldwide have concluded that this state of affairs has resulted because man has neglected his inner self. Man has been extremely enthusiastic in trying to discover the world around him, but he has been almost equally averse to trying to discover the world within him. This imbalance has lead to a serious identity crisis; the modern man doesn’t know who he is and what the actual goal of his life is. When the very foundation of life – the individual’s understanding of his own self - is so shaky, the collapse of the individual and the society at large is natural and inevitable.

This has given rise to a new brand of self-help teachers, who provide techniques for everything from making friends to earning money, from becoming happy to tapping the subconscious. But nothing works; one of the most popular of such teachers, who has written best selling books on how to win friends, spent his life in utter loneliness and ultimately committed suicide! The condition of the other teachers is not much different. Instead of life being

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‘a continuous discovery of joy’, the only discovery that everyone – with no exception whatsoever - makes everyday is that misery comes in ever new ways in life.

Is man condemned to live in the constant company of misery throughout his life? Is there no higher dimension to life – one of true love, real happiness and perfect peace? If there is, why is it not universally accessible? Why do all our efforts to achieve such a life invariably end in frustration?

“Try, try, but don’t cry”, the die-hards will tell you. But for how long? Their unspoken reply, “Try, try, try, till you die.”

A blind man cannot see the world around him just by repeated trying. He may diligently keep trying lifelong, but failure will crown his efforts with equal diligence. That however does not mean that he is cursed to be blind forever. In order to regain his eyesight, he has to follow a bona fide remedial process – have a surgical operation performed.

Similarly introspection, no matter how penetrating it may be, will always fall short, if it is based on one’s own efforts. But if one follows the right process – takes the help of the revealed scriptures, one can get the vision to see both the world within and the world without – in truth.

The Vedic scriptures address all living entities as ‘children of immortality’. And they give a clarion call to all human beings:

uttisthata jagruta prapya varam nibodhata. “Awake, arise and

drink the nectar of immortality that is due to you as a human being.” Only a human being is capable of the metaphysical quest by which he can enquire into the higher truths of life. The Vedic scriptures therefore exhort the human being not to waste his life in the animalistic business of eating, sleeping, mating and defending, but to pursue the ultimate business of self-realization.

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And as soon as the seeker steps onto the threshold of the house of the Vedas, the most fascinating discovery of all awaits him. He understands his identity to be that of an infinitesimal particle of spirit, eternally cognizant and joyful. This atman is the invisible driver and animator of the bodily machine.

And as the seeker steps forward on the path delineated by the Vedas, his life becomes an exciting journey of self-discovery as he realizes more and more his identity as a blissful, conscious eternal being, distinct from the miserable, ignorant, perishable body around him. Ultimately his real identity is proved to him by the method beyond all doubts – by direct experience from within. Self-discovery is not an exercise in selfish seclusion, with no concern for anyone else. When the seeker understands his actual identity as a part of the Supreme Spirit, as a son of the Supreme Father, God, he also gets the eyes to see all living beings as his dear brothers. Therefore he sees others suffering as his own suffering and works for helping them in re-establishing their lost relationship with the Supreme, as the well-wishing friend of all. Thus universal brotherhood naturally follows for him as he has accepted the Universal Father.

Hence today when ‘the world is divided into numerous fragments by narrow domestic walls’, Discover Your Self will undoubtedly be a invaluable guide for all thoughtful people throughout the world; all the more so for the intelligent youth who are trying to discover life. This first book in the Spirituality for the Modern

Youth series will help them extend their horizons to an hitherto

unexplored dimension –the discovery of their own selves.

His Grace Radheshyam Das has his creditable engineering side, as a M.Tech. graduate from IIT Powai and a spiritual side of being trained by able spiritual professors coming in the line of

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Srila Prabhupada. Thus he is a living example of this spirit of self-discovery. After working in prestigious positions in some of the top multinational companies, his relentless quest for self-discovery inspired him to dedicate his entire life to studying, practicing and preaching the message of the Vedic scriptures. As the Director of the Vedic Oasis for Inspiration, Culture and Education (VOICE), in youth wing of VOICE, he has brought substance and direction to the lives of hundreds of youths by inspiring and guiding them to embark on journey to discover their forgotten and forsaken inner selves. As a vigorous preacher and author of several books, he is helping multitudes of people to reach the wealth within their own hearts by taking to Krishna consciousness. His books are unique in that he has adopted the approach of systematic study standard in the academic world in his presentations of the Vedic scriptures. Herein, one finds the most profound philosophy explained in a cogent and lucid manner perfectly suited for the modern mind.

Dr R. M. Jalnekar, PhD, Power Electronics,

Prof, Dept. of Electronics & Telecom. Engg., Vishwakarma Institute of Technology, Pune

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Chapter

1

Can A Scientist

Believe In GOD?

Discover Your Self 2

or thousands of years, people have marvelled at the starry heavens. On a clear night, the beautiful stars hang like shining jewels against the darkness of space. A moonlit night bathes the earth with a beauty all of its own. Those who think, often wonder : "Just what is out there in space? How is it organized? Can we find out how it all got started? Who created all these startling variety of things?" The human mind is staggered by the immensity and complexity of the awesome universe. As ‘National Geographic’ magazine commented what man is now learning about the universe has "left him stunned." Who will not appreciate and realize that all this artistry is the work of an intelligent yet inconceivable designer and creator - God?

If you want to see your face in the mirror you need the help of sunlight. Similarly if one is interested in discovering oneself, one needs to know God, the ultimate truth. Self-realization comes automatically by God realization.

Group Work : Divide the class into groups of 3 each and ask them to

discuss the following question in about 5 minutes :

What gives you faith that there must be some God or Supreme Being in this world? Write down as many reasons as possible why you believe in the existence of God.

Once the groups are ready ask one representative from each group to present all the points that came out from discussion and put it on a flip chart. The same can be repeated with other groups. Overlapping points can be left out. After this task the teacher can try to relate the points obtained with the ones given below. Then discuss them after the following story. When the points obtained from the students are put on the board and discussed, that gives them more confidence and faith than to ‘feed’ them without making them to think first.

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Can A Scientist Believe In God ? 3

The Story of Isaac Newton

here is a wonderful incident in the life of Sir Isaac Newton that goes to show how he was a strong believer of God. Newton had a small-scale model of the solar system, which, on completion, was installed on a large table in his home. The artisan had done a fine job, simulating not only the various sizes of planets and their relative proximity, but also constructing the model in such a manner that everything rotated and orbited when a crank was turned.

One day, one of Newton’s atheistic friends came by for a visit and was naturally intrigued by the model. Having expressed his admiration at the workmanship, he enquired about the artisan. Newton replied in all seriousness that there was no artisan. The model had just popped up by chance. Of course, the visitor was not convinced. Finally, Newton explained, “You refuse to believe that this puny contraption came about by chance and yet you are convinced that the great original, the actual solar system, of which this mechanism is only a model, has come into being without either a designer or a maker. Now tell me, by what sort of reasoning do you reach such an absurd conclusion?”

Thus Newton defeated his atheistic friend and made him realize that behind this marvelous universe, there is the hand of God.

Order and design

hen we think calmly and carefully about this wonderful universe, we can see order and design at every level – in the atoms, the molecules, the solar system and the universe. Scientists continue to find new and astonishing aspects of this order. The very word ‘cosmos’ means ‘an orderly, harmonious systematic universe’.

T

W

At Atomic level : An atom includes a nucleus surrounded by

orbiting electrons. All matter is made up of these building blocks. What makes one substance differ from another is the number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus and the arrangement of electrons revolving around it. This has an exquisite order. We study about 14 types of crystal structure arrangements like FCC, BCC, HCP, etc., of different elements. Where did all this order come from?

At the molecular level, networks of atoms are so fantastically

arranged that even a slight change in the positions of a few atoms or a little variation in the geometry of a molecule, can cause the colour of a substance to change from orange to red, a mild pleasing odour to become repellent and pungent, and a flavour to change from sweet to bitter.

On one extreme, we find the smallest molecule, the hydrogen molecule, which contains only two hydrogen atoms. On the other extreme, we find giant molecules such as proteins and nucleic acids (DNA and RNA) that contain innumerable atoms made for a definite function. These atoms are arranged in amazingly intricate and definite patterns, like the double helix of the DNA molecule.

The molecular networks are so fantastically and delicately arranged that chemists cannot but wonder about the most expert hand and brain who is making all these wonderful artistic arrangements. Science is only unfolding the existing truths about nature. We have not created this order.

At best, scientists can only try to imitate the wonderful artistic works of God. They cannot even do this properly, and most of their attempts lead to failure and disappointment. Even when they are partly successful, it is only with the greatest difficulty.

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For example, Prof. R.B. Woodward of Harvard, a Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry (1965) and Prof. A. Eschenmoser of Zurich took eleven years to synthesize the vitamin B12 molecule. Altogether, 99 scientists from 19 different countries were involved just to accomplish this one small task!

At the level of Universe : From the infinitely large to the

infinitesimally small, from galactic clusters to atoms, the universe is characterized by superb organization.

• ‘Discover’ magazine stated: “We perceived the order in surprise, and our cosmologists and physicists continue to find new and astonishing aspects of the order… It is a miracle…”

• Former astronaut John Glenn noted “the orderliness of the whole universe… galaxies were all traveling in prescribed orbits in relation to one another.” He therefore asked: “Could this have just happened? Was it an accident that a bunch of flotsam and jetsam suddenly started making these orbits of its own accord?” He concluded, “Some Power put all this into orbit and keeps it there.”

• Indeed, the universe is so precisely organized that man can use the heavenly bodies as the basis for his timekeeping. A well-designed time piece is obviously the work of a intelligent scientist. Then what about the far more complex design and dependability that exists throughout the universe?

Group Quiz: Make a comparison between the Government of your

country and our Universe. Find out what are the duties of your government towards people and what you observe is happening in the universe? You will see an amazing similarity. When you begin the task, hide the right side column named `Universal Government’. After the group discussion, verify how many of your answers tally with the answers given under the heading of `universal government’?

GOVERNMENT OF ANY

COUNTRY UNIVERSAL GOVERNMENT

1 Home Ministry (Law and _order)

Law of Karma : For every action, there is an opposite reaction.

Illicit sex – AIDS, Smoking-Cancer Drinking-Liver problem, Tobacco-bronchitis 2 Supplying medicines for

diseases Ayurvedic herbs 3 Industrial and domestic water needs supply by

Municipality

Rains

4

Ministry of Social Welfare (Supply of food grains, vegetable, milk for the physical well being)

Air, water, grains, milk – all supplied through mother nature; God is father. Mother cannot produce without father. 5 Ministry of Energy

(Electricity and Lighting) Sun and moon 6 Finance Ministry

(Currency or wealth)

Gold, silver, nava ratnas, diamonds etc

7 Health Ministry (Hygiene

and sanitation) Sun and rain keep cleanliness 8 Defense Ministry _{(Protection from dangers)}

Ozonosphere protects living beings on earth, self defense immunity system

9 Education Ministry

(Education for citizens) Vedas, Bible, Quran

10 Reward for best citizens

Benefits of Yoga, Meditation etc who follow God’s laws and scriptures

Oral Quiz: What do you learn after completing the table? Brainstorm the ideas from students and tell one of them to write the points on the board.

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1. The universe we are living in is owned and controlled by the Supreme Lord.

2. We are not living in a universe, but in a Universal Government that is well managed, maintained and supervised by superior agents whom we may not see with our eyes. Just as there is a Prime Minister for any government, similarly there is Supreme God, who is the presiding authority of the whole universe.

3. When we ignore the laws of any government or Prime minister, one invites punishment; similarly by ignoring God and the laws of nature, modern man is inviting sufferings in this world more and more.

4. The sufferings we undergo are a proof that we are going against the will of God and some steps need to be taken to rectify our wrong mentality. The reform is to give up selfish, exploitative, enjoying, grabbing approach and to adopt the selfless, extending, serving, giving nature.

5. We should hear from the manual of God – Bhagavad gita – to know how can we again harmonize our lives according to His will.

Tremendous Energy

Every day the sun supplies the solar system with a tremendous amount of heat, light and energy. The very tiny fraction of the sun’s energy that falls on the earth – estimated at about five parts in a hundred million million – is about 100,000 times greater than all the energy used in the world’s industries. Put in a different way, the energy the sun emits in one second is greater than the whole amount of energy human species has consumed throughout its entire history! We have to find out whether any of our scientists can try to make one sun for us in their ‘most-advanced’ laboratories.

While God makes the sun, man can only poorly imitate it by producing a mercury bulb. While God has made the moon, man makes a Dome light. God makes vast oceans; man can only create swimming pools. God puts huge planets in orbit and sets them in motion; man can only put a small sputnik in orbit. Thus God creates and man imitates, that too poorly.

Organization and Craftsmanship

There are many simple and graphic examples of the artistry of the Lord’s creation. We see that among the lower forms of living entities, social organization is very smoothly maintained. • For example, in a bee colony the drones nicely take care of

the queen bee, while the workers collect a great amount of honey from flowers all day long.

• Similarly, the loving relationship between a mother and her baby is quite clearly visible even in very small forms of living entities. During monsoon season in tropical countries, when there are torrents of rain, the small ants run to find shelter, carrying their eggs on their heads.

• The spider makes its wonderful webs with great architectural skill to serve as a shelter and to catch its prey for survival. • Silkworms spin hundreds of yards of fine threads to form

cocoons for their shelter during the pupa stage.

• Inside a tiny seed, smaller than the size of a mustard seed, the whole potency of a big banyan tree is present.

• Seventy separate chemical reactions are involved in the process of photosynthesis in a plant.

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In this way, we can see the wonderful organization and arrangements made by God, who is creating, maintaining and guiding all living entities, small or big.

A Giant in a Tiny Package

One of the smallest seeds has packaged within it the biggest living thing on earth - the giant sequoia tree. It grows over 300 feet high. Four feet above the ground its diameter may be 36 feet. One tree may contain enough wood to build 50 six-room houses. The two-foot-thick bark is flavored with tannin that repels insects, and its spongy, fibrous texture makes it almost as fireproof as asbestos. Its roots cover three or four acres. It lives over 3000 years.

Yet the seeds that a sequoia tree rains down by the millions are not much bigger than a pinhead surrounded by tiny wings. A puny man standing at a sequoia’s base can only gaze upward in silent awe at

its massive grandeur. Does it make sense to believe that the shaping of the majestic giant and of the tiny seed that packages it was not by design?

Nobel-prize-winning physicist Robert A. Millikan, said at a meeting of the American Physical Society: “There’s a Divinity that shapes our ends…A purely materialistic philosophy is to me the height of unintelligence. Wise men in all the ages have always seen enough to at least make them reverent.”

Laws of Nature

The development that has taken place in all the physical sciences during the past hundred years has resulted chiefly from the application of the ‘Scientific Method’ to the study of matter and energy. In the experimental part of this study every effort is made to eliminate every known possibility that the results obtained are in any way due to mere chance. This study consistently has shown in the past, and still continues to show that the behaviour of even insensible matter is not at all haphazard, but on the contrary obeys definite natural laws. The arrangement of chemical elements by the great Russian chemist, Mendeleef, is called ‘The Periodic Law’ and not ‘The Periodic Chance’.

Also, the entire universe, from atoms to galaxies, is governed by definite physical laws. There are laws for governing heat, light, sound and gravity, for example. As physicist Stephen W. Hawking said : “The more we examine the universe, we find it is not arbitrary at all but obeys certain well-defined laws that operate in different areas. It seems very reasonable to suppose that there may be some unifying principle.”

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When we think of laws, we acknowledge that they come from a lawmaker. A traffic sign that says “Stop” certainly has behind it some person or group of persons who originated the law. What, then, about the comprehensive laws that govern the material universe? Such brilliantly conceived laws surely bear witness to a brilliant Lawmaker.

Did everything start from

a ‘Big bang’ or a ‘Big brain’?

If you ask someone, how this universe began, people simply murmur, ‘big bang’. Whenever there is a big bang due to some atom bomb in your town or city, you can be sure of two things :

• people would be curious to know who created the explosion-- any terrorists or soldiers?

• the explosion might have caused only damage and destruction and nothing orderly must have come out of it. The explosion usually is chaotic, like the explosion of a nuclear bomb. But does this type of explosion result in better organization? Do the bombs that fall on cities in wartime produce superbly designed buildings, streets and signs with traffic laws? On the contrary, such explosions cause wreckage, disorder, chaos, disintegration. And when the explosive device is nuclear the disorganization is total, as experienced by the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

No, a mere “explosion” could not create our awesome universe with its amazing order, design and law. Only a mighty organizer and lawmaker could direct the powerful forces at work so that they would result in superb organization and law.

The universe we live in, is not some lump of floating material, but a perfect residence (with arrangement for food, water, heat, light, medicine etc) for all living beings to live in harmony. No one would expect a beautiful multi-storeyed housing appartment replete with all facilities for food, water supply, lighting and electricity, hospital facility etc to spring up from a ‘big bang’ or a big explosion.

If someone is adament in arguing on ‘big bang’, he might be suggested to start a ‘small bang construction company’ and create housing appartments based on his ‘big bang’ belief. Encyclopedia Britannica admits, “It should be emphasized that no theory of the origin of the solar system has as yet won general acceptance. All involve highly improbable assumptions.” Thus, with such “highly improbable” theories the atheists try to deny God as the origin and controller of the universe.

According to big bang theory, everything began from ‘a point of infinite temperature, infinite density, infinitesimal in size that is physically indescribable, mathematically unverifiable, beyond all conceptions of space and time.’ Does it sound like a scientific theory? Now where did that ‘point’ come from? Here the scientists face the same difficulty as the religionists they taunt with the question, “Where did God come from?” And just as the religionists respond with the answer that God is the cause of all causes, the scientists are faced with the prospect of declaring a mathematically indescribable, physically unrealizable point of infinite density and temperature, of infinitesimal size, existing before all conceptions of time and space, as the cause of all causes. The choice is yours! Whether you want to accept God or a ‘point’ as the Supreme cause of all causes.

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Thus, believing in an empirical (or physical) scientific theory requires just as much faith as in believing that a personal God creates and maintains the universe. Scientists generally claim that nothing is accepted in the field of Science without proper experimental evidence. We can challenge, “Where is the proof that such a point existed? It is more wiser to assume that God, a Supreme Truth, endowed with unlimited energies is the cause of all causes, than to assume a ‘point’ as the Supreme Truth.”

God is not an assumption, but a tangible reality. Dr.Albert Einstein said,“I believe in God – who reveals himself in the orderly harmony of the Universe. I believe that intelligence is manifested throughout all Nature. The basics of scientific work is the conviction that the world is an ordered and comprehensible entity and not a thing of Chance. When I sit here and watch the mighty ocean, I can imagine the treasures hidden below the bed of the sea, when I see the clear blue sky above, I feel sky is the limit. When I cast my eyes around I see the wonders and beauties of Nature. Science must learn to live in Harmony with all these magnificent gifts of God to Humanity."

When we think calmly and carefully about this wonderful universe, we can see that everything is working under the control of a supreme brain. There is a cause behind each action. A machine cannot run without an operator. Modern scientists are very proud of automation, but there is a scientific brain behind automation also.

A Charge against Chance

ome scientists are using the concept of chance in a way that misleads the public. Being unable to explain the origin of the universe by physical laws, they assert that it was somehow caused by chance. But such statements are meaningless.

To make any statement about a chance event meaningful, • Many repetitions of the event in question are required and • These must be observable.

For example, we can flip a coin many times and note the results. We can see that they correspond to a statistical pattern indicating a 50% probability that heads will turn up rather than tails. The word ‘chance’ therefore does not actually refer to a cause - it refers only to a certain type of pattern in the results of an operation repeated a sufficient number of times.

Now imagine we could toss a given coin only once and it came up heads. If someone asked why that result happened, we might give a causal explanation or say that

we don’t know, but it would not be meaningful to say it happened by chance.

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So now what about the universe? It is not possible for us to observe more than one appearance of a universe-- we can only see the one we are in. The origin of the universe is thus a one-time event, and statements about it that involve chance are meaningless according to the rules of quantitative science.

Do you know a machine

which has no maker and with no purpose?

We have absolutely no experience of any object or system coming about by chance. Why and how then can we assume that the entire universe with all its harmony, order and structured organization came about by itself, by chance?

Have you ever seen:

• A complicated machine coming by Chance? • A complicated mechanism with no Purpose?

Suppose you go to the Strength of Materials laboratory and ask the lab incharge, “Where does the Universal Testing Machine (UTM) come from? And what is its purpose?” If he tells you that the UTM came by chance and that it has no purpose, will you not consider him to be a fool? This is what the so-called scientists of today are saying about the origin and the purpose of the most complicated mechanism - the universe. When a blind man leads many blind men everyone falls into a ditch. That is the condition of today’s society.

Any sane man can appreciate that a superb organization requires a superb organizer. Nothing in our experience indicates that anything organized happens by accident. Rather, our entire experience shows that everything organized must have an organizer. Every machine, computer, building, even a pen and pencil had a maker, an organizer. Logically, the far more complex and awesome organization in the universe must have had an organizer too.

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Those who advocate the ‘chance’ theory must put forward some supportive evidence to back their viewpoint. If they could find one, just one, wristwatch, computer or even a chapati that happened without a maker or designer, that would be something. But there is not a single such piece of evidence ! Not even one !

The Unseen Is Proven by the Seen

ne may not know God for sometime, but sooner or later, an intelligent person asks – “How is it that the material universe from the submicroscopic realm of the atom to the expanding reaches of the galactic objects is running like an intricate well-oiled clock? If hundreds of scientists have to break their heads to put a single satellite in orbit, how much greater giant brain, capable of careful planning, would be required to put millions of planets in orbit? Modern scientists are proud of automation, but there is a scientific brain behind automation also. What great intelligence has been able to visualize the arrangement of innumerable planets, realize it and put all the planets in motion?”

A clear principle is established: “The unseen is proved by the seen. The creation reflects the creator at every point. God can be easily seen in this creation just as an inventor can be easily known by his invention.” The Bhagavad-gita explains that everything rests upon God just as pearls are strung on a thread. Krishna says in the Bhagavad-gita (7.7):

mattah parataram nanyat kincid asti dhananjaya mayi sarvam idam protam sutre mani gana iva

“O conqueror of wealth, there is no truth superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread.”

O

The analogy is clear. By superficial examination of a pearl necklace, one cannot see what is keeping all the pearls together. But we figure that there must be some binding factor, else the pearls would have scattered. Similarly, God is the underlying thread of Truth binding this entire cosmic manifestation together in an orderly manner. It is He who put all the planets and galaxies into precise orbits and it is He who maintains them.

The Spiritual Scientist

ord Kelvin, one of the world’s greatest physicists, has made the following significant statement: “If you think strongly enough, you will be forced by science to believe in God.” In other words, Lord Kelvin answers the question, ‘Can a scientist believe in God?’ in unambiguous terms: if a scientist does not believe in God, he is not a scientist at all.

After commenting on all the special conditions of order and law that are so obvious in the universe, ‘Science News’ observed: “Contemplation of these things disturbs cosmologists because it seems as if such particular and precise conditions could hardly have arisen at random. One way to deal with the question is to say the whole thing was contrived and lay it on Divine Providence.” Many scientists have begun to acknowledge what the evidence keeps insisting-- intelligence.

There are many true scientists who, being in the frontlines of research in their fields, not only are keenly aware of the marvelous powers and achievements of science, but also are equally aware of its limitations – of the questions that science alone can never answer and of the marvels of creation, of wonder, and design in the universe that the atheist or agnostic is

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powerless to account for. After years of research and study this is what Sir Isaac had to say, “I do not know what may appear to the world, but to myself I seem to have been like a boy playing by the sea shore, and diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.”

Scientists of today have begun to realize that the knowledge and ability they have is extremely limited and in fact quite insignificant. Therefore, instead of denying and challenging the existence of the Supreme Scientist, God, it should be the prime duty of all scientists to appreciate the inconceivable brain of God and His wonderful manifestations everywhere and create a worldwide spiritual awareness among people. Then there can be real peace in society.

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Chapter

2

Getting

The Eyes

To See GOD

Blind Men and the Elephant

Once six blind men came across an elephant for the first time in their lives. After touching different parts of the elephant, every one of them started describing enthusiastically what they thought the elephant was like.

One man who had touched the side of the elephant exclaimed,“It is like a wall which appears that it may fall anytime”. The second man who had touched the tusk said, “O! It is so very round, smooth and sharp. The elephant is like a spear”. The third man who had touched the trunk said,“Don’t you understand that the elephant is like a snake?”

The fourth man who had grasped one of the legs of the elephant felt that the elephant was like a tree. The fifth man had touched one of the ears of the elephant and stated that it was like a fan. The sixth man who had caught hold of the

swinging tail of the elephant commented,“Why don’t you all understand that the elephant is like a rope!”

In this way, they went on arguing until they resorted to the help of a learned man with proper eyesight. The learned man felt pity for them and told them the complete description of the elephant and then all the six blind men felt satisfied.

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Getting the Eyes to See God 23

Quiz : What general principles can you draw from this drama? What can we learn from it?

Just as the blind men could not understand the elephant completely just by their endeavor because of their blindness, we cannot understand the material world or the Absolute Truth completely and correctly by any amount of endeavor because our senses are defective and limited. Just as one of the blind men grabbed on to the tail and called the elephant a rope, sometimes we may grab on to a particular part of the truth and our understanding may even be correct; still our limited understanding does not give us the complete truth.

We have to approach a spiritual master whose (spiritual) eyes are wide open and only such a person can deliver the truth to us because he is perceiving the truth himself. Hearing from such a bonafide authority with faith and putting what we hear into practice will bring us to the point of perceiving and realizing all the truths.

* * * *

rom the previous lesson, we understood that there is some super intelligence or super power or God who is the ‘Organizer’, ‘Controller’, ‘Designer’ – all these words indicate a person. So God is the Supreme Person who creates, maintains, enjoys and controls everything. Once we accept that He exists, how can we acquire further knowledge about Him? There are three ways for gaining knowledge:

1) Pratyaksha (Empirical Sensual Perception) 2) Anumana (Theories Based on Evidence) 3) Shabda (Hearing From a Bonafide Authority).

F

Pratyaksha Praman

his is the knowledge obtained by direct perception. Majority of scientific experiments and proofs are based on this method. “Seeing is believing” is a popular slogan among people arguing against God’s existence. But consider the following examples to verify whether seeing is believing: • Is the sun just a plate of half-a-meter diameter as we see it

with our eyes?

• A stick appears broken when we insert half of it into water (Refraction). Is it?

• Even the most beautiful face looks highly distorted in a concave mirror. (Is seeing believing (?!))

We understand that direct perception by our senses is not a very reliable method because the sense organs themselves have only a limited range. We cannot acquire absolute knowledge through the material senses and mind, and any knowledge we derive will be only relative. The very fact that the information and theories in science are changed, updated and modified everyday is a proof that we are attaining higher and higher imperfect relative truths by the pursuit of our scientific research. The Absolute Truth, or God however is fixed; it never changes.

We cannot understand the Absolute Truth through our blunt material senses because all of us have four defects:

1. Imperfect senses 2. Tendency to be illusioned 3. Tendency to commit mistakes 4. Tendency to cheat.

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1) Imperfect Senses

he first problem we face when trying to get accurate information about the external world is that our senses have physiological limits, or ‘thresholds of perception’.

Eyes: We can see only a tiny fraction of the total

electromagnetic spectrum. An electromagnetic wave can range from one quadrillionth of a meter up to 100 million metres in length. And of this, we can see only the waves that are 400 to 700 millimicrons long. Anything outside this thin band is invisible to us. Similarly, even if we draw 10000 lines within 0.1 mm, we will be able to see only a single line

.

Ears: Human hearing extends from 20 Hz upto 20,000 Hz .

We are deaf to any vibration above or below this range. That’s why when you blow a dog’s whistle, all the street dogs will come running to you on hearing it, although you cannot hear any sound at all!

So our senses are imperfect. But what about scientific instruments? Nobel-Prize-winning physicist Eugene Wigner points out, “Even if we photograph the stars, we must eventually ‘take in’ by our senses what the photograph shows. Furthermore without our senses, we could not handle a photographic camera. Clearly all knowledge comes to us ultimately through our senses." So even if amplified/refined by instruments, any knowledge based on sense perception is no more perfect than our imperfect senses.

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Four Combined pitures 1. old Women & Young Girl

2. Tringle 3. ABC & 123 4. Glass & Face

2) Tendency to be illusioned

All the senses have many known deceptions. Some examples are given below:

Group work: Each picture has at least two ways to see depending on what you choose to discard. Identify 4x2=8 different interpretations, what do you learn from it. Form groups to identify the different interpretations. What do you learn from this exercise?

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Eyes:

Selective vision: We interpret physical reality according to

what we discard and at different times we give it different interpretations. See Fig.1. Depending on which image you choose to discard, the drawing is either a black vase or the outline of two white faces looking toward each other. Both images are present, but you can’t see them both at the same time. Consciously or unconsciously, you select one and discard the other. In Fig.2 the picture is either a young woman or an old woman, depending on how you choose to interpret the data before you.

Contextual Vision: The middle character in Fig.3 is either a

number or a letter depending on the context you choose to see.

Imaginative Vision: Our eyes also distort things and supply

information not given. In Fig.4 our eye imagines the lines that form a white triangle.

So, we talk about reality as objective because of the high degree of agreement we share in our individual realities.

From birth, we condition our senses to select and interpret phenomena the same way others around us do. Thus we form a Consensus Reality Illusion, many individuals sharing an agreed-upon way of interpreting their environment. This poses serious questions about the authority of physical sciences as well, because our scientists are as much deluded by their senses as everyone else.

3) Tendency to commit mistakes

Yet another difficulty with sense perception is that we all make mistakes. Science, with all its dramatic successes, has from its beginnings also generated wildly incorrect accounts: electricity and heat as fluids, the brain as an organ to cool the blood, stars as pinpricks in a crystal globe… These are dramatic deviations from what we now see as truth; and when invented they were deviations from what then appeared true. In another instance, three astronomers recently discovered a significant mistake in the Hubble Constant, a value used as a cosmic yardstick to measure enormous distances in the universe. The Hubble Constant – named after astronomer Edwin P. Hubble – has undergone so many corrections since he first formulated it that many astronomers now laughingly call it the ‘Hubble Variable’! Clearly, with our imperfect senses and our illusion-prone mind, mistakes are inevitable. So advancement in science means, defeating the old mistaken idea and proposing a new mistake, which may need a revision sooner or later.

4) Cheating

To err is human, the saying goes. But unfortunately, humans sometimes go beyond innocent error and deliberately propagate untruths. Scientists are not immune to this shortcoming.

For many years, textbooks on evolution routinely cited the Piltdown Man as evidence that human beings have descended from an ape-like ancestor. In 1912, archaeologists excavated a humanlike skull and an apelike jaw from a gravel pit at Piltdown, in the British Isles. The bones were deemed parts of the same creature, which was duly reconstructed in full and placed in the British Museum as an example of a transitional phase between the ancient ape and the modern man. In 1953,

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however, investigators discovered that the jawbone of the Piltdown Man was actually of a very recent origin and had simply been stained to look like a fossil. In addition, someone had filed the teeth down to change their appearance. In other words, the Piltdown Man was a fraud, apparently engineered by one of the original discoverers.

William Fix, author of ‘The Bone Peddlers: Selling Evolution’ claims that while making a careful analysis of the more than 120 years of archaeological discoveries, he unearthed a ‘catalogue of fiascos’, findings recorded by researchers more interested in publicity, funding, and reputation than in truth. To protect their reputations, says Fix, researchers have deliberately ignored or dismissed contrary evidence. ‘Forbidden Archaelogy’ by Richard L Thomson and Micheal Cremo gives a comprehensive list of fossil records, which categorically disproves evolution.

Anumana Praman

his is the process of inference, which is nothing but hypothesizing on the knowledge acquired by direct perception. Charles Darwin’s theories and much of archaeology and anthropology rely upon such inductive conjecture (“It may have been like this, or perhaps it was like this”).

Mechanistic science bluntly reduces everything to atoms and molecules and rejects anything that does not fall in its scale of observation. The key medical field of Microbiology was non-existent till the 16th century when Antony Von Lewenhoek discovered lenses, which could detect microbes. Similarly, the state-of-art of present day science is that we have no instruments to detect anti-matter.

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A practical example of anumana praman or wild speculation is Darwin’s theory that proposes the idea that human beings might have evolved from apes. Darwin tried to find out how life came in this universe. With all his researches, when he could not make out, he admitted that he resorted to wild imaginative speculation. In one of his letters to A.R. Wallace (December 22, 1857), Darwin wrote, "... I am a firm believer that without speculation there is no good and original observation....'. How his theory was developed is given in his own words: "…After five years work I allowed myself to speculate on the subject, and drew up some short notes; these I enlarged in 1844 into a sketch of the conclusions, which seemed to me probable..” (Origin of Species).

For instance, he proposed the idea how the sea whale originated. He said how once upon a time, a bear entered into water with wide-open mouth for catching some flies and he stayed long in water and turned into a sea whale! Such speculative theories are propagated by scientists, taught as solemn truths in schools and universities and discarded later like disposable napkins, only to put forward another speculative theory. Thus Anumana praman is misleading and cannot assure one of the actual truths.

Anumana praman is just guesswork; something like observing a black box and imagining what could be inside it.

If you hear a loud noise coming from a room closed on all sides, it could be caused by anything. You could make say three wild guesses: may be a fight is going on, may be the TV is on, may be the radio is on. When you open the room, you come to know that a group of people is doing a rehearsal for a drama presentation.

Thus the actual reality can be totally different from what one may guess. Hence Anumana praman is misleading and cannot assure perfect knowledge.

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Shabda Praman

The Vedas assert that objects beyond matter cannot be known experimentally. These objects are therefore called Acintya. That which is Acintya cannot be known by speculation or by argument but only by Shabda, the process of hearing from Vedic literature. This method is considered more reliable than perception or inference because it conveys knowledge free of all defects. The Vedic texts are called Apaurusheya, meaning, ‘of divine origin’. There is no possibility for defects and therefore we are required to accept scripture in toto, as it is, without interpretation and modification. It is only in this way that the deepest truths will be revealed.

One should hear perfect knowledge from the all-perfect person God Himself directly (as Arjuna did), or one should hear perfect knowledge from an authority who is coming in an unbroken chain of disciplic succession which originates from God. Just as Electricity comes from electric post, in turn from Electricity board, in turn from Power station, in turn operated by a man who generates electricity and sends it. In the same way the knowledge is given by God Himself to Brahma, to Narada, to Vyasa and today the disciplic succession is continuing and is available for any seeker of Truth about God. Connect yourself to power supply and then you can have light. Connect yourself to parampara – disciplic succession from God and then you can have perfect knowledge. That is the secret of attaining perfect knowledge.

Thus, the process of ‘Shabda’ or hearing from a bonafide authority is the most reliable and definite way of obtaining knowledge of the truth. If a child wants to know who his father is, he should ask his mother. He may make a survey of the

male population, but much more simply, he can ask his mother, the natural authority. In other words, if a person can accept information given by an authority he does not have to take the trouble to research independently. Thus acceptance of genuine spiritual authority is the way to attain true knowledge and bliss.

See Through the Eyes of Scriptures

By hearing the spiritual sound vibration of the scriptures, one learns to see things according to the direction given in the scriptures, then one can see the things as they are. This is called ‘Sastra Cakshu’.

For example, a beautiful woman may be perceived by a tiger as his lunch box, by a child as a mother who cares and loves him, by a young man as an object of enjoyment and by a self realized sage as display of the illusory energy. But how should we see things of this world? For knowing this, we require the spectacles of wisdom; then we will learn how to see things, what to accept, what to reject, what to do and what to not do. For instance the scriptures state that one should see every woman except one’s wife as one’s own mother and see other people’s property as garbage. If one hears such scriptural instructions and abides by them, one will gradually achieve ultimate happiness in this world and in the next.

Only one who hears from authoritative sources can know the science of God. When one knows the science of God, he can understand: Who am I? Why am I born into this world? Who is God? What is the purpose of life? Why am I suffering? How can I get out of all suffering? How is the material world moving? What is the relationship of God with all living beings? etc.

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If one has been an automobile specialist for twenty years and knows the science of automobiles he can judge the condition of a vehicle as soon as he drives it even for a minute. But one who does not know the science of automobiles cannot understand anything about the condition of a vehicle. Similarly one who knows the science of God can immediately see the hand of God in every single aspect of the cosmos – from the microscopic to the macroscopic. But one who has no knowledge of the science of God cannot understand anything about the working of the world.

That is why hearing the science of God from great saintly persons is called as ‘darshan’. ‘Darshan’ means ‘sight’ as well as ‘philosophical insight’ or ‘discourse’. Thus by hearing from great saintly persons who are devotees of God, we can come to see and realize the ultimate truth.

If Mr. Bill Gates is sitting in a group meeting with you, you will not know his greatness, until you hear from someone who he is. Similarly, God’s greatness has to be heard from His pure unalloyed devotees, who are not only preaching about Him, but practicing a life in accord with His divine instructions. By hearing Vedic knowledge from such great souls, we can get the eyes to see God.

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Chapter

3

Vedic Wisdom:

The Privilege of

Humanity

Group work: Make a list of the different species that you

know of, for their special abilities (e.g. eagle- eye sight). Find out what is the speciality of human species.

Human Life vs. Animal Life

ave you ever wondered how a human being is superior to an animal? The activities of human beings and animals are similar - eating, sleeping, producing children, defending themselves etc. In what way are humans superior to animals? Someone may reply ‘Reasoning Power’ or ‘Rational Thinking’. But reasoning power is there even in lower animals like dogs and cats. Suppose a dog comes up to you, and if you say, “Hut!” he will understand that you don’t want him. So, he has some reasoning power. Similarly if a cat wants to steal some milk from your kitchen, she has very nice reasoning power; she is always looking to see when the master is out, so that she can steal and drink the milk.

So the four propensities of animal life – eating, sleeping, mating and defending – indicate that there is reasoning power even in the beasts. Then what is the special prerogative of the human being over animals? The special reasoning power that the human being has is the ability to inquire, “Why am I suffering?” The animals are suffering, but they do not know how to remedy their suffering.

Generally, people are just like animals. They simply do not know anything beyond the necessities of the body: how to eat, how to sleep, how to mate and how to defend. An animal eats filth and garbage in a street; we may eat in a five-star hotel. An animal may sleep in a corner of a street; we may sleep on a

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Vedic Wisdom: The Privilege of Humanity 37

Dunlop pillow bed or on a water-bed. An animal may mate without shame in the middle of the street; we may have sex in a skyscraper building. An animal may defend with claws and teeth; we may defend with bombs, scuds and missiles.

If human beings use scientific, philosophical, cultural and religious advancement just to perform these four activities better, then such a human civilization is in no way superior to an animal civilization. The Mahabharata therefore says:

ahara-nidra-bhaya-maithunam cha, samanyam etad pashubhir naranam dharmo hi tesham adhiko vishesho, dharmena hina pashubhih samanah

“The activities of eating, sleeping, mating and defending are common in animals and human beings. The human beings are considered superior only when they inquire about the Absolute Truth, otherwise they are considered as good as animals.” Majority of human beings are wasting their time in useless activities imitating animals. People organize competitions to award one who can eat maximum number of bananas or gulabjamuns. But can we compete with an elephant in eating? Can we compete with an eagle in seeing objects miles away? Can we compete with a dog in smelling and detecting thieves? Can we imitate a pigeon who can have sex a dozen times in one hour? Can we compete with a kangaroo in high jump? Can we compete with a horse in atheletics? If we are proud of producing offspring, a dog can beget dozens of puppies and a mosquito can produce thousands of offspring.

Animals are better than humans in the aforementioned activities. In fact, these abilities are in-built in their system by the arrangement of God. If it is so, what is the special ability

awarded in a human body? If we are proud of social organization, even honey bees have a complex social set up where worker bees go for collecting honey (and they never go on strike like their human counterparts!) while the drones take care of the queen who begets offspring.

The Special Prerogative of the Human Body

he Bhagavad-gita says that, out of many thousands of people, someone may develop this reasoning power: “Why am I suffering?” We do not want to suffer, but suffering is forced upon us. We do not want too much heat or cold, but too much cold and too much heat are forced upon us. We do not want thirst, hunger, old age, disease and death. The real problems of life are birth, old age, disease and death. But nobody is free from all these sufferings in this world.

Everyone is full of anxiety despite increasing material comforts, economic development and scientific advancement. The Western countries have reached the summit of material civilization, but people are still dissatisfied. The government has difficulty controlling crime, drug addiction, adultery etc. When the civilization becomes godless and human beings are geared towards a rat race for money and sex, life becomes hellish.

Only in human life are we endowed with the intelligence to inquire, “What happens after death? What is the actual destination of my life?” This is called ‘brahma jijnasa’, enquiring about oneself and God. The first aphorism of the Vedanta sutra says: athato brahma jijnasa “Now that you have achieved a human body, you should inquire about the Absolute Truth.”

Dys

DISCOVER

Your Self

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Eminent Personalities Say...

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Contents

Appendix 1

Appendix 2

Appendix 3

Appendix 4

Appendix 5

Foreword

Chapter

1

Can A Scientist

Believe In GOD?

The Story of Isaac Newton

T

W

Did everything start from

a ‘Big bang’ or a ‘Big brain’?

A Charge against Chance

Do you know a machine

which has no maker and with no purpose?

The Unseen Is Proven by the Seen

O

The Spiritual Scientist

Chapter

2

Getting

The Eyes

To See GOD

Blind Men and the Elephant

F

Pratyaksha Praman

T

Anumana Praman

T

Shabda Praman

See Through the Eyes of Scriptures

Chapter

3

Vedic Wisdom:

The Privilege of

Humanity

Human Life vs. Animal Life

The Special Prerogative of the Human Body