KNOWLEDGE CONCEPT

Knowledge, or Jñāna, is to unravel the Truth. This has been brusquely stated in various scriptures and Mahāvākyas (Great Sayings) of Sanatana Dharma (eternal righteousness and order). The Truth is eternal and beyond time-space-causation. What is its nature? Sat-Chit-Anand (Existence-Consciousness-Bliss) is the Brahmān (Cosmic Self, or Absolute Existence). There are three aspects of the Brahmān: Sat (Truth), Chit (consciousness), and Anand (eternal Bliss). Truth is; untruth is not, so tersely expresses Swami Sivananda. He says that it is not absolutely correct even to say that Truth is one, for Truth is Existence itself and is neither one nor not one. The Truth is undivided. He says Truth constitutes the essence of the Vedas. Control over passions constitutes the essence of truth. Self-denial, or refraining from worldly pleasures, forms the essence of self-control. These attributes are always present in a virtuous man. He further says, Truth is righteousness. Righteousness is light, and light is bliss. Ahimsa (non-injury and cosmic love), Brahmacharya (celibacy or control of all the senses in thought, word, and deed), purity, justice, harmony, forgiveness, and peace (control of the senses and mind with dispassion, discrimination, and non-attachment) are forms of truth. Impartiality, self-control, modesty, endurance, goodness, renunciation, meditation, dignity, fortitude, compassion, and abstention from injury are the various forms of truth.

1. Outline

"Knowledge in Sanātana Dharma, often referred to as "Jñāna," is to know the fundamental dimension of any activity, idea, principle, or operation that has a primaeval bearing on truth. It is considered one of the fundamental concepts in the pursuit of spiritual enlightenment and liberation. Human life, according to the sage philosopher Swami Krishnananda, is a process of knowledge. All knowledge, the sage philosopher asserts, implies a subject or a knower, whose relationship with manifests knowledge. The presence of the knower in the act of knowledge is indisputable; without a knower, knowledge cannot exist, and without knowledge, experience is unattainable. The whole of one's life is constituted of various forms of experience, and all experience is attended with consciousness. Consciousness must always be associated with the subject or the knower. In the absence of a self-aware consciousness, objective knowledge cannot exist. The experience of an external world becomes unattainable without a cognisant subject. The existence of the known necessitates the existence of a knower.

In Sanātana Dharma, there are different types of knowledge that one can acquire through the body-mind-intellect complex, such as sensory knowledge (obtained through the senses), intellectual knowledge (obtained through reasoning and logical analysis), and intuitive knowledge (obtained through direct experience or perception). However, the ultimate goal of all knowledge, according to this tradition, is to realise the supreme consciousness through self-realisation, or the realisation of the true nature of being. This is often achieved through spiritual practises such as meditation, self-inquiry, and the study of the scriptures. Meditation and contemplation act as catalysts in the elevation process towards self-realisation. Self-realisation is the realisation of the self. It moves from the lower self to the higher self, the realisation of divine consciousness. Self-realisation is an intrinsic part of elevating experiences. In our ancient scriptures, there are highlights for both the path and the followers who follow the path. However, the most important component is self-effort, which has been aphoristically stated in Yoga Vasistha.

2. Scriptures

Scriptures in Sanātana Dharma abound with the need for convergence of the body-mind-intellect dimension and the inner spiritual (Ātman) dimension to acquire true knowledge towards fuller realisation of truth and supreme consciousness. In the Vivekchudamani, Sri Shankaracharya puts emphasis on the application of Vivek to discriminate between the inner and outer selves. The outer self gives sensual gratification, whereas the inner self gives Sat-Chit-Anand (Existence-Consciousness-Bliss). He says, "One should recover oneself, immersed in the sea of birth and death, by means of devotion to right discrimination."

The Srimad Bhagavad Gita, which is epigrammatic in its description, states that knowledge is the king of sciences and the most profound of all secrets. It purifies those who hear it. It is directly realisable, in accordance with Dharma, easy to practise, and everlasting in effect.

rāja-vidyā rāja-guhyaṁ pavitram idam uttamam

pratyakṣhāvagamaṁ dharmyaṁ su-sukhaṁ kartum avyayam

Knowledge is king (Rāja), science (Vidyā), secret (Guhya), pure (Pavitram), directly perceptible (Pratyakṣha), virtuous (Dharmyam), and very easy to practise (Kartum susukham).

In the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, the knowledge concept signifies a being’s relationship with a Kshetra (field) through the body-mind-intellect mechanism, and second, that same individual’s relationship based on Ātman (inner spirit) with the Kṣhetrajna (knower of the field), the supreme spirit. "Knowledge," or Jñāna leads towards realisation of the self. It enriches the self-consciousness towards the realisation of the consciousness of the Supreme Being. The aim of all knowledge is to generate awareness for the realisation of the consciousness of the Supreme Being. This has been so beautifully elucidated in the Srimad Bhagavad Gita.

mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñchid asti dhanañjaya

mayi sarvam idaṁ protaṁ sūtre maṇi-gaṇā iva

There is nothing higher than myself. Everything rests in me, like beads strung on a thread.

The qualities of knowledge seekers include: Humbleness; freedom from hypocrisy; non-violence; forgiveness; simplicity; service of the Guru (teacher); cleanliness of body and mind; steadfastness; and self-control; dispassion towards the objects of the senses; absence of egotism; keeping in mind the evils of birth, disease, old age, and death; non-attachment; absence of clinging to spouse, children, home, and so on; even-mindedness amidst desired and undesired events in life; constant and exclusive devotion towards Me; an inclination for solitary places and an aversion for mundane society; constancy in spiritual knowledge; and philosophical pursuit of the Absolute Truth—all these I declare to be knowledge, and what is contrary to it, I call ignorance.

Merely imparting invaluable knowledge to someone is not enough. The recipients of that knowledge must appreciate its value and have faith in its authenticity. Only then will they put in the effort required to practically implement it in their lives. Awareness towards knowledge evolves through continual self-effort through syncronisation of body-mind-intellect-spirit mechanism in the devotional direction of realising the Supreme Cosciousness.

tam eva śharaṇaṁ gachchha sarva-bhāvena bhārata

tat-prasādāt parāṁ śhāntiṁ sthānaṁ prāpsyasi śhāśhvatam

Sri Krishna says, Surrender exclusively to Him with your whole being. By His grace, you will attain perfect peace and the eternal abode.

man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru

mām evaiṣhyasi satyaṁ te pratijāne priyo ‘si me

Always think of Me, be devoted to Me, worship Me, and offer obeisance to Me. Doing so, you will certainly come to Me. This is My pledge to you, for you are very dear to Me.

manuṣhyāṇāṁ sahasreṣhu kaśhchid yatati siddhaye

yatatām api siddhānāṁ kaśhchin māṁ vetti tattvataḥ

Amongst thousands of people, hardly one strives for perfection, and amongst those who have achieved perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth.

vīta-rāga-bhaya-krodhā man-mayā mām upāśhritāḥ

bahavo jñāna-tapasā pūtā mad-bhāvam āgatāḥ

Being free from attachment, fear, and anger, becoming fully absorbed in Me, and taking refuge in Me, many people in the past became purified by knowledge of Me and thus attained My divine love. Sri Krishna explained that "but for those whose ignorance is destroyed by divine knowledge, the Supreme Entity is revealed, just as the sun illumines everything when it rises."

3. Mahāvākyas (Great Sayings)

There are four Mahāvākyas , with each of the four Vedas containing one of them.

3.1. Prajnanam Brahma (प्रज्ञानम् ब्रह्म)– Consciousness is Brahman, Aitareya Upanishad, Rig Veda. This is called the Svarupabodha-Vakya or the sentence that explains the nature of Brahmān or the Self. The Brahman refers to its supra-essential essence, is Consciousness, not its accidental attributes, as creatorship. Brahmān is that which is Absolute, fills all space, is complete in itself, to which there is no second, and which is continuously present in everything, from the creator down to the lowest of matter.

3.2. Aham Brahmāsmi (अहम् ब्रह्मास्मि) - "I am Brahman", or "I am Divine," Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, Yajur Veda. This is the Anusandhana-Vakya, the idea on which the aspirant tries to fix his mind. emphasizes the unity of the individual self (Ātman) and Brahmān. It proclaims that the ultimate reality of the universe is not separate from oneself. This Witness-Consciousness, being the same in all, is universal and cannot be distinguished from Brahmān, which is the Absolute. Hence the essential ‘I' which is full, super-rational, and resplendent, should be the same as Brahmān.

3.3. Tat Tvam Asi (तत् त्वम् असि)– That Thou Art, Chandogya Upanishad, Sam Veda. This is the Upanishadic Vakya or Upadesa-Vakya. It affirms that the individual self (Ātman) and Brahmān are identical. That Reality is remote is a misconception, which is removed by the instruction that it is within one's own self. According to Swami Krishnananda, Sage Uddalaka mentions ‘Tat Tvam Asi," or ‘That thou art," nine times while instructing his disciple Svetaketu in the nature of Reality. That which is one alone without a second, without name or form, and which existed before creation as well as after creation as pure Existence alone is what is referred to as Tat or That, in this sentence.

3.4. Ayam Atma Brahma (अयम् आत्मा ब्रह्म) – This Self is Brahmān, Mandukya Upanishad, Atharva Veda. This is the Anubhavabodha Vakya or the sentence that gives expression to the inner intuitive experience of the aspirant. It declares that the individual self (Ātman) is not different from Brahmān. ‘Ayam' means ‘this', and here ‘thisness' refers to the self-luminous and non-mediate nature of the Self, which is internal to everything, from the Ahamkara or ego down to the physical body.

4. Remarks

In Sanātana Dharma, knowledge is also considered a means to overcome ignorance, which is seen as the root cause of suffering and the cycle of birth and death. Therefore, the pursuit of knowledge is considered an essential part of the spiritual journey towards liberation, or Moksha. Liberation is a journey from the pangs of birth and death, all sorrows, attachments, and bondages, towards fullness, infinities, and a fuller realisation of Divine Consciousness. Liberation in the Sanatana Dharma is elevated through fixation and movement within the eternal order or way of life. It is detachment from all bonds of worldly pleasure and pain, steadfastness, divine devotion, purity, and chastity in our whole body, mind, and intellect mechanisms.

-Asutosh Satpathy