Is there any necessity to spead divine knowledge?

The respectable saint says that there is no necessity to propagate the knowledge because it spreads by it self.  This is against the experience.  The knowledge does not propagate like scent. It only propagates by discourses, debates, books, E-mails etc. of course, it means that there is no need of forcing anybody to propagate the knowledge, if the knowledge has merit.  To show this point as a representation, Swami used to emit  fragrance of lotus flowers during the discourses and this was experienced by several devotees.  But this miracle has only the significance of representing the concept that the knowledge is spread by its own merit like the scent.  The Lord does not need any body for His work.  It is only by the grace of the Lord, one gets the fortune to serve the Lords’ mission.

Rama does not require help of monkeys but He gave the chance only to bless them.  The Lord knows the required talents of a person for propagation.  In the time of Sankara almost all were Sanskrit scholars.  He needed Sanskrit scholars in sastra like Mandana Misra for propagation of the knowledge.  Sankara was never involved in any other regional language.  But when Ramanuja came, regional languages came up.  Therefore, Ramanuja was involved not only in the Sanskrit language but also in Tamil language.  He was giving the authority of the scriptures in Tamil also. Today the Sanskrit language has almost disappeared.  The area of propagation was India for Sankara and Ramanuja.  But today the area of propagation is entire world for Swami and English is international language. Today scholars in sastra are also very rare, but every body is in touch with science.

 Therefore, Swami needs the scholars in English who have good touch with science for the propagation.  The word science here means the analysis of the worldly objects.    Therefore, since the Lord did not wish, those Sanskrit scholars who came in touch with Swami were not instigated for propagation.  Without wish of the Lord no body can enter His service.  The Lord will not select the candidates who are not qualified to work in the present situation.  When any facility is available by the nature, the Lord will use it.  Only when extreme necessity comes the Lord uses His super power.  Sankara walked all over India for debates because there were no computers and E-mails or phones through which arguments can done.  Once He wanted to argue with Kumarila Bhatta.  But when Sankara looked through divine vision, the Bhatta was burning his body as a self punishment for sin by sitting in the husk of paddy which is ignited with fire.  

The body is slowly catching the fire.  For Sankara there is no time to walk.  Therefore, there was a bare necessity to use His super power.  Immediately he traveled through the space and He was there in few seconds.  But today when the debates can be done through the E-mails, there is no need of leaving the house for the propagation of the knowledge either by walk or by traveling through space using super power especially when the aero plane is available.  One should leave the house only if the atmosphere is extremely opposing the spiritual sadhana.  There is no need of leaving the house just for the propagation because the computer technology is available today.  Sankara and Mandana Misra left houses on that day when such facility was not available.  Therefore, the back ground of any saint in the present time is to be carefully analyzed and you should not respect the saint simply for the age, red robe, leaving the house, traditional study etc.   The traditional scholars pose too much that they have studied sastra in Sanskrit.  In fact, Tarka Sastra is exactly the present science in which analysis of all the items and phenomenae of the Universe exists (Tarkyante Padarthah Asmin Iti Tarkah).

There is no greatness of any language.  After all, any language is just a vehicle of communication of knowledge.  In fact, science is superior to Tarka Sastra because Tarka Sastra is only theory, where as science is theory supported by experimentation.  Certain concepts of Tarka Sastra are proved wrong by science.  The Tarka sastra says that sound travels in space.  It is wrong. Sound needs a medium of matter for propagation.  Tarka says that gold is special form of energy because it does not corrode.  But it is wrong. According to science, gold does not corrode because the product of its corrosion is instantaneously disassociated back in to gold, since the corrosion reaction is a fast reversible equilibrium.   Therefore, tradition has no value.  Only the truth in the tradition has value.  Whether the truth is traditional or modern truth is truth.   The contact with the Satguru and subsequently receiving the true knowledge and its subsequent assimilation which leads to practice is the greatest qualification in spiritual path.  All the other points are waste. You might have left the house and family members.

You might have become saint by taking the orange robe, you might have roamed all over the country and met several saints, you might have studied sastras in Sanskrit in a traditional way, you might not have eaten garlic etc. All this is of no use if you do not catch Satguru and get the real guidance and implement it.  When you go to an interview, you will be tested in the assimilation of the knowledge of that subject and in its experimentation.  Without proving that you have realized the concepts and the correct interpretations, will you be selected by saying that you have left the house with great urge and roamed from college to college and studied the course in uniform dress and also attained degree etc?  The job is not given directly to the degree holder without interview.  You might have got the degree by memorizing the subject.  You must be tested in the realization of the subject.  The realization of subject comes only with the help of Sat Guru but not from a Guru who has also memorized the subject.  You can not reach the goal without proper direction.  The proper direction can be given only by the right knowledge which is given by only by right Guru.  If the knowledge is right, your practice will be right and you will achieve the right result.  

Therefore, one should not fall in the illusion of dress, traditional practices, language, traditional studies, leaving the family, leaving the house to roam every where, in having great urge etc. What is the value of urge if you are in the wrong the direction without assimilating the right knowledge?    You have lot of urge and left every thing but you are going in the wrong direction.  Therefore, you should raise above all these illusions and give importance to the analysis and search for truth only discarding all obstructions.  Mandana Misra was in traditional dress with Sanskrit language and traditional sastra following all the traditional rituals.  Vyasa came as saint with Sanskrit and sastra.  Sankara argued with them for days together on the point.

The cobbler was in bad dress without any tradition and was speaking in lower language (Prakrutam) but Sankara fell on his feet without any argument appreciating the point.  You just see the point and the subject and do not see any thing else because truth is beyond all the external factors.  Shiridi sai baba was eating garlic when a traditional brahmin visited him.  Sai told him “He who can digest the garlic can only eat the garlic”.

At Thy Lotus Feet His Holiness Sri Dattaswami

Anil Antony

www.universal-spirituality.org
Universal Spirituality for World Peace
antonyanil@universal-spirituality.org