Science and Spirituality: Synthesis or Symbiosis?

[Guest guest]

Jay, Vivekananda Centre London, has legitimately brought our attention to the

important questions that are looming around the topic of Science and

Spirituality. We all look forward to further posts from him on his lectures on

the topic. However may I be allowed to raise a fundamental issue here?

There have been many attempts to fuse science and spirituality and synthesize

them. It is the dogmas of religion that put forth obstacles in this path of

fusion. Science itself allows freedom to think and question. But Scientists,

more loyal than the King, in order to establish the superiority of the

scientific quest, tend to confuse spirituality with religion and by picking at

several holes in the field of religion put spokes in this path of fusion.

In my own opinion it is not the fusion of science and spirituality that is

needed, but it is the re-formation (I deliberately call it re-formation) of

scientists that is needed. They have to re-orient themselves towards the facet

of Spirituality (devoid of all the superstitions of religious dogma) so that

they look at Spirituality as another field of enquiry as sacred as the noble

quest of Science after Truth. Therefore I would rather strive for a symbiosis

(living together to co-exist as the indispendable two sides of a coin) of

science and spirituality rather than their synthesis.

This is what I call two algebras, both true in their own context and on their

own hypotheses, but the contradictions that are flaunted forth by warring

protagonists of either are not really contradictions. They are truths based on

different hypotheses. The fact that there could be different hypotheses is what

is to be granted by the scientist. Truth is one, but may present different

facets to different quests. The Scientist has to look at himself, the

scientist, rather than his science, and this is what makes the question one of

symbiosis rather than synthesis.

 

praNAms to all advaitins

profvk

 

 

 

=====

Prof. V. Krishnamurthy

My website on Science and Spirituality is http://www.geocities.com/profvk/

You can access my book on Gems from the Ocean of Hindu Thought Vision and

Practice, and my father R. Visvanatha Sastri's manuscripts from the site.

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

shri Madathil Nair said

> [...]

> May I request a scientist

> among us, say Sadanandji or Sreenivasji, to first of all identify

> and list the areas where the two camps share common ground and begin

> discussions in right earnest on an issue by issue basis?

> Pranams.

> Madathil Nair

 

namaste.

 

(While I was drafting the following, I saw posts by shri

profvk and shri shrinivas, so put this post under the same

thread.)

 

Such a discussion (on inter-relation between spirituality

and science) may be useful, but I am skeptical about it.

 

After all, they (science and spirituality) are at different

levels. Let me take quantum mechanics as an example. Quantum

mechanics is an intellectually stimulating topic, but is still

an intellectual science. Intellectual science can never approach

or approximate to spiritual Knowledge. Sage NArada's lamenting

(to SanatkumAra) in ChAndogya upaniShad makes this point very clear.

NArada has mastered evety intellectual science, yet could not find

the bliss he was searching for. Only AtmavidyA would provide that.

Also, study of any of these intellectual sciences is not a

pre-requisite for AtmavidyA. Thus, the point I am trying to make is:

atmavidyA cannot be taken up similar to study of intellectual science.

And none of the intellectual sciences can approximate AtmavidyA.

There may be many objections to this stance on our List itself.

Let me initiate the discussion with the above viewpoint.

 

Regards

Gummuluru Murthy

------

[Guest guest]

namaste.

 

In our continuing dialogue on intellectual science and spirituality:

 

In the earlier post in this thread, I gave the example of sage

nAradA's lament to sanatkumAra in chAndogya uanishad as example

of how intellectual science cannot approach the AtmavidyA. I give

another example below in support of this understanding.

 

For devI upAsakA-s, shrilalitAtrishatI from BrahmANDa purANa

is as good as the vedA-s. In this, Lord HayagrIva teaches

shrIvidyA (shrIcakravidyA) to sage Agastya. UttarapIThika

of shrilalitAtrishatI is the teaching of shrIvidyA. As part

of that, Lord hayagrIva says

 

.... na shilpAdi jnAnayukte vidyachchabda prayujyate

mokshaikahetu vidyAsA shrIvidyaiva na saMsayaH ....

 

rough translation:

 

sciences like the study of rocks (example for intellectual

science) go by the name of vidyA-s. However, shrIvidyA is the

only route for moksha. Of this, there is no doubt.

 

Regards

Gummuluru Murthy

 

[Guest guest]

Namaste Murthyji.

 

Kindly tell me where I can access shrilalitAtrishashtI on the net (in

Devnagari script or English transliteration with our without

interpretation).

 

Thanks and best regards.

 

Madathil Nair

 

__________

 

)advaitin, Gummuluru Murthy <gmurthy@m...> wrote:

>

> For devI upAsakA-s, shrilalitAtrishatI from BrahmANDa purANa

> is as good as the vedA-s--------------------

[Guest guest]

On Tue, 30 Apr 2002, madathilnair wrote:

> Namaste Murthyji.

>

> Kindly tell me where I can access shrilalitAtrishashtI on the net (in

> Devnagari script or English transliteration with our without

> interpretation).

>

> Thanks and best regards.

>

> Madathil Nair

>

> __________

>

 

 

namaste shri madathil-ji,

 

There are quite a few sites which have shrilalitAtrishatI.

some of them are

 

 

www.ambaa.org/trishati/trishati1.html

 

[ list at discusses various aspects of devI worship]

 

 

www.hindunet.com/stotras/xdvng/trishati.html

 

sanskrit.gde.to/doc_devii/doc_devii.html

 

Also, our own profvk-ji's homepage used to have shrilalitAtrishatI's

meanings. I think they are still there.

 

 

Regards

Gummuluru Murthy

------

[Guest guest]

Murthygaru,

 

Yes. The Lalitatrisati pages are still there, starting from

 

http://www.geocities.com/profvk/gohitvip/1216.html

 

but it is only a selection of a few names that I thought I could elaborate on.

Regards

profvk

 

=====

Prof. V. Krishnamurthy

My website on Science and Spirituality is http://www.geocities.com/profvk/

You can access my book on Gems from the Ocean of Hindu Thought Vision and

Practice, and my father R. Visvanatha Sastri's manuscripts from the site.

 

 

 

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