Dubious Claims

We have seen that the ascending process-which is what we can call this method for acquiring knowledge by building upward from our present position and trying to draw conclusions from our sense perceptions, psychological dispositions, etc.-is a very unlikely way to attain self-realization. There is, however, another process for attaining knowledge of spiritual life, which we may call the descending process. It may be very difficult to reach the Supreme by our limited tools and means, and certainly there are many examples of big yogis and philosophers who have failed to do this in the past, but if the Supreme reveals Himself to us by descending in some form or representation, then where is the difficulty? If the Supreme, from His transcendental position of perfect knowledge, reveals Himself and the path by which He can be attained, then what would have been almost impossible to achieve-that is, transcendental knowledge-becomes readily available, having descended from the Supreme Transcendence.

The question then arises, "Is such a revelation available?" Certainly, in this age, there are many men who claim to have seen or be seeing God by some kind of divine revelation or yogic perfection, but are they full of bliss and satisfaction? If one is an associate of the Supreme Being, he should display complete satisfaction without material attachment; but these men who claim to see God and know God still display attachment and love for many mundane objects, and they continue to work hard for their material facilities just like anyone else. So we may think, "If this is God consciousness, what good is it?"

The same goes for the many so-called incarnations of God. In major cities around the world, it is a fact that at least three or four times a year another man comes to town who claims to be God-or, more exactly, his followers claim it, and he accepts: "Yes, they have guessed it." If we are skeptical, we may see that he himself is not always displaying satisfaction (here we have to be careful-he may be a good actor), nor does he fill us with unlimited bliss and knowledge, nor can he display the unlimited power, beauty, and opulence of the Supreme Being. If we are serious about solving the problems of life by actually attaining the spiritual platform of existence, we then go away thinking, "That was all very interesting, but what tangible benefit have I gained?"

The so-called prophets, masters and incarnations do us little good. But there is another source of revelation of the Supreme which we can consider. It is not so flashy or romantic, but is at the same time much more profound and substantial. This source of descended knowledge is the Vedas.