You Need Higher Knowledge
to Make Sense of Lower Knowledge

Schools, colleges and universities claim to teach students all they need to know to succeed, but do they actually deliver on their promise? Do students automatically become successful simply because their diplomas and degrees enhance their ability to earn a livelihood? Based on your own personal experience, how do you define success? Do you believe that an education can fully prepare individuals if it does not teach them how to govern themselves, peacefully and creatively when dealing with all their thoughts, desires, emotions and the endless charms and attractions the world has to offer? Remember Krishna's warning in the Bhagavad Gita, "When you know no peace, it is impossible to know joy."

The ability to earn money is important, but when it becomes the exclusive goal of our institutions of higher learning, that limited education cannot fully serve the individual, the family, the nation and the world. Recognizing the inherent dangers in such a barren educational philosophy, ancient yogic sages examined the nature of knowledge to determine what kinds of knowledge were most beneficial. Their findings, received so long ago, remain remarkably relevant to our modern times and challenges.

In the Mundaka Upanishad, an earnest student named Shaunaka visited the sage Angirasa to discover the meaning of life and experience unbounded happiness. Shaunaka asked his teacher this provocative question: "Sir, what is that knowledge by which everything in the world becomes known?" Angirasa answered his student by classifying knowledge (vidya), into two distinct categories: apara vidya (knowledge of this world) and para vidya (knowledge of the Absolute Truth).

Apara vidya is every form of knowledge that is obtained through the process of reasoning and from the contact of the mind and senses with objects in the material world. Apara vidya is received indirectly, as hearsay, from outside sources such as lectures, books, the internet, television and other conventional methods of education. Apara vidya is far-reaching and a worthy form of knowledge. It includes the sciences, arts, commerce, management and technology. When an individual specializes in knowledge concerning a particular aspect of the world, that apara vidya can make one successful and prosperous. But, as the sage Angirasa explained, without the higher knowledge of the absolute (para vidya), that person will never be content nor liberated from the pain, misery or bondage of human existence. And because contentment (santosha) is the greatest of all wealths, every human being eventually is moved to investigate and cultivate a higher knowledge.

Para vidya (also known as Brahma vidya--the science of God) is the higher, or direct knowledge, received through one's own personal experience. It is a profound, eternal knowledge that automatically comes to individuals as they increasingly base their thoughts, words and deeds on their own inner, intuitive wisdom. It is considered the highest form of knowledge because it represents a changeless, eternal Truth that lies beyond the changing relativity of the phenomenal world. Just as a razor shaves off the hair of a beard covering the face, para vidya removes the personality's superimposed veil of ignorance--the fear, anger and greed that obscure our Divine Nature: Sat-Chit-Ananda (Eternal, Consciousness/ Wisdom and Bliss).

The distinction between higher and lower knowledge was also reiterated in the Chandogya Upanishad. In that teaching, the spiritual seeker Narada went to the sage Sanat Kumara to acquire higher knowledge. Narada was asked to discuss what he knew. In response, Narada admitted that even though he knew the finer points of mathematics, astronomy, science, the arts and logic, there was no end to his desires and cravings and, therefore, no peace of mind and satisfaction.

Ministering to Narada's consternation, Sanat Kumara explained that all memorized lower knowledge of the material world (apara vidya) was secondary. Only the supreme, eternal knowledge of the Absolute Truth (para vidya) could facilitate the appropriate application of lower knowledge in order to fulfill the purpose of life.

For most of us, the eternal Truth of the divinity in man remains shrouded by the seemingly impenetrable veil of our thoughts, desires and emotions. It is only by knowing and realizing the higher Self or Eternal Witness within us through direct, personal experience that the compulsive identification with the gross body/mind/sense complex can cease. This is the genius of spiritual practice (sadhana). By applying the wisdom of para vidya in everyday relationships, human beings prove the abstract, philosophical Truth that provides the clear vision we need in order to act skillfully in the world with an appropriate form of lower knowledge.

For this life-saving endeavor, some outside assistance is needed. This is the role of education: to unravel the profound mystery of life in order to facilitate the liberation of each human being and to provide the framework for the life-affirming norms and values of a compassionate civilization.

The ground on which a physical science claims superiority over other streams of secular knowledge is that its theories are based on and verifiable through laboratory tests. But no matter how many years a student studies and verifies the truths of chemistry, he or she will never become a chemical. Similarly, a practicing zoologist never becomes an animal. And a botanist never becomes a plant. But the amazing power of para vidya is that when one studies and applies the higher knowledge in thought, word and deed, she realizes that she already is and always was that which she has been studying: the absolute eternal Truth.

Knowledge of both para vidya and apara vidya is necessary to live successfully in the world, yet only para vidya can lead an individual to freedom, enlightenment and the fulfillment of life's true purpose. Although apara vidya enables an individual to know the functioning of the mind, actions and speech, it does not reveal the ultimate, underlying Reality or root cause of the universe. Para vidya doesn't teach about the specific objects of the universe, but it does enable an earnest seeker of Truth to understand the underlying fabric of the universe. Just as by knowing gold, all gold ornaments can be known, by knowing para vidya, the most beneficial way to cultivate relationships with the objects of the universe is known in its entirety.

A very old story illustrates the importance and practical benefit of being grounded in para vidya while engaging with the objects of the world.

A wealthy man owned 19 horses when he died. Through his last will and testament he bequeathed half the horses he owned to his only son, one fourth to the village temple and one fifth to his faithful servant.

After reading the will, the village elders were puzzled. How could they possibly give half of the 19 horses to the son? You can't divide a horse in half. They brooded over this dilemma unsuccessfully for more than two weeks and finally decided to send for a wise man who was living in a neighboring village.

Soon the sage arrived, riding on his horse, and asked how he might be service. The elders explained to him that the rich man's final request was that half of the 19 horses be given to his only son, one fourth to the temple and one fifth to the faithful servant.

Upon hearing the dilemma, the sage promptly announced that he would be glad to solve their problem. He instructed the villagers to arrange all 19 horses in a single row--standing side by side. When that was accomplished, he added his own steed as the 20th horse. The sage then gave half of the 20 horses--that is 10 horses, to the son. One fourth of 20--that is 5 horses, were given to the temple committee, and one fifth of twenty--that is 4 horses, were given to the faithful servant. Ten plus five plus four made 19 horses. The remaining 20th horse was his own--which he promptly mounted. Before he departed he delivered a few inspiring words to the crowd that had assembled, standing in awe and admiration of his wisdom.

The parting words of the wise man were inscribed in their hearts and minds, cherished and passed on to their succeeding generations till today. The sage spoke plainly: "In the daily affairs of life, when you are aware of the Absolute Divine Reality Within and then go about facing the day's happenings, everything that is needed will come. Simply add the God Principle into your everyday life, and your problems will become lighter and lighter and eventually they will disappear."

Without the divine vision of higher knowledge, lower knowledge is like a boat out of water. It's not difficult for a boat on water to be moved to its intended port, but it is virtually impossible to arrive at that destination if the boat is dragged on dry land. It is only para vidya, knowledge of the Absolute Truth, that liberates and illuminates human creative capacity.

In acknowledgment of this principle, American psychologist Abraham Maslow noted, "When the only tool you own is a hammer, every problem begins to resemble a nail." To direct humanity in finding the appropriate tool that ends dis-ease, Albert Einstein provided this clue, "Problems cannot be solved at the same level of awareness that created them. They can only be solved on a higher level." But if our institutions of "higher" learning continue to instruct students only in the lower worldly knowledge (apara vidya) that enhances their ability to make a living, yet another generation will remain unschooled and ill-prepared to access creative solutions that can resolve personal, cultural, political, economic and environmental problems.

Many years ago my automobile mechanic unwittingly spoke to me as an instrument of Guru (the universal force of light of higher knowledge that dispels the darkness). He remarked that, "If you have the correct tool, every job is easy." The higher knowledge of para vidya is that appropriate tool for every situation because it teaches us about the divine, Supreme Intelligence existing at our human core. Para vidya--the higher knowledge realized through the systematic practice of Yoga Science--is the appropriate tool that can help each of us make sense of the world and provide us, in every situation, the intuitive wisdom to overcome all our difficulties and all our ills.

Leonard is a philosopher, educator, author and founder of the American Meditation Institute.

Half an Education



By Linda Johnsen

Harvard, Yale, Stanford--we Americans believe we have the best educational system in the world. Students from all over the Earth come here to learn how to be doctors and engineers, software designers and business managers. I was surprised to hear that even many foreigners who shout "Death to America!" still aspire to send their children to American universities.

Swami Rama was much less impressed with the Western system of education. "Your colleges teach you to know medicine and how to build buildings and bridges, and all the sciences of the world. But who teaches you how to know yourself? What college teaches the science of the world within?"

He'd first become concerned about this issue when he arrived in the U.S. forty years ago. Swamiji was deeply disenchanted by his experience at the Menninger Foundation in Topeka in 1970. He had placed himself at the disposal of researchers in an effort to show Western scientists and educators what authentically trained yogis are actually capable of. But all the researchers could measure was his heart rate, brain waves, and body temperature. Swami Rama's control of every cell in his body-demonstrated under rigorous laboratory conditions-produced a revolution in our understanding of the autonomic nervous system. But these findings were trivial in his view. What he had really wanted to show the scientists in Topeka was his ability to shift at will through higher states of consciousness. He assumed they'd be eager to explore "the world within."

Years later, describing his work at Menninger, Swami Rama admitted he had been shocked at the limitations of Western science in exploring the multidimensional universe of consciousness. He was surprised that many of the states of higher awareness commonly accessed by his fellow yogis back in the Himalayas couldn't be described in English-we don't even have words for them! Doctors here can painstakingly delineate the details of each human organ system, yet they don't acknowledge that mental states transcending the body's neural apparatus are possible. To Swamiji this was like outlining all the mechanical parts of a Rolls Royce without recognizing that if you don't have a driver, the car won't roll forward even an inch.

This blind spot in Western-style education has many ramifications. Here's one obvious example. I've always been interested in cultural anthropology. Yet I'm continually amazed at how much information anthropologists miss because they have no personal experience with higher states of awareness. Modern civilization may be the first thoroughly secular culture in world history.

If you asked the ancient Egyptians or Mesoamericans or Polynesians where they originally acquired many of their extraordinary skills in architecture, astronomy or navigation, almost invariably they'd answer, "The gods showed us how to do it." It's the same thing in India. Ancient Hindu scientific books open by offering their respect to the gods, whom they say are the source of the information they contain. Modern researchers roll their eyes, refusing to take these claims seriously. Yet the fact that ancient people spoke in mythological language doesn't mean what they said wasn't true. We just need to understand what they mean by the "god" who provides wisdom.

In very intense states of meditative focus, the solution to a problem or a profound scientific or technological insight can instantaneously flash in the mind, fully formed. This blazing flash of insight is called pratibha in Sanskrit. It's not verbal or visual; it's a deep internal realization that's completely clear and obvious. It appears whole, not in parts, a total conceptual picture.

Charaka Samhita, the foundational text of Indian medicine, relates that thousands of years ago the sages were moved by compassion at all the suffering caused by disease. So they sat down and meditated. Brilliant insights into the nature of the physical body flashed in their awareness, along with practical methods for alleviating ill health, which have been used with success for over two millennia. The sages attributed this knowledge to Dhanvantari, the physician god. The real source was divine consciousness. Deep internal states experienced in meditation provide access to the blueprints on which the physical universe is based. A physician who turns within in search of a remedy calls this expanded state of awareness Dhanvantari. In ancient India an architect might call the source of his inspiration Asuramaya, the god of architecture. An ancient Hindu stargazer who suddenly grasped the mechanics of Mercury's complicated orbit would say his knowledge came from Ganesha, the god of astronomy. These were all different names for higher states of consciousness attained by focusing the mind. This is why in India divine consciousness is called paramguru, "the supreme teacher."

The Divine Interface

Not all shamans or aboriginal healers are capable of reaching high states of awareness through pure meditative absorption. Some use adjunct techniques to reach inner states, like dancing to the point of exhaustion, monotonous drumming, extreme fasting, or psychoactive substances. Anthropologists have reported numerous cases where a native healer enters an altered state and experiences a vision in which a god-like figure explains a specific new healing technique. From the yogic point of view, these men and women are gaining access to intuitive states through a mental interface consisting of deity-like images, much as we gain access to our computer hard drives through the icons on our screen. Advanced yogis skip the icons, diving directly into the universal hard drive of pure knowledge.

Especially talented artists also have access to these higher states. How often have you heard musicians report that a melody simply flashed in their mind, fully formed, as if it were a gift from a higher being who composed it for them? Paul McCartney told interviewers the tune for "Yesterday" simply appeared in his mind as he was waking up one morning. He didn't have to sit down and laboriously work out the music bar by bar. It instantly materialized in his awareness, in toto.

Western education offers us a million things to think about. Yoga leads us beyond thought to states in which truth is grasped intuitively. It trains us to focus our minds so that we can access the fountainhead of knowledge, healing and guidance. It can turn bright, focused minds into geniuses. For example, around the 4th century BCE a North Indian scholar named Panini was fascinated by language. He wanted to understand how it worked, how humans could make sounds with their mouths that communicate very specific information to others. According to the Indian tradition, Panini was also a great yogi. Seated for meditation, he experienced one major breakthrough after another in understanding the structure of language. His insights became the basis of the science of linguistics. Today scholars all over the world acknowledge that along with the likes of Newton and Einstein, Panini was one of the greatest geniuses who ever lived. What they often fail to realize is that his brilliance was rooted in yoga practice.

Accessing higher states can bring wisdom that no college course can offer. But it can do even more than that. The ultimate purpose for cultivating higher states is enlightenment. The highest states of all carry us beyond the mysteries of nature into the pure experience of consciousness itself. The sages explain that material universes come and go, but divine consciousness exists outside of time and space, impervious to death or decay. It is eternally fresh, lucid, and creative. To live in the light of divine consciousness is to experience moksha, liberation from suffering and fear.

In the past, most cultures were well versed in higher states of consciousness. Even the ancient Greeks described a state they called henosis, meaning the condition of unity (heno is Greek for "oneness") which priests, priestesses and philosophers experienced when they concentrated deeply. I don't believe we can ever understand ancient cultures fully till we appreciate that they valued inner education as much as knowledge of the outer world.

Inner Education 

In the yoga tradition knowledge of higher states and how to access them is preserved-and carefully guarded-in the oral tradition. When the student is prepared, the guru systematically leads him or her on the inner route past body and breath, mind and emotions, to pure spirit. The innermost Self was sometimes called chintamani in Sanskrit, meaning "the wish fulfilling gem of consciousness," because once we had access to our inner being we would gain insight into the nature of matter and energy, or any other worldly subject on which we focused our awareness. The technique for accomplishing this was called savikalpa samadhi, a state of inner unity with the object of our concentration. Or we could obtain liberation itself through nirvikalpa samadhi, a state of inner unity with our own pure being. Legends about the chintamani or "crest jewel of consciousness" are probably the original source of the Western myth of the philosopher's stone, which could turn lead (our darkened mortal state) into gold (enlightenment).

These inner states and the techniques for experiencing them are also described in Sanskrit texts called Agamas. These texts carefully distinguish between empirical knowledge-knowledge with practical value for our everyday life, like how to cook or earn a living or operate an iPod-and transcendent knowledge, which is not related to anything we perceive with our five senses or think about with our minds. Transcendent knowledge is not about anything. If you know about something, you're thinking of it as separate from yourself. The ultimate knowledge is unitary, pure oneness. We experience it when we release the awareness of our physical body, feelings, mental images, and intellectual concepts, relaxing into pure Self-awareness.

According to the major texts of the Himalayan tradition, the entire universe is projected out of the transcendent consciousness of the Supreme Being. When we dive into our inner being, we become increasingly cognizant of a field of awareness that transcends our body and individual identity. Entering that field gives access to many types of higher knowledge, and finally to the ultimate experience: Self-realization.

Modern education invites us to peer through telescopes at distant galaxies, but doesn't teach us to stop for even a moment to explore the inner source of our own being. As I said earlier, there are many ramifications of this impoverished world-view. Not only do we fail to understand other, more spiritually enlivened cultures, we also fail to know ourselves. We replace Self-knowledge with drugs and alcohol, empty-headed entertainment, religious fanaticism, overworking, overeating, oversleeping-anything to fill the void inside that should be vibrant with Self-recognition and authentic spirituality.

I believe we're extraordinarily fortunate that truly great yoga masters have visited our shores, seeding Western culture with yoga studios and meditation centers. Here we can receive the spiritual education that is otherwise missing in our modern world.

Linda Johnsen, M.S. is a regular contributor to Transformation, author of "Lost Masters: The Sages of Ancient Greece" and seven other books on spiritual life currently available at the AMI bookstore.

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