How can we gain clarity in our philosophical understanding?

Answer Podcast

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
So, how can we get clarity of understanding so that we can remember things and they can register in our consciousness. Sometimes we read what we just pass over, we don’t notice those points.
Yes, our fundamental principle in knowledge acquisition is that what we can know depends on what we know. What we can know depends on what we know. That means that, say, if your child is sick, you may just notice the color, the face complexion has become pale, there is some trembling, the temperature has increased.
And by that you can infer that there is something wrong here. But if you go to a doctor, take the same kind of doctor, doctor will immediately know so much more. Maybe this is a flu or maybe this is some other fever, what it is.
So, now the same symptoms are being observed, but based on one’s background knowledge, what one observes, one can learn much more from what one has observed. So, what one can know depends on what we already know. And that’s why in the initial stages of spiritual life, almost 80-90% of our understanding comes primarily by hearing.
Reading is important as a service to scripture, but the understanding primarily comes through hearing. And that’s why if we can find out some devotees, because there are so many devotees and there are so many classes available, which we can hear, but we all have particular natures. And if we find that some devotees’ classes just click with us, then we need to make an effort to hear from them regularly.
So, by that our understanding will deepen. Because even among devotees, there are different devotees who come from different backgrounds, they present things in different ways. So, if we find someone with whom we click, then we should see that Krishna is extending His hand through them for us.
Some devotees may like some Bhagavad Gita type of classes which are given, but some Hindi by some speakers. Some devotees may like a lot of humors, entertaining classes, basically whatever it is. So, first thing is that we recognize that most of our understanding comes from hearing primarily, in the initial stages.
And those from whom, when we hear, we get illuminated, we should hear from them regularly. Second is that, yes, clarity does come by contemplation a lot. And for me, actually, it has happened primarily by writing.
Because when we have to write something, we have to think carefully. I think a lot because there is, if I give you a class, and if I have not said something clearly, I can immediately see the audience’s expression and see that they are not getting it. But, if I write something and it is not clear, then there is no way I am going to come to know that.
So, I myself have to figure it out. So, then I have to put in a lot of thought to prepare things accordingly. So, writing things down forces us to think clearly.
Prabhupada also writes in one letter to Satsvarupa Maharaj, that words are the best ways to save ourselves from forgetting Krishna. Words are the best ways to save ourselves from forgetting Krishna. Always think of the best words to use in serving Krishna.
So, if we find certain sentences, certain words, certain terms, certain usages, as very striking, then we can spend some time in internalizing them, not just memorizing them, but truly contemplating and internalizing them. That also helps us a lot in both our own internal contemplation and our outer expression, when we want to communicate with others. Taking notes is helpful, but again, we shouldn’t assume that because we have taken notes, we are internalizing.
Because the mind is so tricky, that actually taking notes helps in contemplating, it helps in internalizing. But that happens only when we revisit the notes. Sometimes we just make the notes and then we forget them.
We don’t take the time out to revisit them. That’s why taking notes is good, but the important point is regular connections. We make notes, we spend a little time going through the notes, and then we can ask ourselves, this is too detailed a point.
This was not really important. What was this? I couldn’t figure it out. Maybe I should have written a little more in detail.
Basically, the notes are definitely an aid in contemplating, but the notes should be used as an aid. They don’t automatically ensure contemplating. Yeah, so afterwards we should visit it.
That’s my point. If we don’t note it, definitely we’ll lose a lot of it. So definitely noting is helpful.
But noting alone is not helpful. That’s the point I’m making. After noting, we should take time out to contemplate.
And usually what I try to do in the first 10-12 years of my life was I would have several notebooks, but then they themselves became a pile. Then I would highlight and I would take those out into a shorter pocket diary. Now, of course, we don’t need pocket diaries.
We can have notes in our phones. But condensed nuggets from our notes also, if we take out the strongest points and keep them with us, and we, suppose we are waiting somewhere to meet someone and we just have a couple of minutes, at that time if we try to take a Bhagavad Gita and read the Bhagavad Gita, it becomes very difficult to connect with it. But if we just have some solid point, just read it at that time, it will just strike us and it can empower us at that time.
Because it’s a discrete point that is complete in itself. Whereas when we are reading a full book, we have to get into the flow of the book and we have to get some points from there. So, using the notes is very helpful.
So, I call these as contemplation capsules. Just like when you take a capsule. So, based on what we have heard, we can prepare our own set of contemplation capsules and use them.
And by that, by repeated exposure, just as when you sharpen a, or when you polish a diamond, then it shines more. So, like that when we keep revisiting and contemplating the points, then they really become clear, vivid for us. And when they come out, when we also speak about them, there will be clarity in our speech about them.