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After explaining what the instruments or tools of Knowledge are, Patanjali sets on defining Correct and incorrect Knowledge.

Knowledge is simply Awareness, that there is something.

This is the beginning of Perception.

For perception, please read my Post ‘Perception’

For awareness, three things are needed.

The one who perceives(Subject)

That which is Perceived(Object) and

A  Relationship between these two(Subject and the Object)

A Table (Object) may be there and you ( Subject) are present..

If you see the Table in front of your eyes, the system you follow is Realism.

You are in a room and the Table in another room.

But you know that the table exists m because you know it used to be there.

This is Objective Idealism.

There might be stable in your friend’s House in some other place or take the instance of Mars.

In this case, you do not have the idea as such personally.

But it exists as an Idea in some one else’s Mind.

When we take things to Be, of which we have no IDEA,it is called Subjective Idealism or Solipsism., because it Exists as an Idea in some one else’s Mind.

‘Forget every thing, I am able to write on this, it has four legs and a Top’

This is Pragmatism.

Every information is through Language, that is from Words.

In a Language, words are logically connected(excepting for the Politicians).

So to know clearly one has to simply understand the logical connectivity and analyse the. language and words’the logical connectivity between them.

This is Called Logical Positivism.

All these systems evolved on being aware of.

By following all systems or any, still we are left with Incorrect Awareness(Knowledge).

This Incorrect Knowledge prevents us from the Correct Knowledge.

There is an interesting thought on this.

What is Correct?

That which is True all times?

The funny thing is what or how we define Truth.

Secondly if existence at all times is the criteria for  Correct Knowledge, no Knowledge is Correct for none of us will be around whether a particular thing will be there to after our Death.

In fact things do change.

What we have seen yesterday is no the same to-day.

Take an Individual.

I was 10, 25. 40 and 62 now.

Every second I grow.

I am different in all aspects this second from what I was seconds earlier.

The what is the Truth about Me?

An instance from Adi Sankara‘s Life.

Adi Sankara was engaged in an argument on  Theory of Knowledge( Epistemology) with the Buddhists.

Adi Sankara’s Advaita and Sunya Vada of Buddhists are poles apart.

The Buddhists said,

‘Look at this candle, it has been burning for quite some time now.

It has consumed Energy, its throwing around light has  reduced it  the quality(intensity) of Luminescence .

It is dripping wax , affecting its Mass.

So the Candle which we see this second is not the same as the one we saw a seconds ago.

Therefore, Change alone is Real’

Sankara replied,

I agree with you entirely.

Yet , with all the changes you say, how is it you say it is a Candle ?

If it has been changing every second, as you rightly said., how come w still call it a Candle?

The reason is that we KNOW, despite all the apparent changes,there is substratum running which is Permanent, through which we know a Thing exists”

Now Patanjali speaks of Incorrect Knowledge thus.

‘Viaparyayo mithya Gnanam  atad rupa pratishtam’

Wrong knowledge does not correspond the to the Real thing.

I will post more information on this in the next Sutra as well.

Note; As we enter slowly into Patanjali, the thoughts may be, just may be a bit abstract.

I am trying to be as clear as possible.

Please write to me if there is any query.

And of course if there are any mistakes.

* let no one be intimidated by these high sounding words like ‘Epistemology’ and  ‘isms”

They are just sounds that’s all by the Scholars to scare you.

The thought behind them is very simple, your grand mother can explain them simpler.

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• Denying Senses Is Not Yoga, Patanjali Yoga Sutra 3 (ramanan50.wordpress.com)
• Manage Pleasures Patanjali Yoga Sutra 5 (ramanan50.wordpress.com)