Paths to Truth

 

Most of us are in search for the truth, whatever that means.

The meaning of truth differs for different people and differs for the same being at different times.

There are three paths to discover the truth of reality. One is the scientific approach, the second is the logical approach, the third is the spiritual approach.

The scientific mind will experiment, and test repeatedly in the objective world. Only when there is proof, the scientific mind accepts.

The logical mind, by using philosophy, evaluating pros and cons, reasons out the truth and conclusions are drawn. No testing is carried out. The entire exercise is subjective and in the mind.

The spiritual approach, where one experiences the truth. They often know not why it is so, but it is.

Scientific approach is of the material world and the exterior, it deals with the objective. In this category belong great people like Newton, Aryabhatta, Ramanujan.

The logical approach is pure mind work and it deals with the subjective and is of the interior. In this category belong Socrates, Kautaliya and Einstein.

The spiritual is the link between the interior of our existence and the exterior world in which we exist. Linking our being and our world, and in this category belong Guru Nanak, Gautam Buddha, Jesus, Kabir Das, etc.

Every individual has a natural inclination and sometimes the gift of teaching and guiding others. Some go the scientific route and some logical and some spiritual.

The scientists often laugh at the spiritual and the logical people for their lack of hard facts and truth.

The philosopher thinks the scientist blind in his arrogance, and the spiritual being as a fake.

The truly spiritual being, simply smiles in bliss and says nothing about others. He or she simply knows.

We are like water, each one a droplet. We take birth springing out along with other droplets of water soon to form a stream. Soon streams merge to form rivulets and they in turn become the river.

Some rivers flow almost straight some wind their way forward. Some rivers flow east, others flow west. Thousands of rivers known by a million names some mighty and some little but all will eventually flow into the ocean where no one can describe which water came from which river.

Each droplet with all its arrogance will eventually return to the ocean. Who knows which drop is right and which is wrong, which is greater. No drop is insignificant but none is also eternally significant.

So it is with each individual and our truths Each one originating from the same ocean as a droplet and returning to the ocean through a long journey back to the ocean.

Truth is so evident and yet so elusive. It is like the air, we cannot grasp it with our hands and minds. It can only breathed in and experienced.

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Note: I am grateful to my elders and various friends and teachers who taught me so much and help me awaken even if so little.

“Agni Meele Purohitam”

HMV Company had once published a pamphlet outlining the history of gramophone record, which makes fascinating reading. The gramophone was invented by Thomas Alva Edison in the 19th century. Edison, who also invented numerous other gadgets such as the electric light bulb and the motion picture camera.

After inventing the gramophone record, Edison for sake of posterity, wanted the first recording to be that of an eminent scholar. Impressed by the scholar  Prof. Max Muller* of Germany, Edison requested for an appointment to travel to Europe to make the recording.

 Max Muller an admirer of Edison's work suggested that Edison make the recording and demonstration at a conference to be held shortly in England where many of Europe's finest scientific minds would be present.

Soon thereafter Edison voyaged to England. At the conference, after a grand welcome and introduction, Edison invited Prof Max Mueller onto the stage and to speak into the instrument. After making the recording Edison rushed to his laboratory and returned with a gramophone disc which he duly played on his instrument.

The audience was enthralled and after several rounds of ensuing applause and congratulations to Thomas Alva Edison, Max Muller addressed the august gathering. He asked "You heard my voice, did any of you understand what I said in the morning or what you heard on the recording of this afternoon?"

There was pin-drop silence in the huge hall as none of the scholars had understood until it was revealed to them that Max Mueller had spoken in the ancient yet highly scientific language of Sanskrit.

Max Mueller a renown Indologist explained that  the the words "Agni Meele Purohitam", was the  first shloka* of the first verse of  the 'Rig Veda', and he chose this because  "Vedas are the oldest text of the human race.  In the most primordial time, when the people did not know how even to cover their bodies and lived by hunting and housed in caves, Indians had attained high civilization and they gave the world universal philosophies in the form of the Vedas.”

When “Agni Meele Purohitam” was replayed the entire audience stood up in silence as a mark of respect. This verse means; "Oh Agni***, You who gleam in the darkness, to You we come day by day, with devotion and bearing homage. So be of easy access to us, Agni, as a father to his son, abide with us for our well being." *   Prof. Max Mueller was an Indologist & a great scolar of Indian sacred books. ** Shloka - literally means song.  *** Agni - means fire and a manifestation of God who is immortal and the source of all energy and life.

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I am grateful to my noble friend, Capt. Niteesh Krisnhamurti for this wonderful and informative insight.