Get Perfect Knowledge ?

[Vrindavan]

It is stated that the best way to get Perfect Knowledge is from authority.

 

But how can we know who is the authority ?

or how to select an authority ?

 

by direct evidence or inductive evidence,

which are both imperfect in the first place?

 

real life examples ?

 

 

Please help

 

[theist]

Krsna from within your heart and the hearts of all living beings has been directing the wanderings of all souls as we search high and low for happiness in this barren land of matter since time immemoriable.

 

He has been faciltating your desires both pious and impious is it not reasonable to assume He will fullfil your desire to find a genuine teacher? Of course He will.

 

You are right to not have faith in your sensual observations. Now with that same faith redirected towards Him pray that He reveal Himself to you and show you His Devotee manifestation in this world.

 

We can still use our intelligence, for instance if we see that a certain person always seems to be serving Krsna and speaking high Krsna conscious philosophy and we develop a certain attraction for hearing from such a person then we can pray to the Lord in the heart for confirmation.

 

Never be swayed by "offical" party sanction or charisma and heresay. Only be satisfied by the Lord's personal confirmation.

 

I see no alternative for this. If there is one perhaps someone would like to present it.

 

Srila Prabhupada said many times: "By the grace of Krsna one gets guru and by the grace of guru one gets Krsna."

[Pankaja_Dasa]

 

A GARLAND OF

VAISHNAVA TRUTHS

"Essential truth spoken concisely is true eloquence".

Here is the proof.

VAISHNAVA-SIDDHANTA-MALA

 

Strung in 1892 India by

OM VISNUPAD SRILA BHAKTIVINODE THAKURA

 

 

Q. What is self-evident truth?

 

A. There are two types of knowledge (jnana):

1) self-evident (svatah-siddha), and

2) that which depends on the senses (indriya-paratantra).

 

Self-evident knowledge is the natural truth that is inherently a feature of the pure spirit soul's original form. It is eternal, just as the totality of the divinely conscious realm is also eternal. This self-evident knowledge is called veda or amnaya. This veda, in the form of pure knowledge (siddha-jnana-rupa) has incarnated in the material world in the shape of Rk, Sama, Yajur and Atharva, along with the conditioned souls (baddha-jivas); this alone is the self-evident knowledge (svatah-siddha-jnana). Whatever knowledge that ordinary souls can gather through the use of their material senses is only the second type of knowledge, or indriya-paratantra (dependent on the senses).

 

Q. Can anyone know the Bhagavat-tattva (the truth of the Lord) by indriya-paratantra-jnana (sensual knowledge)?

 

A. No. Bhagavan, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is beyond the scope of all the material senses. For this reason, He is known as Adhoksaja. The senses, as well as all the material conceptions gathered from the sense perceptions, always remain very far away from the Bhagavat-tattva, the truth of the Lord.

 

Q. If Bhagavan is attainable through self-evident knowledge (svatah-siddha-jnana), then we should be able to attain Him by whatever svatah-siddha-jnana that we presently have. What then is the need to study the Vedic scriptures?

 

A. The Veda is present in every pure spirit soul's existence in the form of svatah-siddha-jnana. According to the different levels of different souls in the materially conditioned state, this Veda will spontaneously manifest itself to one person, or may remain veiled to someone else.

 

Therefore, to help reawaken the forgetful conditioned souls to the eternally self-evident truths, the Veda has also incarnated in the form of written books which may be studied, recited and heard.

 

[Vrindavan]

Clarification of my question

 

Ref to

http://www.audarya-fellowship.com/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=hinduism&Number=72616&Forum=hinduism&Match=And&Searchpage=0&Limit=25&Old=allposts&Main=71651&Search=true#Post72616

 

The Vedas are considered to be the mother, and Brahma is called the grandfather, the forefather, because he was the first to be instructed in the Vedic knowledge. In the beginning the first living creature was Brahma. He received this Vedic knowledge and imparted it to Narada and other disciples and sons, and they also distributed it to their disciples. In this way, the Vedic knowledge comes down by disciplic succession. It is also confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita that Vedic knowledge is understood in this way. If you make experimental endeavor, you come to the same conclusion, but just to save time you should accept. If you want to know who your father is and if you accept your mother as the authority, then whatever she says can be accepted without argument. There are three kinds of evidence: pratyaksa, anumana and sabda. Pratyaksa means "direct evidence." Direct evidence is not very good because our senses are not perfect. We are seeing the sun daily, and it appears to us just like a small disc, but it is actually far, far larger than many planets. Of what value is this seeing? Therefore we have to read books; then we can understand about the sun. So direct experience is not perfect. Then there is an anumana, inductive knowledge: "It may be like this"-hypothesis. For instance, Darwin's theory says it may be like this, it may be like that. But that is not science. That is a suggestion, and it is also not perfect. But if you receive the knowledge from the authoritative sources, that is perfect. If you receive a program guide from the radio station authorities, you accept it. You don't deny it; you don't have to make an experiment, because it is received from the authoritative sources.

 

My Question is like :

 

>> If you want to know who your father is and if you accept your mother as the authority

 

How do i know the person is my real/true mother ?

 

How do you know who is the authority, by direct evidence or inductive evidence, which are both imperfect in the first place?

 

We are subject to make mistake on selecting/trusting who is authority ??

[Pankaja_Dasa]

 

 

You know who your Father is IF you mother tells you. But if she lies then you'll never know. [Even with a DNA test].

 

There are certain ways to acquire knowledge in that post I gave above. Either by Sastra or by sense perception. Then there are cetain methods, for example analogy of the Sun as God, because it is so great, things like this. That's very ancient. For example nobody can look directly at the Sun without being blinded. So you cannot approach God with your senses when they are material. That's some analogies. I am sure there are many more.

 

Also in that post I gave above, it says the Knowledge is within us, the Vedas are THIS knowledge. It's the same thing. Then what is knowledge? Knowledge into inquiring what is Brahman. [God].

 

I too find it impossible to resist speculating about Spirit and Matter, in fact over the past weeks, I noticed I could if I went down this road become an Athiest. Athiest is somebody who doesn't believe in Sastra, or Sadhus [i suspect Sadhus could change thier minds].

 

Maya is very strong, some how or another she will MAKE you serve somebody. [sences, people, dogs etc]. If you look around we are all serving somebody. My dear friend listen to Prabhupada Lectures, for hours and hours hear from pure devotee. In Humility. When you faith becomes lax. Then it's time to hear.

 

I hope I didn't say anything offensive. Haribol!